Getting the Balance Right
Have you ever noticed just how much support exists out there for Assistants and Virtual Assistants in the form of professional networks and associations?
We did a little search online and found over fifteen, easily joinable associations, pretty quickly. With some more digging there were tens, if not over a hundred around the world.
Whether you’re looking for support locally, nationally or internationally, the choice is out there for you. For example, if you are Essex-based like me you could join the Essex PA Network which aims to support PAs, EAs, VAs and Administrators across Essex through promoting the profile of these roles and helping people make new connections at their regular in-person events.
At a national level, you have organisations such as the EPAA, which aims to support PAs and EAs, primarily to upskill, through offering a wide range of virtual and in-person masterclasses, coaching and training sessions, as well as networking events. If you want to really widen your support network and skills at a global level, then you could consider joining the UK-founded Global PA Association or the US-founded International Association of Administrative Professionals (or IAAP). Both of these organisations offer a huge suite of training and CPD options as well as conferences and even magazine subscriptions.
There are others out there at a local level, and some who we regularly collaborate with, including:
· The PA Club
· The Canary Wharf PA Club
· Miss Jones PA
· The PA Way
· The Assistant Room
· Practically Perfect PA
· The Scottish PA Network
· PA Life
· Association of Celebrity Assistants
· Institute of Legal Secretaries and Pas
· Association of Professional Virtual Assistants
· The PA Hub
· And, Worksmart PA (to name a few!)
Some of these platforms offer networking events online and in person, training, webinars and coaching, mentoring and templates specific to a typical assistant role.
All of this is obviously fantastic, particularly since the Covid-19 pandemic sparked a considerable transition towards office staff (including PAs and EAs) working from home on many, if not all, of their allocated working days. Although there are some obvious benefits to home working (primarily saving travel time and money for staff, and saving office space and money for businesses), as we well know, working from home can also be lonely and isolating.
For example, one study carried out in the UK during the first lockdown of 20201 found that almost half of UK residents experienced loneliness whilst working from home. Grasping an opportunity to connect with your peers both online and in person through joining a membership association such as those listed above, could make a real difference towards reducing the downsides of lone working and feeling more supported, as well as up to speed, in your career.
Now we’ve talked extensively about the support out there for Assistants, what about Office Managers (OMs)? Where are they represented? How do they feel supported? Where can they even find or meet other OMs, whether it be online or otherwise? Within a business, OMs are usually the only individuals doing the role which can already make the job of an OM feel like a fairly lonely one, even in an in-person role (see my previous blog on ‘The Isolated Office Manager’).
When you do the research, there really is a scarcity of support out there that exists specifically for OMs (who don’t quite fit the PA/VA job description). This is the exact reason why The Office Management Portal was launched in 2018 and as we head into our 5th year since launching, we wanted to share why it was created.
The balance was off. Way off.
At The Office Management Group, we felt that Office Managers deserved their own, unique support platform and given the vast majority of responsibilities and tasks these roles command, it felt even more significant to provide a dedicated space.
It was time to get the balance right for the administrative, executive and business support world. The Office Management Portal was originally developed as a place for office management professionals to network and gain access to reams of information that not only saves time, but also saves their business money. Now, we help to support over 2,000 OMs and other staff with office management responsibilities, with the day to day running of their office, with advice and contacts. And so much more than that; our Portal provides a safe space to discuss challenges, issues and solutions with peers across the country, and now globally too.
In June 2017 we launched a survey to 110 office management professionals around the UK to see if a new platform, such as the Portal would be of interest and the results were overwhelming, citing that more than 8/10 professionals wanted a space like this but had nowhere to go, other than to Google for support (which they found they couldn’t always rely on as they weren’t sure of the source of information).
We wanted to really be there for Office Managers and have, over the years formed a strong, connective community and continue to work towards bridging this gap.
The Office Management Portal helps Office Managers to feel empowered, supported, connected and valued, which is exactly what we set out to do when we began on the journey to create this online resource over 5 years ago.
As a Member, you can chat to other professionals in similar roles through the Forum, Direct Messaging and our private Slack Group. You will also have plenty of opportunities to meet others in-person at one of our London events or the West Midlands as we behind to expand in 2023.
So, if you are in office management looking for a network, resource and community to suit your role why not take your first steps now? We’d love for you to join our welcoming community https://theofficemanagementportal.com (and best of all it’s free).
1 = https://www.totaljobs.com/advice/lockdown-loneliness-the-collapse-of-social-life-at-work