This document summarizes the skills that will be important for personal assistants and secretaries in 2020 and beyond based on a seminar presented by Catalyst Consulting. It identifies that complex problem solving, critical thinking, creativity, people management, coordinating with others, emotional intelligence, judgment and decision making, service orientation, negotiation, and cognitive flexibility will be the top 10 skills needed in 2020. It provides definitions and examples for each skill area, emphasizing how personal assistants can develop these skills through continuous learning, communication, collaboration and embracing change.

1. C A T A L Y S T
C O N S U L T I N G
KNOWLEDGE RESOURCES: PERSONAL ASSISTANT | SECRETARIES SEMINAR 2019
2 9 t h A u g u s t 2 0 1 9
TOP SKILLS FOR 2020
FUTUREPROOF YOUR CAREER

2. What is this “ 4IR ” thing?

3. James Canton’s “Extreme Future” is here!
Source: James Canton, The Extreme Future, 2006
SPEED
The rate of change will be blinding, comprehensive in scope and will touch every
aspect of your life.
COMPLEXITY
A quantum leap in the number of seemingly unrelated forces that will have a direct
bearing on everything – from lifestyles, to work, to personal and national security.
RISK
New risks, greater risks and more threats from terror, to crime, to global economic
upheaval will alter every aspect of your life.
CHANGE
Drastic adjustments in your work, community and relationships will force you to
adapt quickly to radical changes.
SURPRISE
Sometimes good, sometimes difficult to imagine, surprise will become a daily
feature of your life, often challenging your sensibility and logic.

4. The Extreme Future is here
Source: James Canton, The Extreme Future, 2006
Organisations have evolved
What is AI ?
AI is already changing HR
Managing your personal brand
Staying relevant and agile
What makes humans different ?

5. Organisations Have Evolved
Source: Jacob Morgan, Author, The Future of Work
Work 9-5 in an
office
Work Anytime,
Anywhere
Company
equipment
Any device
“B Y O D”
Corporate
ladder
Create your own
ladder
Pre-defined
work
Customised
work
Hoards
information
Shares
information
Email
Collaboration
platforms
Knowledge Adapt learning
Corporate
learning
Democratised
learning

6. What is AI?
The theory and development of computer systems able to perform tasks
normally requiring human intelligence, such as visual perception, speech
recognition, decision-making, and translation between languages.
AI seeks to create systems that understand, think, learn, and behave like
humans.

7. AI Technologies
Natural language generation / processing
Speech recognition (Siri / Alexa / Cortana)
Virtual agents (chatbots)
Machine learning
Virtual & Augmented Reality
Biometrics
Robotic process automation

8. Just Imagine…

9. World Economic Forum – Future of Jobs Report

10. World Economic Forum – Future of Jobs Report
 Extensive survey of CHROs / senior talent /
strategy execs of leading global employers
 Representing 13 million + employees
9 broad industry sectors
15 major developed & emerging economies /
regional economic areas
 Target pool = 100 largest global employers in
each of the target industry sectors
 371 individual companies responded
 1,346 detailed occupation-level data points

11. World Economic Forum – Future of Jobs Report

12. Some Interesting Key Insights & Points (WEF Report)
 A particular need… for a new type of senior manager
who will successfully steer companies through the
upcoming change and disruption.
 Across a wide range of sectors… Office and
Administrative functions are poised for major
redundancies. One particular set of jobs affected by
this, for example, are customer service roles, which
will become obsolete due to mobile internet
technology to monitor service quality online as a
means of maintaining effective customer relationship
management.
 … expect an overall increase in work-life balance in all
industries

13. Some Interesting Key Insights & Points
 On average, by 2020, more than a
third of the desired core skill sets of
most occupations will be comprised
of skills that are not yet considered
crucial to the job today…
 Technical skills will need to be
supplemented with strong social &
collaboration skills…
 People expect artificial intelligence
machines to be part of a company’s
board of directors by 2026…

14. 14
Heading, Calibri 25ptThe Top 10 Skills for 2020
Top 10 Skills Needed in 2015
Complex problem solving
Coordinating with others
People management
Critical thinking
Negotiation
Quality control (not on 2020 list)
Service orientation
Judgment and decision making
Active listening (not on 2020 list)
Creativity
Top 10 Skills Needed in 2020
Complex problem solving
Critical thinking
Creativity
People management
Coordinating with others
Emotional intelligence (new)
Judgment and decision making
Service orientation
Negotiation
Cognitive flexibility (new)

15. 1. Complex Problem Solving
 Complex Problem Solving Skill (Definition)
Developed capacities used to solve novel, ill-defined problems in complex, real-world
settings.
 It’s true that AI can solve problems that humans cannot – but it also goes the other way.
When problem solving needs to span multiple industries or when problems are not fully
defined, humans can work backwards to figure out a solution.
(Jeff Desjardins Founder and editor, Visual Capitalist)
 Assistants use complex problem solving daily.
We work with tasks we have never worked on before, resolve issues that arise on
projects, during travel, or simply in the daily lives of our executives. We reach out to our
networks, Google, or simply use our common sense to solve problems. Complex
problem solving requires logic and confidence, and gets easier with experience.
(Anel Martin)

16. 2. Critical Thinking
 Process Skill (Definition)
Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative
solutions, conclusions or approaches to problems.
 Machines are getting better at aspects of critical thinking, but humans are still able to
connect, interpret and imagine concepts in a world full of ambiguity and nuance.
A lawyer can pinpoint the exact positioning to make a case for a client, or a marketer
can figure out an overarching message that can resonate with consumers.
(Jeff Desjardins Founder and editor, Visual Capitalist)
 Critical thinking is the objective analysis and evaluation of an issue, in order to form a
judgment. Assistants are expected review and analyse information, and to be practical
and intelligent. We need to understand what is happening in high level discussions and
then translate strategic instructions into practical solutions, and concrete action.
(Anel Martin)

17. 3. Creativity
 Cognitive Ability (Definition)
The ability to come up with unusual or clever ideas about a given topic or situation, or to
develop creative ways to solve a problem
 Creativity requires a degree of intuitive randomness that can not yet be imitated by AI.
Why did the architect design the building a certain way, and why did the musician
improvise by playing a chord out of key? It’s hard to explain why to a computer – it just
feels right.
(Jeff Desjardins Founder and editor, Visual Capitalist)
 Creativity is the ability to see things from a unique perspective. To be able to join the dots
in a situation; dots that others don’t even see. It is the ability to create new processes,
put together an event, explore solutions to a problem, sort out a diary conflict, design a
layout in PowerPoint, make a new connection and brainstorm with the team.
(Anel Martin)

18. 4. People Management
 Resource Management Skill. (Definition)
Motivating, developing and directing people as they work, identifying the best people
for the job
 Our executives spend more time than ever in meetings, so we are often the central
point of contact for our team. We are the one they call when there is a problem, they
need someone to confide in, or look to for guidance.
We often manage their leave requests and follow up on their action items on behalf of
our executive.
Assistants are taking on more of the management portion of their executive’s jobs
which frees them up to lead! Assistants manage up, down and sideways.
(Anel Martin)

19. 5. Coordinating with Others
 Social Skill (Definition)
Adjusting actions in relation to others' actions
 Assistants and project managers are the only staff that are expected to work cross-
functionally, and at all levels of the organization, on a regular basis. We schedule and
liaise with other divisions; we manage stakeholders in our team and externally.
We ensure that all role players have produced their portion of the work so that we meet
our deadlines. Coordination is also the ability to get people into the same place (actual
or virtual) so that they can do important work – hence the importance of diary
management in the new economy. We manage time like an asset and make sure
meetings are productive and efficient.
(Anel Martin)

20. 6. Emotional Intelligence
 Social Skill (Definition)
Being aware of others' reactions and understanding why they react as they do.
 According to a 2015 survey “PAs have a higher Emotional Intelligence, which means they
are better able to recognise and manage emotions in themselves and others”. Assistants
in the study cited numerous reasons why emotional intelligence was vital to their
success, including having to be the ears and eyes of their bosses, managing expectations,
being in a position of confidence, reporting on morale and understanding how to get the
best from people. I completely agree with these findings, in my own experience you
cannot be a good assistant without very high emotional intelligence.
(Anel Martin)

21. 7. Judgment and decision making
 Systems Skill (Definition)
Considering the relative costs and benefits of potential actions to choose the most
appropriate one.
 Assistants are often expected to make decisions on behalf of the executive, in their
absence or in the scope of what they are expected to achieve during a working day.
An intelligent and well-informed assistant with good business acumen can add great
value in ensuring that the business moves forward when urgent decisions are required.
Naturally, we all need to be aware of the delegation of authority when doing so, and
what decisions are in our preview and appropriate. Your decision making will also be
limited by how empowered you are, the trust that your management team has in you,
and your ability to take responsibility and deal with the consequences.
(Anel Martin)

22. 8. Service orientation
 Social Skill (Definition)
Actively looking for ways to help people.
 Being an office professional is a service-based occupation. In the past, roles that
provided service were looked down on, but the new economy will need this skill.
It will not simply be about customer service, but rather customer experience.
(Anel Martin)

23. 9. Negotiation
 Social Skill (Definition)
Bringing others together and trying to reconcile differences.
 Negotiation dropped from the fifth position in 2015 to ninth in 2020, because “machines,
using masses of data, [will] begin to make our decisions for us,” (WEF Report)
 Assistants rely on influence vs. positional power all the time.
They rely on negotiation skills when dealing with people superior in rank or in divisions
outside of their own. They often need to mediate situations with other team members,
or calm and assist angry customers. Top tier assistants are already well versed in this.
(Anel Martin)

24. 10. Cognitive flexibility
 Cognitive Ability (Definition)
The ability to generate or use different sets of rules for combining or grouping things in
different ways.
 This is the human ability to adapt cognitive processing strategies to face new and
unexpected conditions in the environment. As assistants, we are regularly faced with
change, unfamiliar tasks, and new circumstances. Our ability to deal with these, without
succumbing to stress, will make us extremely valuable in the future. This is perhaps our
biggest area of development as a group. We are averse to change and can be stuck in
our ways. It is important to realize that change will be our only constant in the future
and being flexible and adjusting at speed will be great for our careers.
(Anel Martin)

25. Growth vs Fixed Mindset

26. Staying Agile – it’s Not Just About Speed
Analytical agility:
Use different kinds of analysis and quantitative approaches to find
solutions
Inventive agility
Different ways of generating and evaluating ideas
Communicative agility
Defining key messages for the markets that the company serves
Visionary agility
Mindset to encourage teams to discover unexpected, breakthrough
ideas – what is the long-term thinking? How big is the impact?

27. Staying Relevant
Continuous learning Communication
Critical thinking Change agility
Collaboration Curiosity
Focus on competencies that are relevant to a
wide range of work settings and which
facilitate adaptation and flexibility
META–COMPETENCIES

28. “In a time of drastic
change, it is the
learners who inherit the
future.
The learned usually find
themselves equipped to
live in a world that no
longer exists.”
- Eric Hoffer
Staying Relevant

29. Staying ahead of the Curve – Learn Learn Learn !
 Develop both Soft Skills AND Technology Skills
 Online / Lifelong / Self-Directed Learning
MOOCs, Udemy, Coursera, LinkedIn Learning, YouTube, etc
https://www.practicallyperfectpa.com/the-future-assistant-2019
 Reading / esp Speed Reading
 Taking notes well & Analysing Data / Information / Trends
 Understand / Embrace / Use / Introduce Technologies
Video Conferencing / Efficiency Apps / Task Trackers / Enterprise Collaboration tools, etc
 Networking with other PA / EA / VA’s – Local & Global

30. Some Resources / References
 http://www.weforum.org/reports/the-future-of-jobs
 https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2016/01/the-10-skills-you-need-to-thrive-in-the-fourth-industrial-revolution/
 https://www.practicallyperfectpa.com/
 https://www.practicallyperfectpa.com/the-future-assistant-2019
 http://executivesecretary.com/
 http://executivesecretary.com/the-future-of-work-skills-for-2020/
 http://executivesecretary.com/the-role-of-management-assistant-in-the-future/
 https://www.tate.co.uk/tate-blog/the-skills-you-will-ll-need-as-a-pa-in-the-future
 https://www.metierrecruitment.com.au/news/the-changing-role-of-a-personal-assistant/19458/
 https://palife.co.uk/
 https://palife.co.uk/most-read/what-is-the-future-of-the-ea-role/

31. To the future we go…

32. Kathy Kraus
Catalyst Consulting (Pty) Ltd
Phone +27 73 201 2024
Email Kathy@catalystconsulting.co.za
Web www.catalystconsulting.co.za
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