In an environment where reduced headcount is an increasing pressure in business, its not uncommon for EA's to be forced to support more than one manager, often two, and in some cases even three or more! There is a misconception though that when you have more than one manager to support it means your workload doubles (or triples) over that of supporting just one. And although you have twice as many meetings to arrange and twice as many administration tasks to perform, it doesn't necessarily mean that you have twice the volume of work to get through.... and please hear me out on this one, as I know some of you probably won't agree! There is quite a specific formula when it comes to managing more than one Exec, and one that if followed, will ensure your time and workload is the same as that of an assistant who only supports one. But your time management, planning and approach to your workload is key. Some see it as a downside to support multiple managers, but that doesn't have to be the case at all. When you work in a one-to-one capacity with an Executive you are seen as extension of them and often anything will come your way, with no boundaries at all. A one-to-one scenario is often undefinable on any given day, which alone can have its challenges. But when you have more than one to support your role becomes more definable where you're in a position to call the shots, so to speak, and I'll explain why.
When faced with a scenario of multiple managers the key to successful time distribution is something I like to refer to as 'splitting'. Basically this is the art of splitting your time evenly across each of the managers you support. And between yourself and each of your managers there should be a mutual understanding as to what your job description entails, with all parties agreeing and ensuring it is adhered to. This means an understanding of the tasks that you will perform for them and an agreement that you won't get dragged into time consuming projects and tasks that take away from what becomes your very 'precious' time. This most obviously includes personal tasks for those managers too. Your role is very much to support your managers from a business perspective and the line should be drawn there. And if you do feel you are being pulled from pillar to post and dragged into things that you shouldn't it's important that you speak up and ensure you aren't being taken advantage of.
So there are 5 areas to take into consideration when you are placed in the position of supporting more than one manager and once all implemented will make life very straightforward for everyone involved. I must point out though that it is significantly important to take the lead and very much act like a manager when you are in this position. You need to take charge of how your time will be split and how you will conduct your role. It's not for dictation by those that you support, but its something that should be discussed from the get-go with a plan laid out on the table so that there is no confusion. It takes a very strong, confident EA to support more than one manager, so if you feel like this isn't you, it might be time to take a look in the mirror and think about ways in which you can improve your credibility and brand. So when you create your plan and define your role to your managers with what you will and won't be doing for them, they will ultimately take you seriously as a manager.
1. Split your time
So the first area to nail is your time management and 'splitting' is a concept that works well with two managers, and is possible with three, but beyond that it gets messy. The idea is to divide your day up, so the morning with manager A and the afternoon with manager B. If they sit in different locations then sit with them/their teams at these allocated times. If you all sit relatively close together anyway then just allocate a half of the day to one and the other half to the other and communicate this to them so they're clear when they have your utmost dedication. This allocation of time will then form part of your overall plan. But although you are splitting your day there will obviously always be tasks that pop up in the wrong allocated time frame that can't be avoided, but I will detail later how you can manage this and approach your tasks in a consolidated fashion.
2. Create your plan
The next thing to think about is creating a plan. It's important for each of your managers to know where you are and when. So if you have regular leadership team meetings that you are required to sit in on with each of your managers, then make sure this is communicated clearly to each of them and marked in their calendar so they know you are not contactable. Similarly they should also be aware when you are off site with your team, or facilitating things for your team and you're not available. This should also come in handy when managing expectations and deadlines for tasks they ask you to deliver. Anything regular, that happens weekly or monthly, devise into a visual planner that can be printed and pinned up at their desk so they can see where you are at a glance. And anything ad-hoc where you're out and not available then mark in their calendars.
3. Communicate communicate communicate
Communication is always going to be key when managing the expectations of each of your managers so you need to make sure you are organised in this respect. Set regular one-on-ones with each of them so you can communicate where you'll be and when and also advise on your workload. If they are privy to what you're working on with your other manager/s then they will be mindful of giving you things that perhaps they could handle themselves or could be handled by another team member. Also use these one-on-one times to makes sure deadlines and ETA's are well communicated on things they ask of you. Also make sure you communicate well your plans throughout the day - things like needing to leave early from their meetings to make another one of your manager's meetings; or that you've asked a fellow EA to collect their visitors from reception when you are tied up running a brown bag lunch session for your other manager, for example. And when it comes to communication always ensure all managers are present at the times of your performance reviews, so each of them can hear from you and others on your performance. This should also help manage everyones expectations.
4. Adapt your approach
Although I mentioned earlier that you should call the shots when it comes to managing your time, this should not be confused with the concept of managing different work styles and adapting yourself to fit in with them. Like looking after any manager, one-on-one or not, its important to adapt your style to fit in with them - so if they prefer having everything printed off for them, then you'll need to do that, or similarly if they prefer to manage their own in-boxes and approvals, then let them and just go with the flow. Just because you do something for one manager doesn't necessarily mean that you should do it for another. So when you first are buddied up with your manager its important to gauge their expectations on what they want you to be doing. But of course if you feel, as I mentioned before, that any lines are being blurred then its time to speak up.
5. Get organised
The last and best piece of advice when managing more than one manager is to be organised. The biggest challenge you face when put in this situation is really being in two places at once. Diaries will not always align for you, but the best thing you can do though is to be as organised as you can. So if that means arranging the catering for that morning tea so it arrives 15 minutes earlier so you can lay it out before heading down to reception to collect some guests for a meeting at the same time, then do that. Or when setting up each of the team meetings where you need to be present, plan them so they don't overlap. You're at the controls, remember that and use it to your advantage. Obviously there will sometimes be clashes that are unavoidable, but with a bit of planning and help from your fellow assistants you can manage it all. Call on your EA network to help you out in times of need, knowing that of course you will do the same for them when they need you too.
Finally, set reminders for yourself throughout the day for things you need to do - for example, mark what time you need to pick up visitors from reception, and set reminders every 2 hours to scan each of your managers in-boxes, or diarize dedicated times that you will complete expenses for each of them etc etc. Although you are splitting your time you need to consolidate the tasks that you do into one job. Its hard to manage two calendars and two in-boxes and two sets of admin, so consolidate what you need to into your own system with the reminders that are relevant to you. Its easy to forget things when you have more than one manager, so use your daily task list like a bible and set reminders for yourself to check each of their calendars each morning as soon as you arrive, sort out their meeting clashes or overnight requests for meetings, check they've got meeting rooms for each of their meetings, and that reservations have been made at the restaurant they're dining at for lunch etc etc. This may seem basic, but you shouldn't always rely on your memory to do things, especially when you have more than one to look after.
I'd love to hear from you all on what systems and processes you've all put in place that helps you to manage more than one manager. Supporting multiple managers doesn't have to be challenging. We are organised people and the right people for the job, so never feel daunted by something that a little bit of forward planning and a little bit of organisation will handle.
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