Awards Q & A Spotlight – Meet Louise De La Rosa
PA for IT Services at Liverpool John Moores University (LJMU)
Merseyside & Chester PA of the Year - Runner up
Awarded July 2021
How long have you been an assistant?
I have been a PA for IT Services at Liverpool John Moores University (LJMU) for 7 years.
How did you get into the profession?
I have been at LJMU for 16 years and whilst working for the Graduate Development Centre, as an Admin Assistant, one of my colleagues was due to go on maternity leave. I applied for the temporary position as an Executive Support Assistant, as I had been helping out my colleague as part of my professional development plan, and thankfully I got the job! I thoroughly enjoyed the temporary positon and realised I wanted to become an Executive Assistant/PA and began applying for jobs within the university and got a job at IT Services.
What do you love about the role?
My executives and I work well together and they can rely on me to complete any task they give me. My boss regularly mentions that I execute all aspects of my remit to a high standard, which involves multitasking and continually delivering. He has also told me, from a personal perspective for him, my work as his PA is excellent and greatly helps him deliver his role. I am extremely proud to be in this profession as my role is varied, challenging and rewarding.
Tell us a bit about your role and your responsibilities?
I am the PA to the Chief Information Officer and Deputy Director. I also look after the leadership team and I am the office administrator, looking after 93 colleagues so as you can imagine it is a very busy role but I love it!
What are your strengths as an assistant?
I am extremely organised, have excellent communication skills, thorough and professional. I also have the ability to multitask, I am personable, approachable and adaptable.
What advice would you give to someone looking to start a career as an assistant?
If your strengths consist of organisation and multitasking then this is the job for you. Listen and ask clarifying questions, a lot of them, at first anyway as you are getting to know your executive(s).
How do you stay on top of your deadlines and priorities?
By being extremely organised and having a ‘to do’ list.
What strategies do you use for time management?
A ‘to do’ list which is constantly reviewed.
How important is the assistant and executive business relationship and how do you make that work?
Very important. My executives and I interact numerous times daily in a range of ways, telephone, email, face to face. From our interactions I have clearly defined what I need to know in terms of information and priorities so as to enable me to help my executive in the best way possible.
How did it feel to be nominated for PA of the Year?
I was over the moon!
How does it feel to be the runner up of Merseyside PA of the Year?
I am delighted! It is a real honour to be runner up in such a fabulous network and I was so happy to hear Paula Harding had won as she truly deserves it.
How did your colleagues and boss react when they found out you had won your award?
They were thrilled for me. We have a monthly cascade meeting with the whole team and at the end of it my boss informed everyone he had some lovely news and proceeded to tell them I had been nominated for Merseyside PA of the Year and was the runner up and everyone was clapping and cheering which was lovely. However, I went very red ha ha!
You are an active member of The PA Hub – what do you enjoy about being a member?
I have met so many amazing PAs and EAs and I am very thankful to Marion and Jon for The PA Hub. It is a fantastic network which enables me to connect with like-minded people, share knowledge and develop my skills.
Finally Louise – what is next for you?
I am currently doing a part-time degree (which is 4 years) in Business and Human Resource Management. This is an opportunity for me to develop and enhance my qualifications to enable me to work at a more senior level, which for me, would be to progress to a senior PA within LJMU.
