About a decade ago, I was going to start a venture with a trusted advisor of mine, Arthur Lipper.  The goal of the venture was to train Executive Assistants (AEO) to be able to better perform their functions.

While that venture never reached the light of day, it did not mean it did not have merit.  The executive assistant is, indeed, the power behind the throne.  There are skills that individual must possess, if their job is to be handled well.  From providing the executive everything s/he needs, to serving as the surrogate- which means knowing exactly how that executive would act and would want as the outcome- when they must fill in- wherever and whenever (often in the wee whenevers).

So, it was not surprising to see an article in the Wall Street Journal:  The Most Powerful Person in the Office.  Oh, wait, not just one- but TWO articles- Career Makeover:  Stepping Up to Lead.  The first described the efforts of D’Andra Galarza, the executive assistant to Edward Swindler, the president of NBC Universal;   Anikka Fragodt, the executive assistant to Mark Zuckerberg of Facebook; and,   Melba Duncan for Peter Peterson of Lehman Brothers, among others.  The second was devoted to Becky Johnson, assistant to Lisa Gable of the  Healthy Weight Commitment Foundation,

The first article described the life- and the tenuous tenure- of these vital assistants.  The (typically younger) folks serve as the gatekeeper, the scheduler, the personal assistant, the who-knows-what to the harried executives.  Their job is to insure that the executive looks like s/he never has to break a sweat to do their jobs well.  These AEO work very hard to insure that is, indeed, the case.

The problem is that the AEO is often left with no personal life, while having the ability to sway events and wield power.  Think of the subtle way Cecil Gaines (Forest Whittaker), a lowly butler in the White House, was able to change the way Presidents thought about their help- and the plight of the Blacks in America.  Now, imagine if Cecil had actually been the Chief of Staff to those Presidents- and how much faster and more complete that change could be effected.

The second article described how Ms. Johnson was pigeon-holed.  Always deferential, working behind the scenes (when she was at the US Commerce Department), orchestrating events, making her boss look perfect (or nearly so) in his job.   Thankfully, in her current job, Ms. Gable wanted Becky to step up to the plate herself, helping the foundation grow and progress.  She is now the Vice President of that foundation.  That is NOT the typical situation, however.

What is more typical is that the AEO stays devoted to the boss.  And, the problem is if the CEO is terminated, then the AEO is left without a job or working for someone with much less power.  There is no clear path for growth or tenure at the firm s/he was working so diligently to make perfect.  (Or, at least how that CEO thought would be perfect.)

Now, an organization has been founded (the Executive Assistants Organization) founded by Victoria Rabin (28), based in San Francisco.  The dues are not cheap- considerably higher than those for the professional associations to which I belong- running about $ 1K annually.

Maybe, we should revive this concept and help these AEO’s get the training- and stay up to date- they need to help their organizations and themselves…

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