Stephanie Gillett
Executive Assistant | Rogers City, Michigan
PRONOUNS:
She, Her, Hers
WORKING HOURS:
Monday: 9am - 5pm ET
Tuesday: 9am - 5pm ET
Wednesday: 9am - 5pm ET
Thursday: 9am - 5pm ET
Friday: 9am - 5pm ET
POWER TOOLS:
I've never met a platform or program that conquered me, but there are some tools I'm quite good at.
Microsoft Word - I can do complex projects, including managing tables of contents, footnotes, references, etc.
Microsoft PowerPoint - I can make this program do just about anything. I create large presentations, use it for board communications, do ad hoc graphic design, and even make it play Jeopardy! and Family Feud.
Microsoft Excel - I consider myself an intermediate user, with the ability to perform Vlookups, pivot tables, and other functions at that level.
Adobe Premiere and Photoshop Elements - Where video editing is concerned I'm ready to jump from the "elements" level to the pro level. I do quite well manipulating photos in photoshop but have never done a project or been in a role that demanded I do a lot.
Constant Contact / Mailchimp and other Newsletter programs
Wordpress and editing plugins
Adobe In-Design / Publishing tools
Social Media Management tools
Video conferencing tools
STRENGTHS:
Written communication - As a published writer, I often end up being charged with preparing a broad spectrum of communications for my manager.
Project management - I have the ability to run large, major initiatives, including those that require me leading teams, recruiting volunteers, and managing significant ($1M+) budgets.
Travel management - I exercise strong attention to detail, but I'm also very well travelled myself and can often make decisions about hotel quality, restaurants, ground transportation, etc., based on my own experience.
Problem-solving
Data analysis
Video production (scriptwriting, shooting, editing)
EXPERTISE:
Employee communication and engagement - Actively managed this function for the nation's third largest pet specialty retailer for 5 years.
Event planning - Planned large-scale (1000+ attendee) events over multiple days, authoring, organizing and influencing event content and managing all logistics (venue contract negotiation, hotel negotiation, food and beverage, attendance, travel, etc.)
Digital marketing and social media management - Offer several years of experience, and many success stories, in managing Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and now TikTok; running email campaigns, creating newsletters; optimizing web content for organic search performance (SEO)
Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion - Served on several committees throughout my career, championing the adoption of practices that impacted work processes and even products in our stores.
PERSONALITY TYPE:
My Myers-Brigg tests indicate that I am an ENTJ.
I have done StrengthsFinders, and I have the following strengths: Context, Learner, Achiever, Arranger, Relator
BIO:
A lifelong assistant, I found this position to be a great fit because I am a strategic, big-picture person who understands the challenges an executive faces in running a large piece of a company (or the whole company). I enjoy being a business partner, someone who can take on pieces of an executive's work in addition to administrative tasks.
I like to say that I "make an executive bigger." Really, I extend his or her reach with innovative calendar management and meeting management, allowing subordinates more access and more quality time. I step in and handle what I can so the executive can be where needed.
I also help manage my executive's public face. This starts with how I interact with internal external stakeholders but, because of my ability to write, I also prepare communications, keynote speeches, and more, with the executive's reputation in mind.
I have held many roles but have never enjoyed a role more than that of being an executive assistant. That's why 2/3 of my career has been dedicated to it.
If you're wondering what I do in my spare time, I write! I'm a published novelist and author of many articles. I'm married and I have two dogs, a wheaten terrier named Ernie and a border collie mix named Rosie. My husband and I recently gave up our traditional big-city careers to move up north. We're now small town residents, renovating a 90+-year-old house and really enjoying this new chapter in our lives.
I completed my bachelor's degree in English Literature at Michigan State University. I was required to have a "concentration" in that degree, so mine is actually in screenwriting. I've written award winning scripts for short films and many, many a speech and industrial video. My minor is in history.
EXPERIENCE:
I started in sales assistant positions at General Motors and Gannett, accepting my first executive assistant role for a small financial company upon finishing my college degree. From there, I spent two years as Executive Assistant to the Chief Executive Officer of Medstat (a Thomson Reuters company), five years as Executive Assistant to the Chief Administrative Officer of Borders Group, Inc. (the book retailer), two years as Administrative Assistant to the Director of AdWords Canada at Google, and three years Executive Assistant to the Chief Executive Officer of Pet Supplies Plus. In that time, I spent 5 years in an employee engagement and internal communication role (2014-2019), and I'm currently the marketing manager of an area trade school.
HOW I COMMUNICATE:
I learn by doing, so when I receive instructions on a particular task, they often don't totally make sense to me until I see what I'm working with. I also respond well to instructions that are written, so I can refer back to them. That said, I don't often need more than a little clarification to complete the task.
HOW I PREFER TO RECEIVE FEEDBACK:
I am very tough-skinned about any feedback that's given to me, as long as it's not done with a personal edge. I have, in fact, learned over time that others aren't like I am and have forced myself to be gentle! Don't feel like you have to be too gentle with me.
WORKING STYLE:
I'm an independent worker, but I will ask dozens of questions up front. As you can see to the left, my StrengthFinders assessment shows me as embracing "context." I need to know everywhere a document has been before I can decide what to do with it next. Most of my managers have loved this aspect about me, as I never need to go back and find out more information.
I will take the lead on moving work forward, and I am very big picture, though if you give me data I will slice it 20 different ways to find the answers I'm looking for. I am very strategic, but my checkbook balances to the penny each month, too.