Stakeholder work is information work
Executive assistants often handle correspondence, records, reports, and information requests. Stakeholder support uses those capabilities to prepare leaders for conversations and keep commitments visible afterward. [1][2]
The support role should not own the stakeholder relationship, but it can own the operating memory that keeps the relationship from becoming dependent on scattered messages. [2]
Core workflows
Useful workflows include stakeholder maps, meeting briefs, open commitment logs, response windows, escalation flags, prep packets, and post meeting action summaries. [2]
Customer, investor, board, and hiring stakeholders need different confidentiality rules. The support model should distinguish between routing information and making relationship decisions. [3]
Measurement
Track missed follow ups, aging commitments, prep completion, stakeholder response time, escalation quality, and the number of meetings where context had to be rebuilt from scratch. [4][5]
A practical research page should help readers see executive support as relationship infrastructure, not only calendar help. [3]
Sources
- Secretaries and Administrative Assistants, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Outlook Handbook.
- Executive Secretaries and Executive Administrative Assistants, O*NET OnLine.
- Creating helpful, reliable, people first content, Google Search Central.
- Dear Manager, You Are Holding Too Many Meetings, Harvard Business Review.
- Nonfarm Business Sector: Labor Productivity, Federal Reserve Economic Data.
- Executive Secretaries and Executive Administrative Assistants, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics.
- Business Formation Statistics, U.S. Census Bureau.
- Productivity Statistics, OECD Data Explorer.
- World Development Indicators, World Bank DataBank.
- ILOSTAT Labour Statistics, International Labour Organization.
- 2024 Work Trend Index Annual Report, Microsoft and LinkedIn.
- The economic potential of generative AI, McKinsey Global Institute.
- Search Engine Optimization Starter Guide, Google Search Central.
Apply the research
Use the finding to frame one question for your own team: which support work is currently invisible, and who should own the next step? A scoped consultation can turn that question into a practical role.
Turn the finding into a support scope.
Bring the workflow that feels hardest to see. We will help define the role, the evidence it should maintain, and the decisions that stay with leadership.
Talk through the role