At the time of interviewing, Lydia McKay was EA to the co-founder of Pretty Little Thing. Having worked on the corporate side in previous job roles, McKay was ready to take on some new responsibilities as an EA at Pretty Little Thing when she landed the job a year ago. Jade Burke meets with her to find out how she…
read moreChampagne is one serious job perk Carys Stacey, executive assistant at Moët Hennessy Europe, gets to take advantage of. And with over four years’ experience as an assistant, she knows the job inside out. Jade Burke meets up with her to get the lowdown on the launch of her own internal network and why she believes recognition must come from…
read moreIt’s clear that the Coca-Cola brand runs through the veins of Samina Azam, EA to VP at Coca-Cola European Partners – her passion is palpable. With such a varied job role, Jade Burke visits the company’s headquarters in Uxbridge to find out why upskilling is so important to her and how she has overcome stereotypes during her career. Coca-Cola’s GB…
read moreWith over a decade of education experience under her belt, Sandy Chander – PA to Ricky Martin and communications and marketing officer at Hyper Recruitment Solutions Ltd (HRS) – embraced a career change as an assistant five years ago. Jade Burke catches up with her to find out how she hopes to raise more awareness of dyslexia and why she’s…
read moreAfter being exposed to the role of an assistant over a year ago, Claire Hunter, PA at recruitment company Bain and Gray, hasn’t looked back since. Jade Burke finds out why she took the plunge to move to London from Australia and why she feels work experience is so vital to kick-start a career The streets of Soho are buzzing…
read moreNot just work colleagues, Anna Chan, PA at Nickelodeon & Viacom Consumer Products and Joanna Khoo, EA to EVP, head of Velocity International at Viacom are close friends and have worked at the globally-recognised company for around eight years between them. Jade Burke catches up with the duo at Viacom’s Camden Town office, to discuss their careers and future goals…
read moreBased in London’s Canary Wharf, no day is ever the same for Elizabeth Mendes Da Silva, PA and project management for mobile payments at Barclays. Jade Burke finds out how winning a WATC Rising Star Award earlier this year has inspired her to launch her own business with her son, and now plans to offer more mentoring to women in…
read moreMale assistants are few and far between, so when I come across a man in the community I’m instantly intrigued to get his thoughts on the profession. Add to the mix the fact that Craig Harris, EA to the Fundraising Director at housing and homelessness charity Shelter, was recently crowned the first male winner of Pitman’s SuperAchievers PA of the…
read moreI have a rare opportunity to go to Facebook’s London office to interview Hannah Jepson, Executive Assistant and 2016 winner of PA of the Year at the London PA Awards. Arriving at the Euston campus, Hannah’s welcoming smile immediately tells me this is going to be a great morning and we get down to the nitty gritty of her career.…
read moreCharlotte Wibberley is the Founder of VIP VA and a Business Success Coach, helping women (particularly those with children) successfully juggle business and family and build their vision on their terms. How? By supporting them in making the transition from employment to self-employment and helping them create an authentic and adaptable business that fits around their lifestyles. Nurturing, supporting and…
read more“There are many people out there doing EA roles. There are 3.2 million in the UK alone doing admin roles and secretarial work, with 10 million working in positions that require admin skills to support their main job. In 2015, 20% of new UK roles were in ‘admin’ and over the next five years 1.2 million people are needed to…
read moreA few years ago Libby Moore ventured on a new journey she called ‘The Libby Moore Gypsy Tour’, which consisted of 365 days with no plan at all – other than to simply follow her heart. Fast forward to the here and now and she is a private coach, speaker, connector and mentor to high achievers who are looking for…
read moreI met Bristol-born Samantha Cox back in May this year when she flew into London to host a headline Keynote Q&A at office* 2016 and talk about her experience as former EA to Sir Richard Branson. I arrive early at the London Pullman St Pancras, our destination for today’s shoot, to ensure that every requirement is in place. I glance…
read more“I’d always wanted to work in finance,” says Amy Marsden. “It’s quite difficult to get work in finance as a PA; these are the jobs that people always want because they are well paid, demanding, varied and there is seemingly prestige with legal and finance PAs. As corporate goes, they are the type of roles that you know you have…
read more“Ever since I was young, I saw my dad packing his bags, going away, coming back and going away again as he was working on major offshore projects across the globe. There’s probably not one place he hasn’t been to and he always used to bring back exotic and fascinating souvenirs. I soon realised that I wanted to start traveling…
read moreI meet Judith at her house in Cambridge four days before Christmas, writes Amelia Walker. The colourful and eclectic interiors reflect Judith to a tee – her life decorating the walls through unique art, photographs and tie-dye throws and cushions from her far-flung travels. We settle ourselves in, cups of tea and Christmas cake to hand and begin. “It was…
read moreThere?s an old adage that you shouldn?t judge a book by its cover, but one look at Stuart Martin reveals an out-going person who loves his job. His passion becomes even more obvious once he?s engaged in conversation ? this is one happy management assistant. It would be difficult for Stuart to feel otherwise; he was recently head hunted for…
read moreThere comes a time in everyone?s life when they have to make a decision to change careers for their own good. For Katie McEwan that moment came unexpectedly, but she has never looked back. Katie studied music and drama at university and left with a desire to work in film and television production. She used every connection she had and…
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