6 Myths About Being A Chief Of Staff
How we can dispel some of these common misconceptions
There are many myths and misconceptions about being a Chief of Staff. A lot of them stemmed from watching fictional TV series’ where the US President always had a Chief of Staff. Often these people come across as power-hungry and want to upstage or topple the President.
More recently we are seeing the Chief of Staff role appear in nimble and/or tech companies as this shiny new beacon of what all Executive Assistants need to aspire to be.
In my experience, Chiefs of Staff are commercially-aware professionals who often operate behind the scenes - not always at CEO level - and make a significant impact across the organisation. A Chief of Staff is a highly visible strategic partner who offers their leader the support they need with decision-making, project management, and execution of strategic initiatives across their department or the whole company.
A Chief of Staff needs to focus on the future and long-term planning so that they ensure the growth of the organisation and the success of their Executive.
So let’s run through some of the misconceptions of a Chief of Staff:
1. Chief of Staff is the Next Step for an Executive Assistant
I will keep saying this until I’m blue in the face, but a Chief of Staff is not simply an excellent EA. An excellent EA is just that. A Chief of Staff is something completely different.
A senior level Chief of Staff will often have their own EA. In the same way as does your COO, VP of Sales, or your Head of HR.
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