Community of Office Managers, Assistants, and Admins
Being a leader in an office doesn’t just mean delegating tasks or being a figurehead—it means having the desire to make an impact on the direction of the organization and the spirit of those around you. Erica Kelley, an Executive Assistant to the CEO and Administrative Support Manager and 2017 Ninja All-Star, is the perfect…Read more
A fulfilling career is obviously a rewarding career, but not all rewards are created equally. It’s easy for Ninjas juggling dozens of projects to knock out a routine task and bask in the temporary glory—but that satisfaction is fleeting. Rewards that truly matter offer substance and long-term fulfillment. And yes, it requires hard work and…Read more
Want to gaze into the eyes of a chatbot that looks back? Meet Nadia, the chatbot that can mimic human emotions, read your expressions, and learn from the experience. Like Nadia, the future’s best artificial intelligence (AI) will demonstrate emotional intelligence (EI). It’s the future of customer service, and it’s going to change the nature of administrative work.
You connect the dots between departments, have mastered the art of juggling an array of competing work priorities, all while keeping the lights on and often acting as director of first impressions.
As an Office Ninja, you receive hundreds of emails every week, participate in conference calls, meetings, online classes—the list goes on. In our fast-paced, multitasking business world, getting to the point clearly and quickly matters more than ever. …Read more
Have you ever heard the old saying, “Jill of all trades, master of none”? It has a catchy ring—but that doesn’t necessarily mean it’s true in all cases. And the ‘T-shaped’ employee is an example that defies this stereotype. What is a T-Shaped Employee, you ask? It’s definitely not someone who stands with their arms…Read more
No matter who you are or what you do, you share one thing with every other person in the country on December 31. We’re not talking about a champagne toast. Instead, we’re referring to the tangible—something that confirms it’s time to look forward, more than any glass of bubbly. It’s often overlooked, but the connection…Read more
A quick search through Executive Assistant job listings typically throws me into a fit of rage. Those which dare to print salaries of $40–50K in an insanely expensive market like San Francisco, while requiring 0–2 years previous experience, are the ones that will one day land me in jail for arson.
Part of the job description for being a Ninja is to be invisible. It’s both a blessing and a curse. You’re busy keeping the machine well-oiled, yet no one notices because they just expect it to work that way—with little consideration of how it works or who’s running it.
Because you want this temp to work out, prepare a detailed plan to help her improve and present it to her. Give her some tips—like making and reviewing checklists when doing X, or how you come up with solutions to tricky problems—something actionable that serves as a “marching order” and still allows her some autonomy. Then, include a timeframe to keep her accountable.