Administrative Assistant's Update

SEPTEMBER 2015 2 Administrative Assistant's Update is published once a month by Thomson Reuters Canada Ltd. Director, Carswell Media: Karen Lorimer Publisher: John Hobel Editor: George Pearson george@adminupdate.ca Associate Editor: Jennifer Lewington jennifer@adminupdate.ca EDITORIAL OFFICE (519) 271-6000 Administrative Assistant's Update Thomson Reuters Canada Ltd. 1 Corporate Plaza, 2075 Kennedy Road Toronto, ON M1T 3V4 CUSTOMER SERVICE (416) 609-3800 (800) 387-5164 FAX (416) 298-5082 (877) 750-9041 carswell.customerrelations@ thomsonreuters.com Contents copyright. All rights reserved. © 2015 Thomson Reuters Canada Ltd. Contents may not be reproduced without written permission. Brief extracts may be made with due acknowledgement. Annual subscription: $189. Publications Mail Registration No. 40065782 GST# 897176350 UPDATE Administrative Assistant's E D I TO R ' S N OT E George Pearson 'Getting the most' from EAs Our page one story this month ex- plores the social media component of the ever-expanding profile of AAs and EAs. It is a reminder of just how versatile administrative professionals now have to be as they contribute to the success of their organization. An extensive article on chiefexecutive.net takes up that theme and offers a management point of view. The article, titled "How to Get the Most Out of Your Executive Assistant," points out that today's EAs "are conducting corporate research, providing advice on community outreach and even subbing for their bosses at meetings." Under a "Key Takeaways" heading, the article suggested that CEOs . . . • include the EA in strategy meetings; • keep the EA informed about impor - tant business issues; and • use the EA as a sounding board. The article cites numerous examples of EAs who performed high-level assignments for their bosses. One example: The CEO of Korn/Ferry Leadership and Talent Consulting took her EA to the firm's annual two-day global leadership session that included the chief financial officer, the chief operating officer, four regional heads and eight other managers. With first-hand exposure to the CEO's explanations of her priorities and strategies, the EA gained insights that enabled her to arrange the CEO's schedule without the need for extensive consultation. EAs in small companies have particularly complex responsibilities, observes the article. The EA to the head of the Marin (Calif.) Country Day School supervises the receptionist and office/facilities manager, organizes the annual graduation ceremony and subs for her boss at meetings. All very heady stuff. (By the way, if you have a multi-faceted job, please share your experiences with us.) In their elevation to increasingly demanding roles, the secretary, AA or EA can take pride in the verbal pat on the back from management. But executive professionals say they are still waiting for the compensation to match their growing responsibilities. Workplace stress fosters employee absenteeism A surprising 52 per cent of absence from work is unrelated to illness, according to a recent study by Morneau Shepell, a consulting and outsourcing company for health, benefits, retirement and employee assistance needs. Moreover, absences unrelated to mental or physical health issues are more likely to occur when em- ployees report stress in the work- place and employers show indiffer- ence to mental wellness issues. "Absence is not random," con- cludes the report, The True Picture of Workplace Absenteeism. The study authors add: "the predic- tors of both illness and non-illness related absence can be influenced by an employer." With employee absenteeism a multi-billion dollar drain on the economy, the report urges compa- nies to explore several strategies. They include: • implementation of an attendance reporting and tracking system • provision of problem-solving resources to address return-to- work barriers for employees on disability leave or with chronic health issues. The report can be found at www. morneaushepell.com/ca-en/ insights/true-picture-workplace- absenteeism

• Cover