The value is not only saved hours
Productivity data can frame why coordination matters, but an executive support role should not be justified only by counting administrative hours removed from a leader. [1][2]
Administrative support covers scheduling, correspondence, records, documents, and information requests. The higher value appears when those tasks reduce decision delay and repeated context sharing. [3][4]
ROI indicators
Practical indicators include fewer preventable meetings, faster owner assignment, cleaner board and customer prep, lower executive inbox backlog, and fewer missed follow ups. [5]
Labor market data can help estimate role cost, while local workflow measures show whether the support model is producing leverage. [6]
Turn savings into outcomes
If recovered time is immediately absorbed by low value meetings, ROI will stay weak. The support model should reserve time for decisions, strategic hiring, customer work, and focused operating reviews. [7][8]
A useful research page should give readers a measurement model they can apply before hiring and revisit after onboarding. [9][10]
Sources
- Nonfarm Business Sector: Labor Productivity, Federal Reserve Economic Data.
- Productivity Statistics, OECD Data Explorer.
- Secretaries and Administrative Assistants, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Outlook Handbook.
- Executive Secretaries and Executive Administrative Assistants, O*NET OnLine.
- Dear Manager, You Are Holding Too Many Meetings, Harvard Business Review.
- Executive Secretaries and Executive Administrative Assistants, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics.
- 2024 Work Trend Index Annual Report, Microsoft and LinkedIn.
- The economic potential of generative AI, McKinsey Global Institute.
- Creating helpful, reliable, people first content, Google Search Central.
- Search Engine Optimization Starter Guide, Google Search Central.
- Business Formation Statistics, U.S. Census Bureau.
- World Development Indicators, World Bank DataBank.
- ILOSTAT Labour Statistics, International Labour Organization.
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