Face to Face in the Workplace

Face to Face in the Workplace – Julie Cooper

(Spring Publishing, £20)

This is a great reference guide for understanding behaviour during one-to-one conversations in the workplace. Perhaps it’s not the first book a PA would pick up and use, but the topics it covers gives great advice for all sorts of outcomes and would be more than helpful to any assistant.

The book details the use of a framework to help manage workplace conversations, including how to deal with your boss, coping with change, and influencing and persuading – all areas a PA would find of great benefit. To demonstrate how the other person in the conversation may be feeling, the book uses the character Topi, an acronym for The Other Person Involved, to help you gain a deeper understanding of how the people you’re talking to may react to your conversation.

I found the book easy to read, fun and a great source of advice. I would highly recommend that any PA have this on their shelf.

Gill Wise, EA, Diageo