Welcome to the Admin Avenue News podcast. I'm your host, Candice Burningham, and I have very special guest today, Stevie Weine, who was one of the winners of the 2025 AOP Awards.
And we're talking emerging leaders evolving impact on stepping up. Early in executive support. So every profession needs fresh voices. People who bring new ideas, initiatives encouraged to lead before they're asked to. So today's guest is one of those voices. She was a winner of the 2025 aop, emerging Leader in Executive Support Award.
And Stevia has already made her mark in the admin profession who thinks strategically leads with empathy. And drives results well beyond her years of experience. So Stevie, welcome to the Admin Avenues podcast.
Thank you. Thank you for having me.
I'm so glad that we could fit this in. I know it's very hard between being an executive assistant and being able to fit all these things around, so thank you so much for making the time. Congratulations. Let's start there first on your win. How did it feel to be the first 2025 AOP emerging leader in executive support world recipient?
It was insane. Like I remember sitting at the table and I had. No feeling at all that I was gonna be a winner. Like I was just so proud to be nominated and a finalist, and I remember my name being called and I just kind of froze and I was like. Is this real? Like does this really just happen? but yeah, once it kind of like set in, which probably wasn't until the next day, like I did feel really proud.
it was quite surreal. Like it kind of makes you realize the impact of what you've been doing. Yeah. So it was, yeah, really special.
You were at the table with me and weren't,
Yeah. Yeah. so with
they would've been screaming,
Yeah,
always cheerleaders. No, that's awesome. And this particular award was judged by Rachel Burnett. how did it feel knowing she picked you as the winner?
Oh my gosh, it was so incredible. I actually felt like a bit of a fan going to be honest.
Ah, don't worry. Everyone feels that way around Rachel.
But yeah, just to be recognized by someone who's like so well respected,
it just meant so
much to me. Like I've been following Rachel for a while. So yeah, it was really quite
surreal.
And it's such a hard task for these judges. Like they've got so many incredible people that. Uh, obviously, you know, everyone deserves to win in a way, but to have to come down and drill down to, they have to do it a against the wording and against the, the guidelines of the award. And your nomination was the, it, it was, The one that stood out as the winner. So I think that's amazing and
It is so great to have new,admins coming in and having that recognition, and I think it just really helps to put the focus on what you're doing is so important in this profession and that people are really noticing what you're doing it both in your business and in your communities.
Yeah, and I think it's so
special that we have these awards to recognize because yeah, we all know that admins can tend to be pushed to the side, so I think that
having that platform to celebrate us is just so special.
Yeah, I agree. I agree. I think it's so important without the recognition there, not just amongst ourselves, but what in the wider community, we're so grateful for our sponsors and for our, supporters in this space, and we can't wait for Brisbane this year to be able to do it all again.
so
I wanna te I know, I know.
I'm so excited. I was up in Brisbane yesterday actually, and I went and saw the venue again and I was just like,
oh, what's happening?
so good.
so it's Yeah. So I wanna take us back to the beginning. Who drew you into the world of executive support?
well, honestly. So I guess I, I'll go back a little bit. So my background's
in a bit of a variety. like hospitality, customer service, a bit of
events and fundraising, different admin roles. Um, and it was during COVID that I was really just needing a bit of a scene change.
I was really looking to work for a organization that was quite, uh, like values based. Um.
I've always enjoyed working in not-for-profits and I just wanted to work somewhere that just had a good workplace culture to be completely honest. Like I was just burnt out during COVID and I just needed some good funds.
yeah, so I applied for a admin officer role. For where I currently work, which is KWI. And I remember thinking like, oh, I'm not that excited about the role itself, but I was excited about the company. , And I remember going in for my interview and the energy in the office was just so good. Like everyone was so happy and friendly.
And I was like, yeah, okay. This is where I wanna be.
And I'm so glad I took it to the job on because, the company was going through a bit of a growth spurt at that time., I.
Rapidly grown now.
but I was given the opportunity about a year in, where the CEO actually approached me and asked me to be his ea.
it was the first time him having an EA and the first time the organization having one.
Um. Yeah, so it was a bit exciting. I was a little bit nervous., To be
honest, I wasn't super familiar with what an EA did,
um, other than what I'd seen in movies.
Yep.
Um, but I, I called up one of my aunties who used to, um. Be an ea and she kind of spoke me through her experience and I was just so excited. Like I just thought it sounded really interesting, the variety of the role being close to decision making. And I could see that there would be the opportunity for them to be like strategy and influence in the role. Yeah, and I also thought it would just be a really interesting opportunity to, to like learn to be an a ea, but with someone who hadn't had one before, so we were
kind of learning together.
Yes.
a really great way to, for both of you, in your learnings of, of how to work together and create this role
yeah. Exactly.
that foundation there. It's like, okay, how do we want this role to, to work together?
Yeah, so it was really exciting to be able to, yeah, like you said, create it to what worked for.
for.
Yep. And you've achieved already so much during your, your career already, but have there been any like massive milestones, obviously apart from the award that stand out or like real turning points that were like stand out moments for you? Have you, has that come.
I think for me, uh, it was probably working on our summit. So we hold a summit every two years, except we did 1 23 and 24 because COVID kind of
messed up all of the timing. and I think working on that, Was a bit of a milestone for me. Like I really enjoy the event side of things, so I'm quite lucky that I get to work on that in my role. Um, but I think it was a really good opportunity for me to kind of show my skillset and I think that kind of helped the CEO see. Um. I guess my value and my organizational skills, my strategic
thinking, and I think that was why he yeah, approached me to be in that role. So yeah, I worked on the 2023 summit, within a team.
It was super exciting. We introduced some new tools and kind of redesigned a few things just to kind of polish the event and make it a bit more professional.
And then from that. I was invited to kind of be like the main event manager on the 2024, uh, summit, where I really like took that role on and kind of redesigned everything and I just kind of wanna made it a lot bigger and better.
So,, Redesigned a few things in terms of making the processes a lot more streamlined. Introduced digital tools, redesigned our sponsorship package and in the end was able to like increase our attendee size by 54% and increase our revenue by 111%, which was quite
significant. Yeah.
Yes.
I think that was a big, um, achievement, but I think it was also, like I said, just a really good opportunity for me to showcase my skillset. So I think that was a turning point in the way that I was seen in the workplace.
Absolutely. And without putting your hand up for these opportunities, they don't just get handed to you on a platter. You have to get out there and say, actually I'd like to be involved in that. Can I be on that? Can I be on that committee? So, you know, well done on sticking your hand up and being like, actually I've got a really good skill set in this area.
I'd like to. To get involved and be able to showcase that. Um, I think so many people underestimate how multifaceted executive assistants are, , in the skillset that they have. Especially you come from a, a service-based industry, you, you have so much experience there already
Yeah.
the role. So well done on
Thank you.
So when did you realize that you were stepping into a leadership space and not just supporting?
Yeah, I think it took a little while, um, for me to feel like I was in that leadership space. It definitely felt like more of that administrative, transactional. Role to begin with. , But as time went on and like the trust was built and I was invited into more of those leadership meetings, I eventually started to feel like I had a little bit more of a place at those tables and able to share my voice to help guide, and influence things. can't remember who said it. Someone in the EA world , said that you are the subject expert matter in the room. And I had like this little white bulb moment. I was like, you know what? That's actually. So true. Like I might not be the smartest in the room. I might not know the most about certain things in the business, but I know the most about executive support and admin and events and other things like that.
So I should have the confidence to contribute to those conversations. it's not an easy thing to do. Like it's definitely about imposter syndrome.
Yes, absolutely. And we, we learned about all that with Alison Samir's session about the imposter syndrome effect. But I think the more you flex that muscle and the more that you are, you know, guiding and influencing outcomes in these meetings, making sure that you are present, giving your feedback, showing that your impact is actually helping bring projects along like that.
That is showing that you've got the leadership in this space, and yes, it takes a while to find that voice, especially when you're coming up. I remember I tell this story often is that my first executive assistant role, I just assumed that I was now an executive and no one told me otherwise. So I just turned up to every meeting.
And people would look at me and go, why is she here? And David, my boss at the time was like, well, she's here so let's make the most of it. And that's how I kind of pushed my way into all these meetings. And they saw my value of
Yeah.
the meetings. 'cause we know everything that's going on in the teams, in the businesses.
Who's going on maternity leave, who's got holidays coming up? We hold so much knowledge.
Absolutely.
so I think that's so great that you're able to sit in these, these meetings and, and not just meetings be in the business and people come to you and be like, Stevie, where are we at with this?
Yeah, and I think that's, yeah, that feeling of when someone comes to you for guidance and not just for
task support, that's when you kind of know that you're kind of seen as, as a leader.
Yes, that's so true. And in my experience, you are the go-to person in the business. Uh, whether it's for advice, whether it's for guidance, whether it's the EAs hold a whole other load of responsibility in supporting others, not just their executives, but we are the people that people come to in the business.
We are the people that are expected to have the answers too.
Yeah. Well, we're able to connect.
Mm-hmm. We hold the missing pieces.
So the award that you won in particular recognizes business acumen and strategic contribution. How do you approach your role with that kind of business? First mindset.
I think for me, I always try to understand like the why behind tasks. And it's probably to the point where it actually annoys my CEO a little bit.
But why, but why?
Literally. And like sometimes it's obvious like. Why you're doing things. But other
times it's like, I need to understand what the impact of this is.
And you know, sometimes it's
not clear, so I'll wanna ask that question. And it is literally me saying, but why? , But yeah, once I kind of understand why we're doing it and how it's gonna impact, like I find it a lot easier. It's even just like effects, like the way you prioritize your work, what you
understand the why.
an example, um, of being like a business first mindset would probably be with the summit again. So, um, like
we're a not-for-profit organization, so it's really important for us to, uh, consider diversifying our, um, business and our income.
So. That was something I really took on board when I was redesigning the summit process, like thinking outside the square a little bit to be able to increase our revenue from the event.
I also think it's really important to understand like the business, um, like the strategic plan and like your own executive goals.
'cause that then helps you think in that business mindset.
Absolutely. I think the more digging you do in that and have the more understanding of that in the business, the more helpful it will be in your role. So for example, I would ask, you know, if there was something I didn't understand, my executive couldn't articulate it, I'd be like, well then can I sit in the meeting?
I'll be able to pick it up what it is, but I, I can't, from your crappy notes, I can't pick up what we're trying to achieve here.
Yeah.
Uh, and not, I I don't remember ever being told, unless it was something financial or something, you know, touchy, like redundancies or something. I don't ever remember being told, no, you can't sit in on this meeting.
It was always of value to have the executive support the, in the room.
Absolutely.
So you've just shared an example of initiative where you've helped drive operational success for your executive team. Do you think that, is there differences in doing it in a not-for-profit versus your other experiences?
that is a good question.
I've been helping in a not-for-profit recently. , And it's so different to working in corporate, like everything. Has a value to it. Whereas so much is kind of flippant in corporate, but each donation we do each, like it's actual impact.
Yeah. Yeah. My last two roles have been in not-for-profit. So, and I haven't
Mm-hmm.
been, well, obviously this is my first EA role, so I can't really reflect on what it's like in the corporate world. but yeah, I do, I love working for not-for-profits. I love being able to see the impact of what you're doing.
And you know, sometimes it's hard as an EA to see like the impact of what I'm doing and how that's affecting the families that I work on. But then if you think of it in like a broader picture, it's like, all right, well I'm able to like redesign the CEO's diary so that he's got less meeting hours so that he can devote more time to strategic projects, he can have better partnerships externally and internally as
well. , So that we're able to do better jobs for our families.
Yeah. you cannot put a price on giving time back.
Yeah, absolutely.
buy more time. that's so key. How do you balance being proactive and taking initiative but also while still respecting leadership and boundaries? And I don't know if there's hierarchy in, in not-for-profits.
I assume in some respects there are.
Yeah, like there definitely is still a hierarchy. I think where I work, I'm quite lucky that it is probably a little bit more fluid.
And it is like, yeah, just a good working environment where everyone is able to kind of speak up, ,
and share their voice.
But I think probably a big thing is trust,
which does take time. Like especially if. You're someone new of your executive, like I would love to go back in time and tell myself just to be a little bit more patient.
Yeah.
but I think, yeah, you can still be proactive and take initiative. Just, you know, keep your communication open and transparent and be solutions focused and kind of share your, your ideas, uh, or your opinion in like a really positive way and in a way that the other person is gonna be able to see. The impact and how it's gonna affect them. Like what's the buy-in for them?
Yeah. Yeah,
Yeah. So like,
advice there.
yeah, and I think it's also important just to like know when to lean forward and when to step back, but I think that's just something that comes with time once you get to learn the people that you're working with as well.
Absolutely. And practicing eq, like if you walk into the room and you can feel that you shouldn't be there, walk out.
Yeah. Yes, absolutely.
Yes, there is brain matter in there for a reason. Um, okay. So what have you learned about influencing without authority, especially as someone still early in their career?
Yeah. Again,
I think it's just about being really solutions focused, um, and framing your
ideas in terms of like values and outcome. Um, like if you can make it quite specific to the person or the team that you're talking to and like what's in it for them. Um, 'cause like seriously, you could have. The best idea that could quite genuinely be really valuable.
But if the other person doesn't see what's in it for them, they might not necessarily listen or take it on board.
So I think it's important to kind of understand other people's perspectives to be able to influence them. Yeah.
That's such good advice because a big part of that kind of blocking between executive support sometimes is that. The differences of opinions on things. And if you're able to be like, actually I'm here to help, not hinder, and I can see your point of view with this, but this is the guidelines that we're, we're, we're stuck by.
These are parameters we have to work by. So whilst our respect you, you think of it like this, we have to work like this. And if they understand, that's not you throwing your weight around. That's just, that's the perimeters you have to work in particular, being not-for-profit. There, there a lot more are okay.
You are trying to help me with this instead of, you know, sometimes we get the, you are a bossy boots
Yeah.
you know, attitude and it's like, I'm trying to help, dude.
Yeah. I'm not gonna lie in the, in the early days there was a few comments that I was getting too.
Oh. Good. Good. That means you were making impact. Oh, if I had a cheeseburger for every time that I heard that, like wow. The amount of times I heard that I was bossy when I was coming up in my career and I'm like, I'm not bossy. I am effective.
Yeah.
things done.
Yeah.
It is such a female term,
It really is just
queen term.
She's bossy. Ugh. So on that, how have you been able to deflect from that and be like, no, no, that's, that's not what I'm doing here.
Yeah. I mean, I struggled with it a bit at first. Yeah, and I think it's just being new to the role and being
still, I guess young, if I can still call myself young at 31,
Yes, absolutely.
um, yeah, like I, I did take it on a little bit personally at first.
But then, yeah, I just tried to come back to, you know what, I'm actually just trying to do my job and I'm trying to do it well.
. So, you know what? At the end of the day, some people aren't gonna like you and you're just gonna
have to deal with that. and I think especially as you go up in your career and you are more in that leadership space, the likelihood there is gonna be, less people that like you, and
that's fine, and you just have to accept that.
Leadership can take many forms.
Uh, how do you define it for yourself at this stage of your journey in your career?
I think I kind of go through different stages,
where I can feel a bit more like a leader and then other times I don't. I did have a short. Opportunity where I did actually, I was physically in a leadership role where I was managing the admin team.
Um, so that was a really, yeah, so that was a really great opportunity to be in, I guess that more literal sense of a leadership role.
which, yeah, it was a really interesting learning journey. I'm not gonna lie, it was a huge amount of work, , on top of being an EA and managing the summit. But it was a
great opportunity to, to kind of learn hands on. But I think for me, especially in this day and age with all of the AI and technology that's going on, I think someone who is a leader is someone who's very like human centric. So someone who's like empathetic and can create connection and trust, especially in like the high pressure roles that we all work in. Yeah, and you know what, it's a learning journey.. So I think it's just important just to try new things, try out different styles, have a bit of fun of it, you know, be open to learning and yeah.
Yeah, I couldn't agree more with that. So, who have been some of the mentors or role models who have helped shape your approach to leadership or your career in general? I know you picked up with your, with your aunt who used to be a NEA as well.
Yeah. So I learned a lot from her, um, from that phone call about. What an EA can be more in that strategic space. Um, so that was quite interesting. Um, I also got a lot out of the force multiplier book.
Um, I was, yeah, I highly recommend everyone reads, all listens. I, I listen to the book, um, that taught me a lot, um, about how you can be that. Leader, leader in an EA role without, I guess that natural authority that comes with more of a management role. Um, but I'm also quite lucky in where I work. Like I'm really surrounded by a lot of quite amazing people. Um, my CEO is. Very much a charismatic leader. Um, I've learned a lot from him in the way that he leads.
Um, he started the business himself, uh, 15 years ago now, actually.
Um, yeah, so it's very much his baby. So he cares a lot about the business. He cares so much about the families we work with, and he actually cares quite literally about every staff member, which I think is huge for a CEO to be like
that. Um.
Absolutely.
Yeah. So I think that charismatic, but also that empathetic style of leadership, um, I'm very drawn to. So I've learned a lot from him, but also from the rest of the executive team, which has been, yeah, really amazing.
That's so great. That's such a great experience and to have so many people that you can rally around and say, yep, you've had an impact on my careers.
Yeah.
so good because this is one of the things I really, I'm like, Ooh, I sit on the fence about, because I really like remote working and the flexibility, particularly for women, particularly with families and things like that.
When you don't work in an office, you don't get to build these relationships because it's about being in the room with these people. It's about having those moments and that just doesn't come from working from home. And that's, that's my, my, my, my devil on my shoulder that just goes, nah, working from home is great and my angels just like, it's not.
'cause some of your best friends and mentors that you had is through your career from working in an office together.
Yeah.
just fear the next generation won't have those connections if they don't have that office experience.
Yeah, that's so true. There's definitely to.
Yeah. So that's, I'm like hybrids
hybrid. Definitely agreed. Yep.
Yeah. Yeah, because you've also like, if you are gaining a mentor, even if it's not intentional, like someone's just helping you out in meetings or help, you know, being that friendly face in the office and things like that, you just don't get that if it's not in person.
So
right.
And I think so often.
are coming up and don't have to go into an office, like make the effort to
Yeah, definitely make those connections and face-to-face like you can't beat it. Like nothing's ever the same. You can't read tone and emails and texts
like you need the body language. You need to see
their energy. Yeah,
it's so true because email or texts or teams that can come across so bad pending your mood, you can read, someone might have been like, Hey, uh, have you got that form that we were talking about? And it's just a casual. Are you there yet? Have you got it yet? And then you've, you are in a foul mood and you've read it as they're chasing you.
Yep,
if they just came by your office and had a smile on their face and they could see you are in a bad mood, they might be like, you alright babe? Like, there's such a difference when it's in person.
absolutely.
And so how do you foster collaborations or lift others up in your team? Especially when we're talking about, you know, this hybrid situation.
Yeah. Um, for me, I think it's really important to celebrate wins. Um, and I think
it's very easy not to do that when we're really busy, which we just seem to
always be very busy.
Um, yeah, and I think like that's something that I love. So I think about what I. Um, find creates a good, um, environment, makes me feel good.
I try and do that for others. So I think acknowledging other people's works and contributions to thing and doing it in like an open and public format so that other people are hearing like, oh, Candace did this, like, well done Candace.
Um, I think, yeah, that just creates a really like safe environment where people feel valued and appreciated. So I think that's really important and I think that's something that like anyone can do. You don't need to be. A leadership position, like you can like shout out your colleagues whenever you get the chance.
Yes, absolutely. I love that. And if it's, you know, there's an opportunity in a town hall or even in a newsletter or on the intranet or you know, find a way. To toot someone else's horn and be like, I wanna shout about the work you did. I wanna say thank you for the support you gave me for that event.
Yeah.
You know, I want your executive to know that your contribution mattered in this leadership event.
Um, for me, at SBS, there was a particular EA who worked in. I think it's called People and Culture now. Don't think it was back then, but she was hands down the person that if I needed help, I would be like, can someone help? And before I got the word help out, she'd be like, I can do it, I'll do it. I can help.
And I was just like. I made sure that her, 'cause I know it impacted her executive, so I always made sure that I went back to their her executive and said, thank you so much for letting Bianca be able to do that for me. It was so helpful and it really helped the CEO be able to X
Yeah.
they knew it wasn't her trying to ditch her work.
It was her making an actual impact in the business.
Yeah. That's so
um. Yeah. And that way, you know, if you have little awards and stuff in your, like when I worked at NBC Universal, they used to have these things called GEM Awards where you could, um, nominate people for awards and they got like vouchers and things like that, uh, for being a gem in the business.
And I love little things like that, that you can just show you your work matters. What you did matters. Your help matters.
Yeah.
it's good. I'm glad that you've got that kind of culture there as well. It's important to have and, and I agree that it's so easy to miss the opportunity to celebrate big wins because you're already moving onto the next thing as soon as the first thing stopped and it's like, actually, let's just take a minute to, to congratulate ourselves on an incredible event or an incredible end of project.
So well done on you leading that. saying thanks as. It's important. Yeah, exactly. Some you just assume everyone knows that you're grateful, but you actually do need to say thank you.
Yeah.
Sometimes it's not obvious.
Yeah.
So let's talk about a little bit about growth mindset and your career development. like what's been one of your biggest learning curves so far as in your role in executive support?
Yeah. Um, I think, like I said in the beginning, I was definitely more of that like task orientated, quite reactive, um, role and,
and mindset transactional. Yeah.
So I think switching from that to more of that proactive and strategic. , Mindset. Mindset. Uh, that
was definitely like a learning curve. Um, so, you know, learning to like, anticipate needs, learning to manage up understanding the bigger picture, and, you know, acting as that force multiplier rather than just like a support role. That's definitely been a huge learning curve. And I think another thing is just learning to be okay with your mistakes.
, I'm definitely a perfectionist at times. So I think it's just like important to remember like you are in the human mistakes are actually unavoidable. We're all gonna
make them. So treat them as like a learning opportunity and also own up to them. Like if you're just honest and accountable with your own mistakes, people are gonna trust you more with that.
Yeah. Yeah, I completely agree. I believe that, um, in Steven Bartlett's company Flight something, he has a director of failures.
Oh,
okay.
actually a role called the Director of Failures, and their job is to fail on, on. Uh, experiments on trying
my gosh, that's so interesting.
because of the learnings that they get from it,
Oh, wow. I love that.
just.
Just keep going. Doesn't matter how many times you fail on it, we gotta learn something from that. So then let's take the learnings and then work it into either a product or a better way to do things or I was like, wow, that's such a interesting way to look at things, but not sure I want that title on my, on my LinkedIn.
So how do you invest in your own professional development?
Um.
or resources
Yeah, I mean I definitely, read or listen to, I probably listen to more books than I actually read. also lots of podcasts. Um, I do travel a little bit for work and also
all my family live interstate, so whenever I'm flying, I'm always listening to podcasts.
I've joined a couple of like online EA groups and also like a local EA networking group.
And I think that's really important just to like surround yourself with other like-minded people and people that understand the role. And if you have someone like me being the only EA in the business, I think it's nice to have that support outside as well. Yeah. What else? I try just find different courses and conferences, obviously.
Admin Avenues conference, shout out to
that.
Hey,
Yeah, but I
think
it's just
coming to Adelaide this year,
Oh, I did see that. I kind of wanna go to the Brisbane one though. don't
okay?
coming.
Yep. Yep. Alright, we'll we'll keep that in the bag.
I've got family in the Gold Coast, so it's a good excuse to travel.
Ah, perfect. Perfect. Yep.
I think that's great. I think that's you, you use your opportunities, like you said, you travel a lot, fill some of that time with content that helps you, that you enjoy. Like if you listen, if you're, you are off, obviously audio that you take in things.
, I, I'm visual so I have to read it or see it or watch it. so it's so easy for you if you are going for a drive or if you're flying, find what works for you to be able to, to take in,
Yeah.
books, anything that you think helps you. What else have you got in your tricks? Your trick, your bag of tricks?
Yeah, I just think it's like important to understand like, well, this is my point of view at least. I
think learning is very much your own pers like responsibility. I think a lot
of people leave it up to kind of their management and just think, oh, they should find courses for me to do or tell me what I need to grow.
And, but I think it's really important to take that on yourself. Um,
you can certainly ask for feedback, um, on what they think you should kind of grow in and what you could. Do and get like support and guidance on what courses, et cetera. But I think at the end of the day, it's up to you to take on that responsibility of your own learning journey
and find things that are gonna work for you.
Yeah, that's so true. And the worst thing they can do is say no. So why wouldn't you ask? Ask for that professional development budget. It's so important that you invest in yourself. 'cause as you just said, no one else is going, sitting in a room being like, Hmm, I wonder how I can help Stevie in her career.
It's absolutely your responsibility to find these things and say, I think this would be really beneficial for me. Here's the reasons why. And Mo, if it's a good. Good company to do it with, like admin avenues of course, uh, or aop. we give, a template that you can use and say, this is why, this is what the benefits are.
So, you know, ask for if, if you're interested in something, ask for that template. Say, Hey, do you have something that I can pass on to my exec to get, um, funding for this?
Yes,
if you don't ask, you don't get.
That's right.
I love that. So if you could go back and give your early career itself one piece of advice, or a few, what would it be?
Uh, I think there's definitely a few. I think I mentioned earlier definitely patience. I struggled at
the beginning. Um, and it was one of those things like the CEO, me being his first ea, it did take him a little while to kind of. Let go and surrender.
of
course.
So definitely a bit of patience there. But I think another big one for me is just like, don't burn yourself out.
Like focus on learning, not on perfection. Just take each day as it comes and yeah, just go with the flow a little bit more. Stop trying to be everything and everyone.
Yeah. Would you say that that's an experience thing like you, the more you do it, the more you're like, ah, I get it. I remember just being Miss Eager Beaver, and I was like, I can do it. I can do it. I put my hand up for everything I was in like, and then eventually I was just like, actually, you don't have to be the person that does everything.
You're allowed to have, you know, a few projects and do them well instead of jumping all over everything.
Yeah, and I mean, it's absolutely something I'm still trying to learn,
like
Of course,
yeah, I'm just,
and especially
that people pleaser attitude, like you just wanna be able to be the best and do everything for everyone, but you gotta look after yourself as well.
Definitely. And also, if you find things that you are passionate about, you wanna be in on them, it's like cool. But like, just pick a few rather than all of them, because each one is gonna ask a lot of you. So be willing to, to accept that and that. And then we can't do everything. We can't do. We can do everything.
We can't do it all at once.
that's right.
you've, pick what? Pick a pick a few and then be like, right, these are gonna be my focus for now. This is what brings me joy. This is what's gonna help me in my career. Like,
Mm.
but I. Being in the job long enough to experience and be like, oh, okay, I don't have to do it all. I don't have to be in it all.
Um, but I guess that's with anything, right? Like wisdom comes with age. If you could put old heads on young shoulders, I. I wish I could put my old head on young shoulders. So where do you see yourself kind of heading next? Like what kind of leader do you hope to become in the next few years? You've already kind of stepped in, as you said, and and did a role around managing admins.
Is that something that kind of excites you or,
Uh, I did enjoy it, but I, I really enjoyed like the one-on-one support I'm able to give, um, my CEO. So at the
moment, that's something I'm still, wanting to learn and grow in. I also really love the event space, so I can see myself yeah, still doing that, which I'm quite
lucky that I'm able to do that in my
Yeah.
And I've also been looking into doing like some short courses around like marketing and communication. So I think
that'll be an interesting new skill to learn.
Um, but at the end of the day, I just, yeah, I just wanna keep. Moving and growing and learning, and I just wanna make other people feel good about themselves.
So whatever that might end up being, I'm not too.
I love that. I keep an open eye with it. I remember people saying to me always in my career, what are you gonna do next? And I was like, what do you mean next? And they were like, well, whatcha gonna do after you've been an ea? I'm like, don't get it. In my head, I didn't understand that. They didn't understand that being an EA was a career.
They all thought that it was a stepping stone, and I was like, no, I love this job. I'm not
I'm the same. I love my job, so I'm not Yeah, looking at any changes, really. I just wanna
keep learning and growing in that role.
Yeah, we would just have this bubble of in clarity between us and I was like, I don't get it. They're like, I don't get it. I You won't get it. You don't know what I do. You don't get it. You, this is, and I did it for 20 years.
Like I loved being in ea, absolutely loved it. And now I'm still working in the profession. I'm just moved into the events side of it. So there is an avenue for everyone in admin. See what I did there?
right. I did. I love it.
So how do you see the role of the executive support evolving? Like what, what, what skills do you think are emerging or what, what do you need to thrive, do you think, in this role going forward?
Yeah, I mean, I think we all know that the role is becoming more strategic and less transactional.
So I think skills like critical thinking, managing up communication, adaptability, are definitely essentials. And then of course, being in this AI world that we're in now, I think you definitely need to
be quite proactive in that space.
I think a lot of. EAs can get a little bit scared of it. Like there's definitely some negative, , things about AI on like LinkedIn and then you see, you know, there's people off sourcing their EAs saying that,
you know, AI can do everything now. So I think it's really important to stay positive and upskill yourself. And show that the role is more than just that transactional administrative,
Task facings and be strategic, be that business partner.
Yeah, I think that's so important. And also this comes back to the hybrid part, is if you are working in an office. That can't be outsourced to ai, like the being there, the being that support person, that being that person, the EQ in the office, reading the room, seeing what's going on in the business.
Like, I remember one of my CEOs being like, I need you to be my eyes and ears in the business. I barely get to leave my office. What's going on out there? Are they happy? Are we ha like, are we moving forward? Is, is my management team actually effective? I can't get out there. I need you.
Yeah.
the on that
Yeah. You are their extension.
yeah.
And when he couldn't sit in meetings, I had.
Yeah.
There's so much more to it than the transactional side. There's a human element side it's actually something we're gonna be talking about the Admin Professionals day event in Sydney. We've got special guest Michael Eid, who was my CEO at SBS,
Oh
hands down just such an incredible CEO on leadership, but also his understanding of the EA role role and how he, he never, ever, ever used me for my technical skills.
It was always my human skills.
yeah,
And I was like, that's something we really need to hone in on, uh, in the messaging of you worry about your, technical skills, but they're worried about what they need out of you in the business and how you can help them in their role. And that's, that's not gonna be an AI related.
Anyway, I, I digress because I go, I fully go down a tangent on this and I'm like, don't worry. Admins AI is not taking your job.
It's not, it's gonna make our jobs better.
Exactly, and I just, I wish I could get people to understand that because I know there is a fear and a like this terrible. You know, story going out there to admins being like, there's a graph that someone put out.
I dunno if it was McKinsey's or something, and it showed that office admin support roles will be gone. I'm like, Ugh. I bet you a white collared, white middle aged man that has absolutely no idea about what admins do. Put this graph together. I'm coming for you. Whoever you were.
Yeah.
So finally, what message would you like to share with other early career admins who wanna step into leadership but don't really know where to start?
Yeah. Um, I mean, start where you are. Like leadership isn't something, you wait for, I think it's something that you step into.
I think it's important to be. Curious and confident take initiative, even if it's just in small ways. , And I know it's a lot easier said than done, but try and back yourself.
Fake it till you make it
Yep.
goes through action, you know, so like the more you do, the more you'll feel confident in it.
Yep. I agree with that. I remember when I first stepped into an admin, like a executive support type role, I remember being like, I'm a fraud. I don't belong here. And I was like,
Absolutely. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah,
What in this can't you do what? It's just you've not held the title. You can do the work. You can do the work.
So just do the work and show your work. People will start being like, yeah, because I went from reception to an executive assistant
Yeah. Well, I was pretty much the same.
who were like, yeah, how what? You don't, not, you don't deserve it, but like you shouldn't be able to jump like that. It's like, but I've got the skills.
Why?
Yeah.
Why, why, why there? It's again,
Yeah.
oh, Stevie, it's been so great chatting with you. Thank you so much for, for, for being on the show, but also showing that leadership isn't about tenure, it's about mindset, initiative, and impact. And congratulations again on being recognized as a 2025 AOP emerging leader in executive support.
We can't wait to see where your career takes you next. We definitely wanna be able to stay in touch. We're def. Love to have you, um, you know, write a little piece for the AOP newsletter and, get you back involved. Well, actually we have a mentor program that I wanted to talk to you about. I'll do it offline from this.
, But AF is launching their mentor program this year. And we would definitely love to have someone like yourself involved, , to help us shape this because like all things, we don't pretend like we have everything nailed. We need the, the community to tell us, all right, well how do we do this? How do we shape this?
What's gonna be best for you? And I think all throughout your career, we learn from each other by asking each other and you, how do you do this? How do you do that? And I think a big part of that is connecting, talking, going to events like you are part of the EA E-E-A-E-A-I-N
network.
Yeah.
Yes, which is me and Catherine's network in South Australia.
And like I could just imagine the conversations that you guys have going on at those events,
Yeah,
so many different people to lean on and find out different ways everyone's making impact. So, sharing your stories, keep talking, keep, love it. And I'm sure so many people are gonna reach out with you.
We will put, uh, Stevie's details LinkedIn in the um. Show notes and I'll also, uh, put in the, I think what's, who's the force multiplier by the book, Halle.
my goodness. Yes. Halle
think it's Halle.
someone else. Um.
I'll put the link to that in the, in the show notes as well. Yeah. So that, you can reference that book that, , Stevie recommends.
And, um, yeah, thank you again so much. And for everyone listening, remember that you don't need permission to lead. You just need the courage to start. So hopefully this episode has given you a bit of oo and for you to go back into your role and be like, yeah, I got this. No matter what stage you are in your career.
So thank you again so much for joining us. Stevie and, I hope to see you in Brisbane, uh, if not Adelaide, later on this year. Thank you for joining us.
And we're talking emerging leaders evolving impact on stepping up. Early in executive support. So every profession needs fresh voices. People who bring new ideas, initiatives encouraged to lead before they're asked to. So today's guest is one of those voices. She was a winner of the 2025 aop, emerging Leader in Executive Support Award.
And Stevia has already made her mark in the admin profession who thinks strategically leads with empathy. And drives results well beyond her years of experience. So Stevie, welcome to the Admin Avenues podcast.
Thank you. Thank you for having me.
I'm so glad that we could fit this in. I know it's very hard between being an executive assistant and being able to fit all these things around, so thank you so much for making the time. Congratulations. Let's start there first on your win. How did it feel to be the first 2025 AOP emerging leader in executive support world recipient?
It was insane. Like I remember sitting at the table and I had. No feeling at all that I was gonna be a winner. Like I was just so proud to be nominated and a finalist, and I remember my name being called and I just kind of froze and I was like. Is this real? Like does this really just happen? but yeah, once it kind of like set in, which probably wasn't until the next day, like I did feel really proud.
it was quite surreal. Like it kind of makes you realize the impact of what you've been doing. Yeah. So it was, yeah, really special.
You were at the table with me and weren't,
Yeah. Yeah. so with
they would've been screaming,
Yeah,
always cheerleaders. No, that's awesome. And this particular award was judged by Rachel Burnett. how did it feel knowing she picked you as the winner?
Oh my gosh, it was so incredible. I actually felt like a bit of a fan going to be honest.
Ah, don't worry. Everyone feels that way around Rachel.
But yeah, just to be recognized by someone who's like so well respected,
it just meant so
much to me. Like I've been following Rachel for a while. So yeah, it was really quite
surreal.
And it's such a hard task for these judges. Like they've got so many incredible people that. Uh, obviously, you know, everyone deserves to win in a way, but to have to come down and drill down to, they have to do it a against the wording and against the, the guidelines of the award. And your nomination was the, it, it was, The one that stood out as the winner. So I think that's amazing and
It is so great to have new,admins coming in and having that recognition, and I think it just really helps to put the focus on what you're doing is so important in this profession and that people are really noticing what you're doing it both in your business and in your communities.
Yeah, and I think it's so
special that we have these awards to recognize because yeah, we all know that admins can tend to be pushed to the side, so I think that
having that platform to celebrate us is just so special.
Yeah, I agree. I agree. I think it's so important without the recognition there, not just amongst ourselves, but what in the wider community, we're so grateful for our sponsors and for our, supporters in this space, and we can't wait for Brisbane this year to be able to do it all again.
so
I wanna te I know, I know.
I'm so excited. I was up in Brisbane yesterday actually, and I went and saw the venue again and I was just like,
oh, what's happening?
so good.
so it's Yeah. So I wanna take us back to the beginning. Who drew you into the world of executive support?
well, honestly. So I guess I, I'll go back a little bit. So my background's
in a bit of a variety. like hospitality, customer service, a bit of
events and fundraising, different admin roles. Um, and it was during COVID that I was really just needing a bit of a scene change.
I was really looking to work for a organization that was quite, uh, like values based. Um.
I've always enjoyed working in not-for-profits and I just wanted to work somewhere that just had a good workplace culture to be completely honest. Like I was just burnt out during COVID and I just needed some good funds.
yeah, so I applied for a admin officer role. For where I currently work, which is KWI. And I remember thinking like, oh, I'm not that excited about the role itself, but I was excited about the company. , And I remember going in for my interview and the energy in the office was just so good. Like everyone was so happy and friendly.
And I was like, yeah, okay. This is where I wanna be.
And I'm so glad I took it to the job on because, the company was going through a bit of a growth spurt at that time., I.
Rapidly grown now.
but I was given the opportunity about a year in, where the CEO actually approached me and asked me to be his ea.
it was the first time him having an EA and the first time the organization having one.
Um. Yeah, so it was a bit exciting. I was a little bit nervous., To be
honest, I wasn't super familiar with what an EA did,
um, other than what I'd seen in movies.
Yep.
Um, but I, I called up one of my aunties who used to, um. Be an ea and she kind of spoke me through her experience and I was just so excited. Like I just thought it sounded really interesting, the variety of the role being close to decision making. And I could see that there would be the opportunity for them to be like strategy and influence in the role. Yeah, and I also thought it would just be a really interesting opportunity to, to like learn to be an a ea, but with someone who hadn't had one before, so we were
kind of learning together.
Yes.
a really great way to, for both of you, in your learnings of, of how to work together and create this role
yeah. Exactly.
that foundation there. It's like, okay, how do we want this role to, to work together?
Yeah, so it was really exciting to be able to, yeah, like you said, create it to what worked for.
for.
Yep. And you've achieved already so much during your, your career already, but have there been any like massive milestones, obviously apart from the award that stand out or like real turning points that were like stand out moments for you? Have you, has that come.
I think for me, uh, it was probably working on our summit. So we hold a summit every two years, except we did 1 23 and 24 because COVID kind of
messed up all of the timing. and I think working on that, Was a bit of a milestone for me. Like I really enjoy the event side of things, so I'm quite lucky that I get to work on that in my role. Um, but I think it was a really good opportunity for me to kind of show my skillset and I think that kind of helped the CEO see. Um. I guess my value and my organizational skills, my strategic
thinking, and I think that was why he yeah, approached me to be in that role. So yeah, I worked on the 2023 summit, within a team.
It was super exciting. We introduced some new tools and kind of redesigned a few things just to kind of polish the event and make it a bit more professional.
And then from that. I was invited to kind of be like the main event manager on the 2024, uh, summit, where I really like took that role on and kind of redesigned everything and I just kind of wanna made it a lot bigger and better.
So,, Redesigned a few things in terms of making the processes a lot more streamlined. Introduced digital tools, redesigned our sponsorship package and in the end was able to like increase our attendee size by 54% and increase our revenue by 111%, which was quite
significant. Yeah.
Yes.
I think that was a big, um, achievement, but I think it was also, like I said, just a really good opportunity for me to showcase my skillset. So I think that was a turning point in the way that I was seen in the workplace.
Absolutely. And without putting your hand up for these opportunities, they don't just get handed to you on a platter. You have to get out there and say, actually I'd like to be involved in that. Can I be on that? Can I be on that committee? So, you know, well done on sticking your hand up and being like, actually I've got a really good skill set in this area.
I'd like to. To get involved and be able to showcase that. Um, I think so many people underestimate how multifaceted executive assistants are, , in the skillset that they have. Especially you come from a, a service-based industry, you, you have so much experience there already
Yeah.
the role. So well done on
Thank you.
So when did you realize that you were stepping into a leadership space and not just supporting?
Yeah, I think it took a little while, um, for me to feel like I was in that leadership space. It definitely felt like more of that administrative, transactional. Role to begin with. , But as time went on and like the trust was built and I was invited into more of those leadership meetings, I eventually started to feel like I had a little bit more of a place at those tables and able to share my voice to help guide, and influence things. can't remember who said it. Someone in the EA world , said that you are the subject expert matter in the room. And I had like this little white bulb moment. I was like, you know what? That's actually. So true. Like I might not be the smartest in the room. I might not know the most about certain things in the business, but I know the most about executive support and admin and events and other things like that.
So I should have the confidence to contribute to those conversations. it's not an easy thing to do. Like it's definitely about imposter syndrome.
Yes, absolutely. And we, we learned about all that with Alison Samir's session about the imposter syndrome effect. But I think the more you flex that muscle and the more that you are, you know, guiding and influencing outcomes in these meetings, making sure that you are present, giving your feedback, showing that your impact is actually helping bring projects along like that.
That is showing that you've got the leadership in this space, and yes, it takes a while to find that voice, especially when you're coming up. I remember I tell this story often is that my first executive assistant role, I just assumed that I was now an executive and no one told me otherwise. So I just turned up to every meeting.
And people would look at me and go, why is she here? And David, my boss at the time was like, well, she's here so let's make the most of it. And that's how I kind of pushed my way into all these meetings. And they saw my value of
Yeah.
the meetings. 'cause we know everything that's going on in the teams, in the businesses.
Who's going on maternity leave, who's got holidays coming up? We hold so much knowledge.
Absolutely.
so I think that's so great that you're able to sit in these, these meetings and, and not just meetings be in the business and people come to you and be like, Stevie, where are we at with this?
Yeah, and I think that's, yeah, that feeling of when someone comes to you for guidance and not just for
task support, that's when you kind of know that you're kind of seen as, as a leader.
Yes, that's so true. And in my experience, you are the go-to person in the business. Uh, whether it's for advice, whether it's for guidance, whether it's the EAs hold a whole other load of responsibility in supporting others, not just their executives, but we are the people that people come to in the business.
We are the people that are expected to have the answers too.
Yeah. Well, we're able to connect.
Mm-hmm. We hold the missing pieces.
So the award that you won in particular recognizes business acumen and strategic contribution. How do you approach your role with that kind of business? First mindset.
I think for me, I always try to understand like the why behind tasks. And it's probably to the point where it actually annoys my CEO a little bit.
But why, but why?
Literally. And like sometimes it's obvious like. Why you're doing things. But other
times it's like, I need to understand what the impact of this is.
And you know, sometimes it's
not clear, so I'll wanna ask that question. And it is literally me saying, but why? , But yeah, once I kind of understand why we're doing it and how it's gonna impact, like I find it a lot easier. It's even just like effects, like the way you prioritize your work, what you
understand the why.
an example, um, of being like a business first mindset would probably be with the summit again. So, um, like
we're a not-for-profit organization, so it's really important for us to, uh, consider diversifying our, um, business and our income.
So. That was something I really took on board when I was redesigning the summit process, like thinking outside the square a little bit to be able to increase our revenue from the event.
I also think it's really important to understand like the business, um, like the strategic plan and like your own executive goals.
'cause that then helps you think in that business mindset.
Absolutely. I think the more digging you do in that and have the more understanding of that in the business, the more helpful it will be in your role. So for example, I would ask, you know, if there was something I didn't understand, my executive couldn't articulate it, I'd be like, well then can I sit in the meeting?
I'll be able to pick it up what it is, but I, I can't, from your crappy notes, I can't pick up what we're trying to achieve here.
Yeah.
Uh, and not, I I don't remember ever being told, unless it was something financial or something, you know, touchy, like redundancies or something. I don't ever remember being told, no, you can't sit in on this meeting.
It was always of value to have the executive support the, in the room.
Absolutely.
So you've just shared an example of initiative where you've helped drive operational success for your executive team. Do you think that, is there differences in doing it in a not-for-profit versus your other experiences?
that is a good question.
I've been helping in a not-for-profit recently. , And it's so different to working in corporate, like everything. Has a value to it. Whereas so much is kind of flippant in corporate, but each donation we do each, like it's actual impact.
Yeah. Yeah. My last two roles have been in not-for-profit. So, and I haven't
Mm-hmm.
been, well, obviously this is my first EA role, so I can't really reflect on what it's like in the corporate world. but yeah, I do, I love working for not-for-profits. I love being able to see the impact of what you're doing.
And you know, sometimes it's hard as an EA to see like the impact of what I'm doing and how that's affecting the families that I work on. But then if you think of it in like a broader picture, it's like, all right, well I'm able to like redesign the CEO's diary so that he's got less meeting hours so that he can devote more time to strategic projects, he can have better partnerships externally and internally as
well. , So that we're able to do better jobs for our families.
Yeah. you cannot put a price on giving time back.
Yeah, absolutely.
buy more time. that's so key. How do you balance being proactive and taking initiative but also while still respecting leadership and boundaries? And I don't know if there's hierarchy in, in not-for-profits.
I assume in some respects there are.
Yeah, like there definitely is still a hierarchy. I think where I work, I'm quite lucky that it is probably a little bit more fluid.
And it is like, yeah, just a good working environment where everyone is able to kind of speak up, ,
and share their voice.
But I think probably a big thing is trust,
which does take time. Like especially if. You're someone new of your executive, like I would love to go back in time and tell myself just to be a little bit more patient.
Yeah.
but I think, yeah, you can still be proactive and take initiative. Just, you know, keep your communication open and transparent and be solutions focused and kind of share your, your ideas, uh, or your opinion in like a really positive way and in a way that the other person is gonna be able to see. The impact and how it's gonna affect them. Like what's the buy-in for them?
Yeah. Yeah,
Yeah. So like,
advice there.
yeah, and I think it's also important just to like know when to lean forward and when to step back, but I think that's just something that comes with time once you get to learn the people that you're working with as well.
Absolutely. And practicing eq, like if you walk into the room and you can feel that you shouldn't be there, walk out.
Yeah. Yes, absolutely.
Yes, there is brain matter in there for a reason. Um, okay. So what have you learned about influencing without authority, especially as someone still early in their career?
Yeah. Again,
I think it's just about being really solutions focused, um, and framing your
ideas in terms of like values and outcome. Um, like if you can make it quite specific to the person or the team that you're talking to and like what's in it for them. Um, 'cause like seriously, you could have. The best idea that could quite genuinely be really valuable.
But if the other person doesn't see what's in it for them, they might not necessarily listen or take it on board.
So I think it's important to kind of understand other people's perspectives to be able to influence them. Yeah.
That's such good advice because a big part of that kind of blocking between executive support sometimes is that. The differences of opinions on things. And if you're able to be like, actually I'm here to help, not hinder, and I can see your point of view with this, but this is the guidelines that we're, we're, we're stuck by.
These are parameters we have to work by. So whilst our respect you, you think of it like this, we have to work like this. And if they understand, that's not you throwing your weight around. That's just, that's the perimeters you have to work in particular, being not-for-profit. There, there a lot more are okay.
You are trying to help me with this instead of, you know, sometimes we get the, you are a bossy boots
Yeah.
you know, attitude and it's like, I'm trying to help, dude.
Yeah. I'm not gonna lie in the, in the early days there was a few comments that I was getting too.
Oh. Good. Good. That means you were making impact. Oh, if I had a cheeseburger for every time that I heard that, like wow. The amount of times I heard that I was bossy when I was coming up in my career and I'm like, I'm not bossy. I am effective.
Yeah.
things done.
Yeah.
It is such a female term,
It really is just
queen term.
She's bossy. Ugh. So on that, how have you been able to deflect from that and be like, no, no, that's, that's not what I'm doing here.
Yeah. I mean, I struggled with it a bit at first. Yeah, and I think it's just being new to the role and being
still, I guess young, if I can still call myself young at 31,
Yes, absolutely.
um, yeah, like I, I did take it on a little bit personally at first.
But then, yeah, I just tried to come back to, you know what, I'm actually just trying to do my job and I'm trying to do it well.
. So, you know what? At the end of the day, some people aren't gonna like you and you're just gonna
have to deal with that. and I think especially as you go up in your career and you are more in that leadership space, the likelihood there is gonna be, less people that like you, and
that's fine, and you just have to accept that.
Leadership can take many forms.
Uh, how do you define it for yourself at this stage of your journey in your career?
I think I kind of go through different stages,
where I can feel a bit more like a leader and then other times I don't. I did have a short. Opportunity where I did actually, I was physically in a leadership role where I was managing the admin team.
Um, so that was a really, yeah, so that was a really great opportunity to be in, I guess that more literal sense of a leadership role.
which, yeah, it was a really interesting learning journey. I'm not gonna lie, it was a huge amount of work, , on top of being an EA and managing the summit. But it was a
great opportunity to, to kind of learn hands on. But I think for me, especially in this day and age with all of the AI and technology that's going on, I think someone who is a leader is someone who's very like human centric. So someone who's like empathetic and can create connection and trust, especially in like the high pressure roles that we all work in. Yeah, and you know what, it's a learning journey.. So I think it's just important just to try new things, try out different styles, have a bit of fun of it, you know, be open to learning and yeah.
Yeah, I couldn't agree more with that. So, who have been some of the mentors or role models who have helped shape your approach to leadership or your career in general? I know you picked up with your, with your aunt who used to be a NEA as well.
Yeah. So I learned a lot from her, um, from that phone call about. What an EA can be more in that strategic space. Um, so that was quite interesting. Um, I also got a lot out of the force multiplier book.
Um, I was, yeah, I highly recommend everyone reads, all listens. I, I listen to the book, um, that taught me a lot, um, about how you can be that. Leader, leader in an EA role without, I guess that natural authority that comes with more of a management role. Um, but I'm also quite lucky in where I work. Like I'm really surrounded by a lot of quite amazing people. Um, my CEO is. Very much a charismatic leader. Um, I've learned a lot from him in the way that he leads.
Um, he started the business himself, uh, 15 years ago now, actually.
Um, yeah, so it's very much his baby. So he cares a lot about the business. He cares so much about the families we work with, and he actually cares quite literally about every staff member, which I think is huge for a CEO to be like
that. Um.
Absolutely.
Yeah. So I think that charismatic, but also that empathetic style of leadership, um, I'm very drawn to. So I've learned a lot from him, but also from the rest of the executive team, which has been, yeah, really amazing.
That's so great. That's such a great experience and to have so many people that you can rally around and say, yep, you've had an impact on my careers.
Yeah.
so good because this is one of the things I really, I'm like, Ooh, I sit on the fence about, because I really like remote working and the flexibility, particularly for women, particularly with families and things like that.
When you don't work in an office, you don't get to build these relationships because it's about being in the room with these people. It's about having those moments and that just doesn't come from working from home. And that's, that's my, my, my, my devil on my shoulder that just goes, nah, working from home is great and my angels just like, it's not.
'cause some of your best friends and mentors that you had is through your career from working in an office together.
Yeah.
just fear the next generation won't have those connections if they don't have that office experience.
Yeah, that's so true. There's definitely to.
Yeah. So that's, I'm like hybrids
hybrid. Definitely agreed. Yep.
Yeah. Yeah, because you've also like, if you are gaining a mentor, even if it's not intentional, like someone's just helping you out in meetings or help, you know, being that friendly face in the office and things like that, you just don't get that if it's not in person.
So
right.
And I think so often.
are coming up and don't have to go into an office, like make the effort to
Yeah, definitely make those connections and face-to-face like you can't beat it. Like nothing's ever the same. You can't read tone and emails and texts
like you need the body language. You need to see
their energy. Yeah,
it's so true because email or texts or teams that can come across so bad pending your mood, you can read, someone might have been like, Hey, uh, have you got that form that we were talking about? And it's just a casual. Are you there yet? Have you got it yet? And then you've, you are in a foul mood and you've read it as they're chasing you.
Yep,
if they just came by your office and had a smile on their face and they could see you are in a bad mood, they might be like, you alright babe? Like, there's such a difference when it's in person.
absolutely.
And so how do you foster collaborations or lift others up in your team? Especially when we're talking about, you know, this hybrid situation.
Yeah. Um, for me, I think it's really important to celebrate wins. Um, and I think
it's very easy not to do that when we're really busy, which we just seem to
always be very busy.
Um, yeah, and I think like that's something that I love. So I think about what I. Um, find creates a good, um, environment, makes me feel good.
I try and do that for others. So I think acknowledging other people's works and contributions to thing and doing it in like an open and public format so that other people are hearing like, oh, Candace did this, like, well done Candace.
Um, I think, yeah, that just creates a really like safe environment where people feel valued and appreciated. So I think that's really important and I think that's something that like anyone can do. You don't need to be. A leadership position, like you can like shout out your colleagues whenever you get the chance.
Yes, absolutely. I love that. And if it's, you know, there's an opportunity in a town hall or even in a newsletter or on the intranet or you know, find a way. To toot someone else's horn and be like, I wanna shout about the work you did. I wanna say thank you for the support you gave me for that event.
Yeah.
You know, I want your executive to know that your contribution mattered in this leadership event.
Um, for me, at SBS, there was a particular EA who worked in. I think it's called People and Culture now. Don't think it was back then, but she was hands down the person that if I needed help, I would be like, can someone help? And before I got the word help out, she'd be like, I can do it, I'll do it. I can help.
And I was just like. I made sure that her, 'cause I know it impacted her executive, so I always made sure that I went back to their her executive and said, thank you so much for letting Bianca be able to do that for me. It was so helpful and it really helped the CEO be able to X
Yeah.
they knew it wasn't her trying to ditch her work.
It was her making an actual impact in the business.
Yeah. That's so
um. Yeah. And that way, you know, if you have little awards and stuff in your, like when I worked at NBC Universal, they used to have these things called GEM Awards where you could, um, nominate people for awards and they got like vouchers and things like that, uh, for being a gem in the business.
And I love little things like that, that you can just show you your work matters. What you did matters. Your help matters.
Yeah.
it's good. I'm glad that you've got that kind of culture there as well. It's important to have and, and I agree that it's so easy to miss the opportunity to celebrate big wins because you're already moving onto the next thing as soon as the first thing stopped and it's like, actually, let's just take a minute to, to congratulate ourselves on an incredible event or an incredible end of project.
So well done on you leading that. saying thanks as. It's important. Yeah, exactly. Some you just assume everyone knows that you're grateful, but you actually do need to say thank you.
Yeah.
Sometimes it's not obvious.
Yeah.
So let's talk about a little bit about growth mindset and your career development. like what's been one of your biggest learning curves so far as in your role in executive support?
Yeah. Um, I think, like I said in the beginning, I was definitely more of that like task orientated, quite reactive, um, role and,
and mindset transactional. Yeah.
So I think switching from that to more of that proactive and strategic. , Mindset. Mindset. Uh, that
was definitely like a learning curve. Um, so, you know, learning to like, anticipate needs, learning to manage up understanding the bigger picture, and, you know, acting as that force multiplier rather than just like a support role. That's definitely been a huge learning curve. And I think another thing is just learning to be okay with your mistakes.
, I'm definitely a perfectionist at times. So I think it's just like important to remember like you are in the human mistakes are actually unavoidable. We're all gonna
make them. So treat them as like a learning opportunity and also own up to them. Like if you're just honest and accountable with your own mistakes, people are gonna trust you more with that.
Yeah. Yeah, I completely agree. I believe that, um, in Steven Bartlett's company Flight something, he has a director of failures.
Oh,
okay.
actually a role called the Director of Failures, and their job is to fail on, on. Uh, experiments on trying
my gosh, that's so interesting.
because of the learnings that they get from it,
Oh, wow. I love that.
just.
Just keep going. Doesn't matter how many times you fail on it, we gotta learn something from that. So then let's take the learnings and then work it into either a product or a better way to do things or I was like, wow, that's such a interesting way to look at things, but not sure I want that title on my, on my LinkedIn.
So how do you invest in your own professional development?
Um.
or resources
Yeah, I mean I definitely, read or listen to, I probably listen to more books than I actually read. also lots of podcasts. Um, I do travel a little bit for work and also
all my family live interstate, so whenever I'm flying, I'm always listening to podcasts.
I've joined a couple of like online EA groups and also like a local EA networking group.
And I think that's really important just to like surround yourself with other like-minded people and people that understand the role. And if you have someone like me being the only EA in the business, I think it's nice to have that support outside as well. Yeah. What else? I try just find different courses and conferences, obviously.
Admin Avenues conference, shout out to
that.
Hey,
Yeah, but I
think
it's just
coming to Adelaide this year,
Oh, I did see that. I kind of wanna go to the Brisbane one though. don't
okay?
coming.
Yep. Yep. Alright, we'll we'll keep that in the bag.
I've got family in the Gold Coast, so it's a good excuse to travel.
Ah, perfect. Perfect. Yep.
I think that's great. I think that's you, you use your opportunities, like you said, you travel a lot, fill some of that time with content that helps you, that you enjoy. Like if you listen, if you're, you are off, obviously audio that you take in things.
, I, I'm visual so I have to read it or see it or watch it. so it's so easy for you if you are going for a drive or if you're flying, find what works for you to be able to, to take in,
Yeah.
books, anything that you think helps you. What else have you got in your tricks? Your trick, your bag of tricks?
Yeah, I just think it's like important to understand like, well, this is my point of view at least. I
think learning is very much your own pers like responsibility. I think a lot
of people leave it up to kind of their management and just think, oh, they should find courses for me to do or tell me what I need to grow.
And, but I think it's really important to take that on yourself. Um,
you can certainly ask for feedback, um, on what they think you should kind of grow in and what you could. Do and get like support and guidance on what courses, et cetera. But I think at the end of the day, it's up to you to take on that responsibility of your own learning journey
and find things that are gonna work for you.
Yeah, that's so true. And the worst thing they can do is say no. So why wouldn't you ask? Ask for that professional development budget. It's so important that you invest in yourself. 'cause as you just said, no one else is going, sitting in a room being like, Hmm, I wonder how I can help Stevie in her career.
It's absolutely your responsibility to find these things and say, I think this would be really beneficial for me. Here's the reasons why. And Mo, if it's a good. Good company to do it with, like admin avenues of course, uh, or aop. we give, a template that you can use and say, this is why, this is what the benefits are.
So, you know, ask for if, if you're interested in something, ask for that template. Say, Hey, do you have something that I can pass on to my exec to get, um, funding for this?
Yes,
if you don't ask, you don't get.
That's right.
I love that. So if you could go back and give your early career itself one piece of advice, or a few, what would it be?
Uh, I think there's definitely a few. I think I mentioned earlier definitely patience. I struggled at
the beginning. Um, and it was one of those things like the CEO, me being his first ea, it did take him a little while to kind of. Let go and surrender.
of
course.
So definitely a bit of patience there. But I think another big one for me is just like, don't burn yourself out.
Like focus on learning, not on perfection. Just take each day as it comes and yeah, just go with the flow a little bit more. Stop trying to be everything and everyone.
Yeah. Would you say that that's an experience thing like you, the more you do it, the more you're like, ah, I get it. I remember just being Miss Eager Beaver, and I was like, I can do it. I can do it. I put my hand up for everything I was in like, and then eventually I was just like, actually, you don't have to be the person that does everything.
You're allowed to have, you know, a few projects and do them well instead of jumping all over everything.
Yeah, and I mean, it's absolutely something I'm still trying to learn,
like
Of course,
yeah, I'm just,
and especially
that people pleaser attitude, like you just wanna be able to be the best and do everything for everyone, but you gotta look after yourself as well.
Definitely. And also, if you find things that you are passionate about, you wanna be in on them, it's like cool. But like, just pick a few rather than all of them, because each one is gonna ask a lot of you. So be willing to, to accept that and that. And then we can't do everything. We can't do. We can do everything.
We can't do it all at once.
that's right.
you've, pick what? Pick a pick a few and then be like, right, these are gonna be my focus for now. This is what brings me joy. This is what's gonna help me in my career. Like,
Mm.
but I. Being in the job long enough to experience and be like, oh, okay, I don't have to do it all. I don't have to be in it all.
Um, but I guess that's with anything, right? Like wisdom comes with age. If you could put old heads on young shoulders, I. I wish I could put my old head on young shoulders. So where do you see yourself kind of heading next? Like what kind of leader do you hope to become in the next few years? You've already kind of stepped in, as you said, and and did a role around managing admins.
Is that something that kind of excites you or,
Uh, I did enjoy it, but I, I really enjoyed like the one-on-one support I'm able to give, um, my CEO. So at the
moment, that's something I'm still, wanting to learn and grow in. I also really love the event space, so I can see myself yeah, still doing that, which I'm quite
lucky that I'm able to do that in my
Yeah.
And I've also been looking into doing like some short courses around like marketing and communication. So I think
that'll be an interesting new skill to learn.
Um, but at the end of the day, I just, yeah, I just wanna keep. Moving and growing and learning, and I just wanna make other people feel good about themselves.
So whatever that might end up being, I'm not too.
I love that. I keep an open eye with it. I remember people saying to me always in my career, what are you gonna do next? And I was like, what do you mean next? And they were like, well, whatcha gonna do after you've been an ea? I'm like, don't get it. In my head, I didn't understand that. They didn't understand that being an EA was a career.
They all thought that it was a stepping stone, and I was like, no, I love this job. I'm not
I'm the same. I love my job, so I'm not Yeah, looking at any changes, really. I just wanna
keep learning and growing in that role.
Yeah, we would just have this bubble of in clarity between us and I was like, I don't get it. They're like, I don't get it. I You won't get it. You don't know what I do. You don't get it. You, this is, and I did it for 20 years.
Like I loved being in ea, absolutely loved it. And now I'm still working in the profession. I'm just moved into the events side of it. So there is an avenue for everyone in admin. See what I did there?
right. I did. I love it.
So how do you see the role of the executive support evolving? Like what, what, what skills do you think are emerging or what, what do you need to thrive, do you think, in this role going forward?
Yeah, I mean, I think we all know that the role is becoming more strategic and less transactional.
So I think skills like critical thinking, managing up communication, adaptability, are definitely essentials. And then of course, being in this AI world that we're in now, I think you definitely need to
be quite proactive in that space.
I think a lot of. EAs can get a little bit scared of it. Like there's definitely some negative, , things about AI on like LinkedIn and then you see, you know, there's people off sourcing their EAs saying that,
you know, AI can do everything now. So I think it's really important to stay positive and upskill yourself. And show that the role is more than just that transactional administrative,
Task facings and be strategic, be that business partner.
Yeah, I think that's so important. And also this comes back to the hybrid part, is if you are working in an office. That can't be outsourced to ai, like the being there, the being that support person, that being that person, the EQ in the office, reading the room, seeing what's going on in the business.
Like, I remember one of my CEOs being like, I need you to be my eyes and ears in the business. I barely get to leave my office. What's going on out there? Are they happy? Are we ha like, are we moving forward? Is, is my management team actually effective? I can't get out there. I need you.
Yeah.
the on that
Yeah. You are their extension.
yeah.
And when he couldn't sit in meetings, I had.
Yeah.
There's so much more to it than the transactional side. There's a human element side it's actually something we're gonna be talking about the Admin Professionals day event in Sydney. We've got special guest Michael Eid, who was my CEO at SBS,
Oh
hands down just such an incredible CEO on leadership, but also his understanding of the EA role role and how he, he never, ever, ever used me for my technical skills.
It was always my human skills.
yeah,
And I was like, that's something we really need to hone in on, uh, in the messaging of you worry about your, technical skills, but they're worried about what they need out of you in the business and how you can help them in their role. And that's, that's not gonna be an AI related.
Anyway, I, I digress because I go, I fully go down a tangent on this and I'm like, don't worry. Admins AI is not taking your job.
It's not, it's gonna make our jobs better.
Exactly, and I just, I wish I could get people to understand that because I know there is a fear and a like this terrible. You know, story going out there to admins being like, there's a graph that someone put out.
I dunno if it was McKinsey's or something, and it showed that office admin support roles will be gone. I'm like, Ugh. I bet you a white collared, white middle aged man that has absolutely no idea about what admins do. Put this graph together. I'm coming for you. Whoever you were.
Yeah.
So finally, what message would you like to share with other early career admins who wanna step into leadership but don't really know where to start?
Yeah. Um, I mean, start where you are. Like leadership isn't something, you wait for, I think it's something that you step into.
I think it's important to be. Curious and confident take initiative, even if it's just in small ways. , And I know it's a lot easier said than done, but try and back yourself.
Fake it till you make it
Yep.
goes through action, you know, so like the more you do, the more you'll feel confident in it.
Yep. I agree with that. I remember when I first stepped into an admin, like a executive support type role, I remember being like, I'm a fraud. I don't belong here. And I was like,
Absolutely. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah,
What in this can't you do what? It's just you've not held the title. You can do the work. You can do the work.
So just do the work and show your work. People will start being like, yeah, because I went from reception to an executive assistant
Yeah. Well, I was pretty much the same.
who were like, yeah, how what? You don't, not, you don't deserve it, but like you shouldn't be able to jump like that. It's like, but I've got the skills.
Why?
Yeah.
Why, why, why there? It's again,
Yeah.
oh, Stevie, it's been so great chatting with you. Thank you so much for, for, for being on the show, but also showing that leadership isn't about tenure, it's about mindset, initiative, and impact. And congratulations again on being recognized as a 2025 AOP emerging leader in executive support.
We can't wait to see where your career takes you next. We definitely wanna be able to stay in touch. We're def. Love to have you, um, you know, write a little piece for the AOP newsletter and, get you back involved. Well, actually we have a mentor program that I wanted to talk to you about. I'll do it offline from this.
, But AF is launching their mentor program this year. And we would definitely love to have someone like yourself involved, , to help us shape this because like all things, we don't pretend like we have everything nailed. We need the, the community to tell us, all right, well how do we do this? How do we shape this?
What's gonna be best for you? And I think all throughout your career, we learn from each other by asking each other and you, how do you do this? How do you do that? And I think a big part of that is connecting, talking, going to events like you are part of the EA E-E-A-E-A-I-N
network.
Yeah.
Yes, which is me and Catherine's network in South Australia.
And like I could just imagine the conversations that you guys have going on at those events,
Yeah,
so many different people to lean on and find out different ways everyone's making impact. So, sharing your stories, keep talking, keep, love it. And I'm sure so many people are gonna reach out with you.
We will put, uh, Stevie's details LinkedIn in the um. Show notes and I'll also, uh, put in the, I think what's, who's the force multiplier by the book, Halle.
my goodness. Yes. Halle
think it's Halle.
someone else. Um.
I'll put the link to that in the, in the show notes as well. Yeah. So that, you can reference that book that, , Stevie recommends.
And, um, yeah, thank you again so much. And for everyone listening, remember that you don't need permission to lead. You just need the courage to start. So hopefully this episode has given you a bit of oo and for you to go back into your role and be like, yeah, I got this. No matter what stage you are in your career.
So thank you again so much for joining us. Stevie and, I hope to see you in Brisbane, uh, if not Adelaide, later on this year. Thank you for joining us.
