Testimonials
Profile
Jo is a professional and highly experienced PA with over 20 years experience working alongside Chief Executives, Managing Directors and Senior Managers. Her organisation, planning and admin skills are second to none and are backed with a solid foundation of business operations. Jo has worked in a variety of organisations ranging from IT, education and healthcare, through to manufacturing and local council.
Jo is able to grasp and understand business priorities, manage with tact and discretion and apply good judgement and best practice. She is results driven and combines integrity with flexibility and a “can do” attitude.
Key achievements/skills include:
- First class organisation skills
- First class written and verbal communication skills
- Extensive knowledge and experience of managing heavy schedules for busy executives
- Ability to prioritise workload and manage tight deadlines
- Experience in delivering internal communications to large teams
- Experience of managing admin services to large teams
- Management of internal projects (eg transition from Ltd company to PLC)
Testimonials
High standard and turnaround is very fast. Jo’s attention to detail is fantastic and we hand over work safe in the knowledge it will meet or even exceed our expectations. Jo has improved different types of documentation for us – from proof reading, re-writing and editing through to a GANTT chart. We have no hesitation in recommending her service and look forward to working with her again soon.
David Jackson, Bellrock Business, Jan 2014
I just wanted to say thanks for your work so far. It’s really taken some pressure off of my shoulders and I’m chopping through stuff that’s taken me ages up until now. That alone is worth your fee.
Paul Tutleman, Owner, Alnwick Osteopathic Health Centre
Jo was my PA as a Senior Manager for HP, running a global organization of 500+ people. In this role, Jo was fabulous at organizing my diary and working with people to ensure the right people/items were prioritized. Additionally, the level of the professional work such minutes of meetings, action step tracking, etc. which were good enough to share directly with clients. Her English linguistic skills are excellent which is essential when engaging globally with employees and clients.
Not only this – but she was able to take on a portfolio of additional responsibilities not usually associated with a PA. This included working the budget cycle, managing budgets (eg travel, training), Purchase Order requesting, approval and payment cycles.
I highly recommend Jo for your PA Needs
Tim Haines, Director, Hewlett Packard
Jo worked for me on several occasions during her 5 years with HP. Jo always delivers what is expected with quality, within agreed timescales and her work is always of a high standard. Jo is very proactive and has great common sense which enables her to meet and exceed her goals. Jo is also incredibly level headed and able to multi-task in a stressful environment. She is a great communicator and is able to build strong business relationships at all levels. I would be more than happy to have her in my team again.
Helen Stewart, Hewlett Packard
Jo is a very organised Executive Assistant who always following through to get the job done. Jo works well with all levels of staff and councillors and is highly regarded throughout the division and council as a whole. Jo has demonstrated all the required skills an Executive Assistant requires and many that would be useful in other roles. Jo has been a great help to me personally in managing my own role.
Dale Lott, Chief Financial Officer, North Shore City Council, Auckland, New Zealand
I worked with Jo at NCFE, the national awarding body. Jo was PA to the Chief Executive, whilst I was part of the Senior Management Team (SMT). Jo’s role involved support for the Chief Executive from general admin support, to managing her workload and tracking progress towards business plan objectives. The Chief Executive travelled extensively with particularly complex diary arrangements, including international travel. Jo worked particularly closely with me on the facilitation of the Board of Trustee meetings and she always displayed a fantastic attention to detail in drafting papers and preparing minutes. The role required Jo to deal directly with many senior contacts at NCFE customers, typically FE College Principals, as well as staff at all levels and she was well-liked and well-respected by everyone. Her communication skills, both verbal and written, are excellent and Jo would be one of my first choices when looking for someone to check and proof read my work. Overall, Jo is a fantastic PA and would be an asset to anyone looking for 100% reliable, high quality PA support.
Pete O’Hara, Director of Business Services NCFE
Jo defined the role of the efficient, supporting, professional Personal Assistant. Her abilities with respect to multi-tasking, coping with pressure and information retrieval, in particular, made her indispensable to me. But I will remember Jo, above all, for her integrity, support and friendship.
Isabel Sutcliffe, Director, Edexcel (Previously Chief Executive, NCFE Awarding Body)
I’d like to recommend Jo for your PA needs. She worked for myself and the Formica Europe management team a few years ago, undertaking traditional PA duties as well as management of our company car fleet, providing administrative support to the Human Resources Manager, plus support for our financial and operational reporting. Jo’s strengths lie in her ability to communicate well and develop relationships built on trust – our US management team had great faith in her and her abilities. Work was always completed on time and to a high standard, a great service all round.
Mark Adamson, President & CEO, Formica Corporation
Jo was a trusted member of our team for 5 years and our first true PA! Not only did Jo perform traditional PA duties but she also went a step further. She negotiated and managed our mobile phone contract, she successfully managed our events and corporate hospitality and also assisted the Directors with their personal book-keeping and banking, even submitting VAT returns on their behalf. Jo played a key role during the transition from a Limited Company to a PLC and assisted with the recruitment and management of junior clerical staff. I would have no hesitation in recommending Jo for your PA needs – she’s reliable, trustworthy, consistent and performs to a high standard.
Stephen Rankin, Chief Executive, Metnor Group PLC