Job Descriptions

Skills

  • Customer service

    • Make eye contact, smile, display relaxed & open body language

    • Immediately engage in thoughtful, clear, authentic communication (even when busy!)

    • Direct and/or return calls, emails and messages in a timely and appropriate fashion

    • Listen to concerns with patience and empathy; no interruptions, no invalidations

    • Come up with creative solutions to challenges, or escalate the situation to a higher authority to unlock more options

    • "Under promise, over deliver"

    • Make note of small details for future recall

  • Phone etiquette

    • Answer "[company name] this is [your name]" in order to keep greetings short and help callers remember what to call you

    • Verify and write down a callback number early in the conversation; call them back right away if you are disconnected for any reason

    • Leave your name and phone number at beginning and end of voicemail messages so recipient doesn't have to listen through the entire message twice

    • Return voicemail messages within 24-48 hours

    • Always transfer the call if you can–don't just give a phone number or email address and hang up

    • Provide the phone number of the person you're transferring the caller to before you initiate the transfer (so that they can call directly next time)

    • Provide a summary of the call to the person you're transferring to, so the caller doesn't have to start their inquiry from the beginning

    • Keep up to date on your outgoing voicemail messages; make sure you are notifying callers if you're going to be out of the office (OOO) for an extended period of time, and provide an alternate number they can call if it's urgent

  • Email, text, and "snail mail" correspondence

    • Always stay on top of current APA and MLA formatting guidelines; Google it if you're not sure

    • Provide contact info in your signature or letterhead–including your email address, even if you think it's apparent in the details or body of the message

    • When emailing a group of people, leave the "To" field blank; only enter addresses into the "Bcc" field (to maintain confidentiality and avoid the nightmare of "Reply All"

    • Double-check: did you attach it that file?

    • Gauge the appropriate level of emojis/emoticon use and err on the side of conservatism

  • Vendor vetting, relationship-building, negotiation, and budget-friendly retention

  • AP/AR

  • Invoicing process and conversion

    • Quotation

    • Pro forma

    • Confirmation

    • Packing slip

    • Invoice

    • Payment

    • Receipt

    • Credit notes, etc.

  • Legal contracts (formatting, language, amendments, notarization, duplication, confidentiality, storage, etc.)

  • Calendar management

    • Outlook, Google Calendar, iCal

    • Individual, group, and sync

    • Simple, color-coded, at-a-glance daily, weekly, and monthly itineraries

    • Realistic scheduling including regular "do not disturb" hours

    • Allow for work-life balance

    • Space for inevitabilities: no-shows, running overtime, "fires", etc.

  • "Gatekeeping" of phone calls, emails, and in-person visitors

  • Tracking, accepting, and distributing mail & packages

  • Creation and maintenance of filing systems (digital and paper)

    • Fireproof/multipurpose/unobtrusive cabinets

    • Server/cloud storage and file management software options

    • Password protection/permissions, encryption, keys, etc.

    • Organization framework

    • Naming conventions

    • Duplicate prevention

    • Maintenance checks

    • Archiving

  • Marketing/social media presence

    • Color choices

    • Logo design

    • Typeface

    • Website layout

    • Content creation/revision

    • Scheduled posts, interactions, & engagement

  • Recruiting, screening, interviewing, and hiring

  • Onboarding, training

    • Schedule first week

    • Tour of facility, intros to co-workers

    • Designation of parking space/locker/file cabinet/closet/etc.

    • Add to HR and IT software

    • Assign desk/bench space

    • Procure IT equipment

    • Set up email, grant access

    • Add relevant meetings to calendar

    • Schedule frequent meetings with direct supervisor, relevant co-workers, and any execs/directors who have time

  • Inventory/supply ordering, restocking, recording/tracking

  • Scheduling, keeping, and staying aware of recurring appointments–personal and professional (e.g., oil changes, anniversaries, standing meetings, month-end close, etc.)


  • Scheduling and orchestrating Board of Directors meetings, sometimes up to 2-3 years in advance

  • Common area cleaning, tidying, organizing, feng shui, color-coding

  • Revision of current procedures and/or creation and implementation of new ones

  • Research (reliably-sourced info on business practices, document formats, local guidelines, biographies, histories, controversies, trivia, etc.)

  • Team-building (parties, outings, activities, games, competitions; small or large groups, in person, online, etc.)

  • Expense reports

  • Personalized planning

    • Travel preferences

    • Dietary restrictions

    • Personal obligations

    • Medical limitations

    • Communication proclivities, etc.

  • Travel arrangement

    • Flight bookings

    • Scanning for flight deals/upgrades

    • Changes & cancelations

    • Layovers

    • Hotels

    • Uber, car service, or car rental

    • Travel time

    • Time zones

    • Maps

    • Sightseeing

    • Culture & cuisine, etc.

  • Event planning

    • Hotel accommodations

    • Venue/conference room/ballroom booking

    • Amenities

    • A/V set up and assistance

    • Informative calendar invites

    • Directions & parking

    • Catering

    • Decoration

    • Staffing

    • Itineraries and other printouts for all attendees

    • Thoughtful touches, etc.

  • Documenting day-to-day procedures, events, appointments, etc. as they occur

  • Creating reports within multiple programs, formats, and/or parameters

  • Bio, blurb, qualifications, and headshot collecting, revising, and distributing

  • Online presence deletion/burial

  • Revising, editing, formatting, combining, and distributing slide decks for presentations (PowerPoint, Google Slides, Prezi, etc.)

  • Maintaining a high level of confidentiality/discretion; knowing when and how to demonstrate discretion (completing purchases and payments with company or personal credit cards, applying electronic signatures to documents, etc.)

  • Fostering positive relationships with assistants of other execs, advisors, and board members; keeping lines of communication open with other "gatekeepers"

  • Office relocation

    • Scouting

    • Contract negotiation

    • Scheduling the move in shifts in order to minimize the disruption of daily activities

    • Ordering furniture and equipment

    • Hiring contractors for customizations and repairs

    • Brainstorming and finalizing layout

    • Transferring people, equipment, files, etc.

  • Connecting, interfacing, and collaborating with people from multiple companies, departments, levels of hierarchy, and backgrounds to encourage creative thinking, teamwork, participate in "pre-mortems", and foster innovation (i.e., always being the "host of the party")

  • Compiling records of resources, contacts, and solutions to common problems in order to work smarter, not harder (i.e., "not reinventing the wheel" or wasting time/energy by repeating processes unnecessarily)

  • Keeping and sharing a personal calendar with far-future appointments as well as immediate updates, in order to communicate accurate availability so that others may plan accordingly

  • Being available at odd/off hours–nights, weekends, holidays, etc.–unless otherwise noted in personal calendar

  • Maintaining spreadsheets and databases of regulatory proceedings per FDA and other US and/or EU standards

  • Clarifying, revamping, rewording, or revising outdated policies and language to reflect currently accepted cultural norms (keeping everyone "woke")

  • Suggesting and scheduling trainings, seminars, and workshops to augment the education, capabilities, understanding, or sensitivities of current employees

  • Supervision/management of a person or team of people (training, delegating, checking in, approving requests, reviewing performance, advocating on behalf of, correcting/redirecting, suspending, demoting, laying off, firing, etc.)

  • Formation and leadership of inter- and intradepartmental clubs and committees in the interest of bolstering a culture of transparency and respect

  • Interfacing with boards, committees, councils, caucuses, congresses, and individual officials to ascertain and follow relevant laws, guidelines, and procedures or to propose change to existing edicts (filling out applications, obtaining licenses and permits, writing grants, participating in and presenting at policy meetings, organizing legal demonstrations and protests, etc.)

  • (Informal) dispute mediation between individuals or groups (remaining impartial while helping each side identify and articulate their goals and assess the merits of their arguments; letting each side "say their piece" and then summarizing it for the other side in a way that promotes empathy, compassion, and de-escalation; reaching an equitable midpoint when the mediator refrains from offering advice, cuts off any attempts to bring up past events, and proposes a few viable compromises)

  • Communicating updates, requests, and complaints to the relevant team member(s) and following up and/or escalating issues to ensure they are resolved in a timely manner