AUGUST 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
Our best source for news and insights: You
Last month, in my first note to you as
editor of Administrative Assistant's
Update, I promised that we would
share the stories of office profession-
als across Canada that would include
you, office pro, and spotlight resourc-
es to help you do your job and grow.
In that issue we examined
the Qualified Administrative
Assistant certification offered by
the Association of Administrative
Assistants, a Canadian chartered
non-profit professional organization,
and delivered by about 30 Canadian
universities and colleges.
Beyond describing the QAA
certification process, we wanted to
put a face to the credential. Patricia
Lamoureux, an administrative
assistant with a federal government
agency in Peterborough, Ontario,
shared her observations on what the
designation means to her and her
career. Our story was so much richer
for her sharing her insights.
We were aided in our search
for "real people" by AAA and, in
particular, association vice-president
Arlene Stone, whose contributions
to her organization were recognized
with the Linda Bates Award of
Excellence last May.
This month Joan Binetti, an
executive legal assistant with Blake,
Cassels & Graydon, shares her
wisdom and experience as an EA
serving multiple bosses. At Blakes
she works for five lawyers. "It was
scary at first," she writes, but not for
long. "I love to embrace challenge
and change, learn new things and
experience variety."
We are fortunate to have met so
many talented admins already, but
we are anxious to meet more of you.
We invite you to let us know what
is happening where you are, how you
are viewing your profession and your
employment situation. Send us an
email or a snail-mail note and we'll
start a conversation. (See addresses
in the masthead on this page.) You
might choose one or more of the
topics below – or another topic of
personal interest. We also welcome
letters to the editor.
Please get in touch. We'd be
delighted to hear from you.
What's the word (from you)?
Here are some of the topics that we
plan to develop – with your help –
in AAU.
• Do you work from home, oc-
casionally or regularly? How is it
working out?
• Have you been promoted within
or beyond the admin status?
Describe your climb and who
helped you up the ladder.
• Is managing social media part of
your job?
• Are you a male in this female-
dominated profession? What are
your experiences? (If you know
a male admin, ask him if he'd be
willing to share his experiences.)
• Who are the most interesting
(positive or negative) bosses you
have experienced? What did you
learn from the relationship?
• What are the best professional
learning experiences you've ever
had?
• How do you balance your work
life with your life away from work?
• What skills have you developed
that have been the most useful to
/ appreciated by your boss(es)?
• How do you deal with a work-
place bully?
Do you have views and experi-
ences you'd be willing to share?
Please send us a note: George@
adminupdate.ca or Jennifer@
adminupdate.ca
An idea is all we need to get a con-
versation started.
