Leah Warwick: Hi, everyone. I’m Leah Warwick, and you’re listening to “The Admin Edge.” Each year, since 2020, the American Society of Administrative Professionals has published an “ASAP State of the Profession Report.” In 2025, we introduced the ASAP Career Stages Framework as a kickstart for mapping administrative career progression. At EA Ignite Spring 2025, I welcomed EA and ASAP Advisory Board Member Garnet Valliere back to the podcast to talk about what it takes to progress in your career today, and how to advocate for your advancement.

00:00:43

Welcome back to the podcast, Garnet.

Garnet Valliere: Thank you. I’m excited to be here.

Leah Warwick: I’m so happy to have you here. It’s always a joy to have you at your events. We have a big update, because we put out our 2025 “ASAP State of the Profession” survey recently, and we found many things. One of which was that “executive assistant” and “administrative assistant” were the most popular titles out of all of the titles from our 3,710 survey respondents, so we looked at the responsibilities and skills to start mapping career development tied with our data.

00:01:21

We found that there are more so career stages that we could align with, and then we found that each stage, from assisting to supporting to partnering to leading, the level of strategic responsibility and compensation went up with each stage, regardless of title. We also found one title, like EA, was present across all of the stages, which implies there are EAs doing more assisting level tasks and EAs with completely different responsibilities, and they have the same title. What do you think this says about the current state of the profession, and how administrative professionals should approach career advancement conversations with HR and senior leadership?

00:02:03

Garnet Valliere: Yes, this is a very good question. It’s a very good data point. It’s one I’m very passionate about. I do think that there is a level of lack of knowledge when it comes to the leadership team and HR team, and this is a really great moment in time, when ASAP does come out with something like a career staging map, to use it as an opportunity to educate. I think you need to set a meeting with your executive, set a meeting with the HR teams, the org designers in your team. But if you come in and you have a discussion that isn’t data driven, it’s a harder story to sell, especially since, right now, there’s still so much ambiguity with the profession right now, the titles and the level stats.

00:02:52

I think if you take something like the career staging and you go in and you’re able to map it out to what you do, what stage are you in, show solid examples, show where you’ve made impact in the business, and talk about — educate them. They don’t even understand what those stages are. It’s an incredibly powerful thing for us to go in and teach them, and teach them that we are doing these things. We can do these things. It is very important to distinguish that there are different levels. In one company, as you stated, there could be an EA doing very task-oriented items, and then there are EAs in the same company that could be doing very strategic items.

00:03:41

The strategy piece doesn’t erase the tactical piece or the task-related piece. I think they combine. You just do it at a different level, or you make those tasks become something more and more value-add.

Leah Warwick: The foundational role of an EA, which is to support your executive, is very important. I think that’s also worth of a conversation of: Okay, what are the needs of the business? What are the needs of that particular executive? So can you speak to that a little bit, of when it’s a particular executive that has certain needs, how you have conversations about the business needs as well and your needs as the EA?

00:04:19

Garnet Valliere: I’ve struggled with this myself because I think, as an EA, your innate nature is to take everything and be everything and do everything. There can be — as you said, I think it’s a shift in mindset in what tasks are considered strategic, or taking a task that you think is just a task, but seeing it as strategic.

A great example is calendaring. I think a lot of EAs right now are like, “If I’m going to be at the strategic level, how can I be managing — why would I be continuing to do scheduling or expenses,” or whatever the case may be.

00:04:57

And I found myself wondering the same thing, and then I tried to think of it a different way. It was more that, if I am in tune to the business and I have business acumen, then my role and responsibilities are to the business. And so if I understand what the business is doing, what the strategic plan is, and I understand where my executive fits into that, if I’m doing the scheduling, it’s so much more than considered scheduling. It’s you are committing that executive’s time, company time, to where it needs to be.

For example, I had a CHRO and she wanted to do one-on-ones with all of her team, had way many [sic] directs than she should have and just was a yes-girl. It was “yes” to everybody.

00:05:48

I found myself doing — I’m like, okay, so then I have to get all the one-on-ones ready and all the presentations ready, and there were all of these moving parts to her wanting to do all of the one-on-ones to be a leader, but then also be responsible to the business and have to do the business meetings.

One really powerful tool I had was the calendar. I did a calendar study for her and said, “Okay, there’s this many hours in a week. Even if you work more time than there is allotted, you still cannot successfully meet with every one of your team members one-on-one. And I’ve seen your goals. You’re not going to be able to meet the strategic goals, because you need to be in these types of meetings for 30% of the week.”

I think, for me, it shifted things, where I was like, “Should I be doing scheduling, or should an AA being doing this?” But it was just a shift in — I think it’s the strategic mindset, where I turned the calendaring into something that was strategic.

00:06:51

Doing the time study, she was like — it was just such an eye-opener for her bringing the data and the dashboard to say, “Here’s what your time looks like.” If I hadn’t had control over that or the ability to set those meetings, I wouldn’t have had that story to tell, nor would I have been able to successfully help her be committed to the business where she needs to be committed, because I’m in alignment with what the goals are. It’s the business acumen, and it’s tying the business acumen to your leader and your executive.

Leah Warwick: I love that perspective. It’s such a great answer because that really illustrates what a strategic business partner and a leader is, versus “just an assistant.” You’re adding value with the strategic priority of your executive or executive team. You aren’t just applying things. You are thinking from more of a systems level, and then taking something which is a foundational skill of any EA — there’s inbox, calendar, expensing, you know them all. But how can I make that strategic?

00:07:57

We did find that in the data. Leading EAs and admins of all kinds are much more likely to use AI than assisting because they’re thinking: How can I strategically speed up some of these tasks that used to take me all day?

Garnet Valliere: You are making the exact point in my mind where you’re talking about the balance. As we continue to grow our skill — again, this is education. Some of our leaders, some of the execs out there, they know what AI is, but they’re not going to know that there’s an AI tool that will do their calendaring and sort through their email in minutes, instead of hours. So it opens up some room and space. If you’re utilizing AI and you know how to use AI, it opens space to do more of your job, or do your job better. It’s not taking your job from you.

00:08:53

To your question, finding the balance, I think AI is going to play a big role in that, and I think educating and consistently going to conferences like this and learning all the new tools that are out there, and being able to educate your companies on those things and educate yourself, you’re still going to be able to do the job with the tasks and the strategic particular, because you’re going to have tools that are going to allow time for both.

Leah Warwick: Yes. Time is such a precious resource, and to be at the frontend of the change and to be the one leading it [is] really, really powerful in this day and age. I have more questions for you. While administrative professionals in the partnering and leading stages, we found, often still have responsibilities they developed earlier in their career an carried over, they are taking on more strategic partnership and leadership responsibilities, as we’ve discussed. They’re creating and presenting strategic plans to executives. They’re owning large-scale executive projects with high business impact, and leading executive-level processes with statistical models and reports.

00:09:56

So when it comes to aligning the executive office and rebranding as more of a strategic business partner or leader in executive administration, which a lot of attendees at this event are interested in, how have you personally seen this shift in your time as an EA and in your career, and what do you think still needs to change for EAs to progress in their careers, if they so desire?

Garnet Valliere: The shift I’ve seen is from tactical to strategic. I’ve seen that. And I’ve seen a skillset increase in EAs, an incredible skillset increase. The example is the calendar. An EA once would’ve said, “Where do you need to be?” or had to go in the office and maybe say, “So and so wants to meet with you and Joe wants to meet with you. Who do you want to meet with?” Where, now, we’re so embedded into the business that we don’t have to ask those questions anymore. We know the answer. So we’re placing them and we’re committing time to where it needs to be, versus asking where they want their time to be.

00:11:00

So I think there’s that shift. EAs feel more empowered to do those things, make those kinds of decisions and then work out the kinks, versus being a little trepid to do it, and now they just sort of do it and work it out. I think, over time, it’s becoming something that’s smoother and it’s more of a partnership that way.

I think that, for what still needs to change, I can’t stress enough the education that we need to give to companies and org designers and human resources and the executives themselves. I don’t think they aren’t open to the education; we just have to be ready to provide it for them. I think that’s what’s missing. All of these changes are happening, but they’re still happening in silence.

00:11:56

We need to bring voice to it. I think by doing that, it’s setting meetings, writing business cases, using a career chart and using that data to go in and educate. I would say, if you were to ask me, lack of career path is still — I think that is a gaping hole in organizations, but I think we’re going to get there. I’m confident we’re going to get there.

Leah Warwick: Me too. I choose to be optimistic. It’s easy to be, though, when you’re at events like this, because you see the best and the brightest. And you’re right. They’re doing their best. They’re making changes how they can, but organizations like ours — at the American Society of Administrative Professionals, we really love putting on these events. We love educating the administrative professionals, but we also are really leaning into going up to the top. You have to also talk to the executives. You have to talk to HR. And you have to be champions, while also teaching the EAs and administrative professionals to be champions themselves.

00:13:01

But you’re so right. It has to be instituted on a much broader scale, which is far easier said than done. U.S. organizations are extremely diverse, and they have their own ways of doing things, but I think, for this profession, [it’s] showing how you bring the value and consistently proving that over time so it cannot be denied.

Going back to what we were talking about: Facts. Data. This is the data that I have and it’s updated every year, and it’s from real professionals like me, who, all over the country, these are their responsibilities. They’re here. I’m here. This is where I want to be. That’s how change happens. Sometimes it’s incremental and you see it over time, but, as long as we keep moving forward, that’s the most important thing.

00:13:47

Something we did notice in our data is we found skills gaps in the survey, based on the career stage one is in. So, for example, those in the assisting stage are less likely to use AI or project management tools. A lot of assisting/admins said, “I don’t really use project management tools in my role.” We also see through the stages that not only AI use, but project management and leadership skills increase, and the interest in them increases.

How would you recommend meeting with your executive or manager to map your desired career progression, which would mean closing skills gaps and/or updating responsibilities based on business need and how you want to grow?

Garnet Valliere: There’s definitely a confidence piece to that. In general, I think, human nature — if you’re an AA or an EA who’s right out of the gate, I will say that it’s not always an easy thing to do. You know what you want to say; you’re just not sure you can say it or how you can say it.

00:14:52

I think my advice for admins out there who do not yet have that confidence [is] to seek out education at conferences like this. Learn how to be that way. Be around people who feel empowered. See it, that it can be done. Going it alone, I know that that can be tough, depending on some companies you’re in and your peer group. It’s not the right fit for everybody, but if you seek out the training on how to be that person, use your voice, you also learn the tools, but you learn about how you can present. What should the dashboard look like? What should the data be?

I think my advice for anybody doing that would be to seek out — go to an ASAP. Go to a site. Go look for the things, the skills that there’s a gap for you in. If it’s not in your nature immediately, go get it. Go learn it and then use those tools and educate. Be a voice.

00:15:58

Leah Warwick: Yes. And there’s a lot of options out there. It’s important to remember that just because other people are going down one path — listen to your gut instinct. You also know your own unique skills. Everybody brings very unique talents and skills and value to their role. Even if you have the same title as someone else, or the same role as someone else, you bring your own unique, special sauce to it. I think that’s really important, the power of self-assessment, starting with self-assessment, looking at data-driven tools and saying, “Okay, I have a gap here. I want to be a partnering EA. I need to build up my project management skills.” That’s step one. And then you find whether it’s a free resource, whether it’s a project management certification, whether it’s a session at this event. You find it, you work on it, and you come up with a plan — I think with your executive and with whatever team you’re working on, because it does have to make sense for your team, your group. So being flexible in that way, while still staying focused on what you want to achieve, is important.

00:17:02

I do want to give you another opportunity if you have any other advice that you would like to share, not even related to this topic. You’re such a wonderful advocate for this community. Is there anything you want to say to the people?

Garnet Valliere: I would say: Advocate and look out there and see what’s out there. Educate yourself. Look for conferences. Go to conferences. Ask to go to conferences. If you start with no and you end with no, the worst was a no. There’s so much out there, like on the ASAP website, that’s free to you, and you don’t necessarily have to go to a conference, but it doesn’t have to stop there. Don’t stop looking. Don’t stop educating. Don’t stop learning. Stay relevant.

00:17:56

If I could part with any advice: stay relevant.

Leah Warwick: That’s good. That’s what we’re all trying to do, isn’t it? [laughter] Trying to be continuous learners, too. And that’s how we stay on top of things: We keep our finger to the pulse of what’s going on. We stay on top of the latest trends and innovations. We don’t say, “I’m done.” We’re always thinking, “Okay, what’s next?” because things change so quickly, and now more than ever it’s easy to become irrelevant, or to have the tools that you’re using, “Oh, nobody uses those anymore. Those are outdated.” It’s happening faster and faster now, so however you’re able to get professional development, whatever that looks like, seek it out. Thank you. This was such a good conversation.

Garnet Valliere: You’re very welcome.

[music playing]

Leah Warwick: Thank you for listening to “The Admin Edge,” produced by the American Society of Administrative Professionals, original music and audio editing by Warwick Productions, with audio and video production by 5Tool Productions. If you liked this podcast, please leave us a nice review, five stars, and subscribe. If you’d like to submit a listener question, you may do so on our website at ASAPorg.com/podcast.