Special Agent Support Professional

In the series featuring Special Agent Pendergast written by Douglas Preston and Lincold Childs, Agent Pendergast is known for his eccentricity, vast eclectic knowledge of customs and courtesies, and his arsenal of useful items hidden inside his coat jacket.  Administrators, managers, and executives alike can take a page from these books!

Much like Special Agent Pendergast, we as administrative, executive, or personal assistants we need to be "Special Agents" of our respected Executives and others with whom we support. Having our own personal arsenal in our business suits in this same fashion makes us indispensable and puts us ahead of our peers. Being aware of various customs and courtesies of differing global regions make us well rounded and sociable professionals.  Having a firm grasp of etiquette for a cornucopia of circumstances makes us pleasing people to be near.
 

Every professional should have at his or her dispense several necessities.  Some things that I consider a part of my business suit are pens, a notepad, hygiene products, and a recorder.  But that is just a bare minimum.  Here is a list of items I generally carry in my suit jacket:

2 Designer pens  It is great to have a nice pen that is available to lend a client who needs to make a signature or give you information when you are not at your desk.  You might even meet an important person in your industry while picking up coffee or getting a bite to eat and are able to share networking information.  Having a quality stylus helps maintain your good impression.

A Mechanical Pencil  Be sure to get one with a good eraser on it.  This is handy when you just need a pencil as well as to polish jewelry in a pinch.
 

Notepad  Never, under any circumstance go anywhere without paper readily available.  You never know when you will need to jot some quick notes or take a message for someone.  Making a VIP wait while you fetch a scrap of paper casts doubts on your ability in their eyes.  Taking down a VIP's information on a torn a ragged piece of scrap is disrespectful to them as well.
 

Recorder  A recorder is a really powerful tool to have.  You can use them for dictation, capturing that huge "to-do" list your boss just rattled off to you in passing in a hallway, and many other situations where things happen to fast to jot down.

Now the curiosities that can get you ahead in a pinch:

Roll Of Tape!  No not a whole roll, but what you should do is roll about just enough tape to be a quarter inch around and keep it in your pocket.  You'd be amazed how often you'll use it up and your employer will be even more amazed when you have something that thoughtful on hand when you're both away from your offices.

Cosmetics  If you or your boss are female, carry a compact (especially if you are knowledgeable enough to match her skin tone) with a mirror and some lip gloss. This simple accessory can save the day more often than you might know (especially if you are a male)

Tissues  What I like to do is roll up 5 or 6 tissues into a clear cigar tube.  This keeps the tissues clean and dry and is much smaller and easier to carry in a coat pocket than those travel packets.

Cigar Tubes  Clear cigar tubes are great! You can keep a few paperclips, a couple Q-tips, your tape, a few toothpicks or a small ball of floss, and a pair of tweezers, in a single tube with room left over.  It keeps the items clean, and your suit safe from being damaged.
 

Polish Wipes  Having a couple of disposable shoe shine wipes in a cigar case is excellent too.  If you or your employer is about to give a presentation or are at a networking event it seems that shoes take the worst of it early.  I remember having a drink splash on my shoes before I gave a presentation and I looked like I had two different pairs of shoes on until I got the polished and shined again.
 

Sewing Kit  Keep a small sewing kit that comes in a small plastic package handy just in case you need to make a quick wardrobe fix for yourself or your employer.

Wet Naps  Wet naps are excellent to have with you, and you’ll find having them to be comforting after sometime.  The only problem with them is that they are hard to store well and get dingy, so keep it in your sewing kit, or if you have the pouch from an empty sewing kit, put them in there.

Business Cards  Always have business cards for yourself and your employer handy.  Just two of each is fine.  You may find yourself in a social setting where you’re able to network someone who has been difficult to reach, or your employer may just have forgotten their card carrier that day.

Keeping things compact and small enough for just a single use is a great way to carry everything you could possibly need to face nearly any adversity while still looking unimpeded.  You don't need to carry a large satchel or purse with you when you keep it simple and small.  The cigar tubes are great for suit jacket hidden pockets as well as clutch bags.  Using these value added tactics enable you to go beyond for your employer in a pinch, and it goes a very long way in building your relationship and improving your brand name for review time.

Excel Tips and Tricks

No doubt Microsoft Excel is one of the most widely used office programs used today.  It is one of those programs that can make or break you as an admin.  For some people Excel is very intimidating, but it shouldn't be!  Excel is an easy to use program that can do more than just simple rows and columns.  Here are a few tips that I've picked up along the way:

1. The dragging handle
Often overlooked this handy little tool is one of the most powerful.  If you click on a cell, and then hover the mouse over the lower right hand side the cursor will turn into a dark plus sign.  Click, hold, and drag this corner down, up, or across a range of cells to copy formulas, series of numbers, months, or just formatting into the new cells.

2. Absolute Cell References
Along with the dragging handle an absolute cell reference is a time saver.  If you are referencing a specific cell in your formula, such as a date entered in cell A1, you'll need to write the cell reference as $A$1.  When you fill the formula across rows or columns of data, it will remain as A1 instead of change to a series.

3.  Data Validation
Data Validation is a very powerful tool that is immensely useful if you are making workbooks for someone who isn't quite too familiar with Excel.  This tool will allow you to have a drop down list in your cell. You can find Data Validation in the Data tab of your ribbon.  In the settings tab, choose list under "Allow" and for the source type each word or value you want in the drop down list by a comma.  It's great for using as a quick way to change between percentage rates or points or even for a Event Planner to change names quickly.

4. Superstring Theory!
No not the superstring theory you read about in a science mag, but "superstringing" formulas together for unique results. Heres an example from a spreadsheet that I track deadlines with:

"=IF(H19<NOW(),"OVERDUE",IF(H19-7<NOW(),"LESS THAN 1 WK",IF(H19-7<NOW(),"LESS THAN 1 WK",IF(H19-14<NOW(),"LESS THAN 2WKS",IF(H19-30<NOW(),"30 DAYS OUT",IF(H19-60<NOW(),"60 DAYS OUT",IF(H19-90<NOW(),"90 DAYS OUT","CURRENT")))))))"

Cell H19 refers to the due date.  The result of this stringed formula is a display of a block of time remaining. 
This formula in particular is very useful when juggling many tasks. You can also use it as a way of organizing your time sensitive filing system, letting you log and assign a date to a file that you need to access in the future.

5. Conditional Formatting
With the formula above, I use a conditional formatting schemata that highlights any cell not equal to current.  Conditional Formatting is available on the home ribbon.  Create a new rule, "Format only cells that contain"  and change the first drop down to "cell value", the second one to "not equal to" and the last to ="current" (you'll need the quotations around the word current).


Excel does have a bit of a learning curve, but the more you use it the easier it gets.  If you have an idea or a "I wish I could do" for Excel but don't think the results you want are possible, google it!  You'd be amazed at what all can be done using just formulas and clever formatting.  If you seek even more Excel adventure, press the Alt Key + F11 to bring up the VBA editor and write your own custom functions and macros!

Recent Promotion

I visit several Admin and Management discussion boards.  Today on one I came across a good question relating to how to deal with former peers who may hold your recent promotion begrudgingly causing the team undue tensions.  This was compounded by what the poster described as legacy behaviors and bad attitudes. This is even more potent when this former peer is suddenly the sullen subordinate!  I addressed the poster's comment with a best practice that I have successfully implemented in different work environments:

When I take on new leadership or a new position I will ask subordinates in a jovial manner "Well, that wasn't too bad, was it?" or "Whoah! Not sure how today went!" and take feedback off of them then.  The intent of which is to lay a foundation for communication and critique as well as being able to give each other a review at the end of the day.  With a perhaps bitter former-peer by allowing them to give you a critique gives you the chance to let them vent their frustration.  If they haven't caught on to the new work dynamic and are disrespectful, it is a good opportunity to nip that disrespect in the bud before it spreads across the team.  You most likely haven't had much time for this behavior to multiply and fester and will be able to deal with it rationally, calmly, and productively.  Saying something along the lines of "I cannot let you continue to address me as you did before and that will need to change, but I really appreciate you being honest with me and letting me know how you feel/what my shortcomings today were/etc". 

I will do this tactic again at the end of the first week, after 2 more weeks, and the end of the month.  I keep mental note of how my team has been responding and how communication has improved or diminished within the dept.  I always ask for daily status updates from subordinates and I try to always find out if there is something going on in their personal life, or if there is a side project of theirs, or any type of accomplishment they've recently achieved.  Every few days I will ask them about something in one of those categories as I am getting status', hopefully in order to show that I am concerned about their total well being and professional growth.  If a subordinate is sour about not moving up, why not ask them why they think they've been "passed over" and mentor them.  You have the benefit of possibly having a die-hard loyal employee if you can turn them from feeling left out to being taking in. 

The most difficult thing I think when transitioning into a leadership role within the same department is breaking free from the "buddy" role.  You have to draw a line and distinguish yourself as the supervisor. By using the method above you open the door to communicating with the subordinates in an offhand and informal way.  As that first week goes by you up the assertiveness each day.  Keeping subordinates engaged and aware of what you need from them is the best way to lead them.  Employees more than anything else, what to know what is expected of them.  Through your engagement and assertiveness  any "legacy" behaviors and bad attitudes should quickly dwindle.  Poor behavior and performance has a way of weeding itself out, either because their is just not time available for it or because a manager makes a tough choice.  Always remember as a manager that it is your dept, and your reputation that is being shown by your subordinates.  Don't allow poor behavior a place in your dept, but don't encourage it by ruling with an iron fist either.  A successful business person will always have several people that they have mentored dedicated to the success of the business person as well as themselves, and this is a quality recognized by your subordinates, peers, and supervisors alike.