WHAT DOES AN EXECUTIVE ASSISTANT DO?

Published: Jun 03, 2025 - The Executive Assistant delivers essential administrative support through effective calendar management, meeting coordination, and travel arrangements. This role enhances operational efficiency by preparing documents, tracking expenses, and ensuring timely follow-up on tasks. The assistant demands strong organizational abilities, discretion in handling sensitive information, and skill in managing competing priorities.

A Review of Professional Skills and Functions for Executive Assistant

1. Executive Assistant Duties

  • Content Editing: Reviewing content and editing documentation
  • Message Prioritization: Receiving, reviewing, and prioritizing incoming messages
  • Data Management: Provides financial and business data management for a specified area
  • Data Coordination: Coordinating with other areas to collect data and information (for example, budgets, human resource data, and business performance)
  • Data Reconciliation: Compiling, forecasting, and reconciling divisional data
  • Risk Escalation: Identifying and escalating risks and concerns
  • Report Creation: Creating and maintaining reports, reporting tools, and templates
  • Information Security: Maintaining the security and confidentiality of sensitive information
  • Invoice Processing: Receiving, interpreting, and processing invoices and expense reports against a standard
  • Time Reporting: Reporting time, reviewing for exceptions, and making time adjustments
  • Associate Support: Supports leadership and the company by serving as an associate contact and resource (for example, procedures, associate concerns)
  • Request Filtering: Obtaining information and offering solutions to filter and prioritize requests for leadership time and attention
  • Assistant Mentoring: Mentoring, offering guidance, and delegating to other assistants
  • Leadership Communication: Sharing information with leadership (for example, upward feedback, observations)

2. Executive Assistant Details

  • Customer Resolution: Resolving internal and external customer requests
  • Goal Navigation: Navigating the organization to remove barriers and accomplish goals
  • Network Development: Developing, maintaining, and working within an internal network to share and escalate information
  • Technical Coordination: Conducting technical coordinator activities
  • Expert Guidance: Providing expert advice and guidance to others in the application of information and best practices
  • Customer Alignment: Supporting and aligning efforts to meet customer and business needs
  • Commitment Building: Building commitment for perspectives and rationales
  • Stakeholder Partnership: Provides and supports the implementation of business solutions by building relationships and partnerships with key stakeholders
  • Business Monitoring: Identifying business needs and monitoring progress and results
  • Process Execution: Determining and carrying out necessary processes and practices
  • Improvement Recognition: Recognizing and capitalizing on improvement opportunities
  • Responsibility Adaptation: Adapting to competing demands, organizational changes, and new responsibilities
  • Policy Compliance: Models compliance with company policies and procedures and supports the company's mission, values, and standards of ethics and integrity
  • Plan Implementation: Incorporating these into the development and implementation of business plans
  • Process Application: Assisting others with how to apply these in executing business processes and practices

3. Executive Assistant Responsibilities

  • CFO Support: Manage day-to-day activities of the CFO while proactively anticipating needs well in advance
  • Calendar Management: Advanced calendar management with the ability to manage shifting priorities
  • Meeting Coordination: Interact with Executive Assistants to coordinate meetings to ensure executive attendance
  • Email Management: Manage incoming email requests and determine response requirements or delegation
  • Travel Arrangement: Arrange domestic and international travel with strong attention to time zone differences
  • Relationship Building: Build and maintain strong working relationships across the team and organization
  • Material Preparation: Ensure meeting materials are received and distributed accordingly
  • Team Collaboration: Collaborate across the team to assist with organizational and team-building initiatives
  • Calendar Ownership: Ownership of the finance calendar including scheduling and management of invite lists
  • Expense Processing: Process expense reports promptly
  • Presentation Creation: Create PowerPoint presentations and assist with departmental ad-hoc projects such as All Hands meetings and recurring departmental meetings
  • Meeting Support: Assist with on-site executive meetings including scheduling meeting space, catering and IT equipment needs
  • Communication Drafting: Compose a draft communication for the CFO
  • Training Management: Manage departmental training requirements and track to completion
  • Update Presentation: Present departmental updates at team meetings and All Hands

4. Executive Assistant Job Summary

  • Administrative Support: Provide administrative and logistical support, including calendaring, travel arrangements, expense reports, inventory management, supplies ordering, and event support
  • Internal Communication: Stay in frequent contact with all levels of Global SIE and Sony employees and managers
  • Presentation Assistance: Assist with creating, formatting, and proofreading PowerPoint presentations
  • Document Preparation: Prepare and distribute correspondence, project updates, presentations, and other documents
  • Meeting Management: Attend meetings, take minutes, organize, and distribute to partners
  • Procurement Tracking: Open and track purchase orders, invoices, and contracts
  • Department Liaison: Liaise with problems or questions with internal departments in IT, Payroll, or HR
  • Process Improvement: Continue to improve and effectively utilize software packages to produce the work and automate administrative processes without compromising work quality
  • Knowledge Management: Serve as the knowledge base for everyone who works within the department
  • Confidentiality Management: Maintain a high degree of confidentiality/discretion

5. Executive Assistant Accountabilities

  • Email Management: Responsible for assisting with the SVP's email, calendar, travel logistics, and expense reports
  • Ad Hoc Coordination: Ensure the successful completion of ad hoc requests from SVP and aid the management team with ad hoc tasks and projects
  • Internal Communication: Act as a liaison and maintain open lines of communication with the SVP and the management team and other members of the organization
  • Meeting Preparation: Anticipate and prepare materials needed for internal meetings, while attending regularly and taking meeting minutes
  • Client Coordination: Coordinate and run client meetings for SVP
  • Event Execution: Assist the Marketing and Strategic Events Manager of Western Canada with executing external events and successfully coordinate with vendors, caterers and other providers for local events
  • CRM Management: Weekly management of Business Development meetings and activities in Client Relationship Management for SVP
  • Reception Support: Provide reception relief when needed by answering and transferring incoming calls, directing visitors as the need arises
  • Process Evaluation: Develop, implement and evaluate new and/or revised methods, procedures and standards
  • Security Auditing: Complete monthly internal workstation audits as part of the Security Policy
  • Strategic Planning: Assist the SVP for Annual Strategic Planning with a business plan and ensure the execution of set priorities
  • Committee Participation: Be an active member of office committees such as the Social Club Committee, Diversity and Inclusion, and Sustainability Committee
  • Employee Engagement: Assist with team-building initiatives and provide continued overall support for the organization's culture and employee morale

6. Executive Assistant Functions

  • Schedule Management: Manage the CMO’s schedule by screening meeting requests, determining priorities, scheduling appointments, and researching information
  • Invoice Coordination: Prepare and coordinate invoices and contracts for signature, liaising with the project authority and finance to ensure accuracy
  • Meeting Preparation: Prepare the CMO for internal and external meetings
  • Logistics Management: Manage meeting and engagement logistics, which include booking rooms, confirming attendance of participants, arranging teleconferences, sending out documentation, and coordinating briefing materials
  • Travel Arrangement: Manage travel and hospitality logistics and related expense claims processing
  • Information Analysis: Provide tactical advice resulting from the analysis and interpretation of high-level information
  • Financial Support: Operate within IIC policies and guidelines in supporting financial transactions, including the use of the organisation's credit card
  • Stakeholder Communication: Liaise with meeting participants to ensure that they are equipped with the necessary resources and information

7. Executive Assistant Job Description

  • Office Management: General office management including internal and external correspondence, archiving, mailings, acting as a communication interface, and administration of travel management for the assigned team
  • Schedule Coordination: Coordination of the Divisional Vice President’s business schedule, travel management
  • Urgent Support: Assist in handling urgent matters during the absence of DVP
  • Budget Support: Support DVP in budget control matters
  • Administrative Support: Support the assigned team in all organizational and administrative functions as well as POR/vendor creation in SAP
  • Event Coordination: Organize and coordinate internal and external events and meetings, e.g., organizing and arranging mailings, hotel bookings, travels, on-site service during global meetings and events
  • Location Research: Research and suggest locations for business dinners by following OEC rules
  • Dinner Organization: Organize and attend business dinners
  • Deadline Monitoring: Track and inform relevant parties about deadlines
  • Presentation Preparation: Assist in preparing and coordinating presentations
  • Contract Management: Set up and track contracts

8. Executive Assistant Overview

  • Calendar Management: Coordinate internal and external meetings including staff meetings, executive briefings, all-hands meetings, QBRs, and off-site meetings and events
  • Meeting Support: Assist with food orders, meeting needs, agenda support, and note-taking
  • Request Coordination: Proactively manage calendar requests and resolve conflicts
  • Interview Preparation: Provide agendas, resumes, and appropriate materials promptly ahead of meetings and interviews
  • Meeting Planning: Apply discipline and rigor around meetings by ensuring agendas and clarifying context and purpose with senior leaders and participants
  • Travel Coordination: Handle all travel (flight, hotel, car) arrangements for domestic and international travel
  • Expense Management: Submit expense reports and receipts promptly
  • New Hire Onboarding: Provide onboarding support for new hires, including cubicle assignments, equipment requests, onboarding meeting scheduling, and being a point of contact
  • Vendor Onboarding: Provide onboarding support for new vendors and agencies
  • Access Enablement: Ensure vendors and agencies have the correct access, documents, and enablement required to operate

9. Executive Assistant Details and Accountabilities

  • Executive Support: Provide full administrative support to the VP of Corporate Development, including calendar management, meeting coordination, and general day-to-day operations.
  • Event Coordination: Manage and coordinate internal events and meetings within the Corporate Development team.
  • Meeting Preparation: Organize and prepare materials for the VP’s meetings, including presentation decks, agendas, and minutes.
  • Project Management: Support internal team projects by assisting with organizational and operational tasks, including pipeline tracking.
  • Travel Coordination: Book and coordinate domestic and international travel for the VP.
  • Presentation Development: Create high-quality, executive-level PowerPoint presentations for various business needs.
  • Retention Payment Management: Oversee and manage acquisition-related retention payments and associated documentation.
  • Market Research: Support strategic planning by assisting with research on market landscapes and industry trends.

10. Executive Assistant Tasks

  • Calendar Management: Provide sophisticated calendar coordination, prioritize inquiries and requests, and troubleshoot scheduling conflicts efficiently.
  • Executive Support: Make informed judgments and recommendations to ensure seamless daily operations and engagements.
  • Professional Communication: Demonstrate integrity and professionalism while supporting employees at all organizational levels.
  • Cross-Functional Collaboration: Maintain open communication with cross-functional teams and peer admins to share best practices and foster a strong support network.
  • Engagement Tracking: Work closely with executives to keep them informed of upcoming commitments, following up as needed.
  • Confidentiality Handling: Exercise sound judgment and discretion, especially when managing highly sensitive and confidential materials.
  • Team Effectiveness: Operate effectively within team environments, serving as a reliable resource and building strong internal and external relationships.
  • Meeting Coordination: Help organize and execute executive-level meetings, retreats, staff meetings, and events.
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