My chair at work is ergonomic and suitable for sitting in front of a computer all day, but I'd much rather be sitting here with my laptop writing a book.Imagine how much I could accomplish in this setting. The itch to go south is upon me. Don't get me wrong - I love the snow. It is beautiful, but I wouldn't mind getting a head start on summer by going south.
Of course I will need to book holidays and make sure I have a replacement to assist my boss when I am gone.
I thought this would be a good time to re-post my article on some suggested Do's and Don'ts for the Assistant and Floater Assistant:
Do meet with the floater assistant before you leave on vacation.
Do fill out a form for your replacement with any information they might need, computer passwords, upcoming events they will have to handle in your absence etc.
Don't change the computer settings or the workspace of the assistant you are replacing. If you must change the settings, take a PrintScreen of the settings and restore it back to the original settings before you leave that assignment.
If you are using the assistant's Outlook, do change the signature line to indicate you are sending the e-mail on their behalf.
Do put your initials on correspondence you type.
Do as much filing as you can if you’ve been asked to do so, but if you are unsure, leave it in a folder for the assistant to do on their return.
Do leave a short note or e-mail to the returning assistant to give a summary of what you did while they were away and if there is anything that needs attention on their return.
If you are appreciative of the work the floater assistant has done for you in your absence, do send a thank you e-mail (I always copy the HR manager as well). A job well done needs to be acknowledged and recognized.
We cannot expect the floater to do our job exactly the way we do it, but we can expect it to be done in a professional manner with the information we provide to them.
See you on the beach...
Patricia Robb
P.S. Before going on holidays remember to put your Out of Office Assistant on your e-mail and voicemail accounts.
Photo taken in the Bahamas February 2008 by Lynn Crosbie
2 comments:
These are such important points. One of our colleagues left and decided that they didn't want to clean up their desk. The new employee started and was wondering why they can't find anything.
Thanks,
Richard Rinyai
www.theprofessionalassistant.net
Very good points; but I feel remembering that the floater might be from a different department needs to be taken into consideration and that a thank you email should be the normal in all situations unless the floater has blatently not tried to accomplish anything in your absence.
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