Written by: Helen Monument, Interim Chair WA-Alliance
I first met Eth Lloyd in 2003 at the World Administrators Summit in London so was already in awe of the work she has been doing tirelessly for many years.
We’ve met a few times since then, of course, and I didn’t hesitate when asked to be one of the Facilitators at the 10th WA-Summit in Frankfurt in 2018. I was very impressed on how much progress has been made in the intervening years and saw first hand how tirelessly Eth has been working, in front of and behind the scenes to bring the delegates, the Advisory Council and the working groups together to ‘speak as one voice’. The WA-Summit has never been better placed to achieve its goals ‘to guide, influence and positively develop the profession’.
So you can imagine how excited and honoured I was to be asked by Eth to take up the reigns, as she goes into long anticipated retirement in September 2020, in the role of Interim Chair to guide the next steps for WA-Summit, namely the formation of the World Administrators Alliance.
My career has spanned over 30 years, starting as an inexperienced Secretary, I was able to then grow and develop myself as I took on other roles in international companies as Management Assistant, Personal Assistant, Office Manager and Business Support team leader. I am a passionate advocate of our profession and have now transitioned to being my own boss of Monumental Assistance; sharing my experiences and expertise by training, coaching, writing and speaking at conferences for Assistants at all levels. I am also a former Executive Chairman of IMA (formally EUMA), so I understand what it takes to work across cultures with teams of volunteers for the benefit of our profession and for their personal development. What’s important for me in taking on this role is to give something back to our amazing profession that has given me so many wonderful opportunities.
Eth and I have already started working together. I’ve taken over the leadership of the WA-Summit Communications Team – more news about that to come. There is much to learn and I currently have more questions than answers. However, Eth has promised she will be just a Skype call away. Thanks to the support of the Advisory Council, the Future of the WA-Summit Task Force and all the delegates, I’m looking forward to working with you all and doing amazing things together.
The purpose of the WA-Summit of guiding, influencing and positively developing the profession is very close to my heart and I have great hopes for the future of our profession and I’m confident that the World Administrators Alliance is going to play a major part in shaping that future.