EA PROFILE
people and ask my question.”
Natalie Kennefick has put in the hard yards to develop
But her approach is not simply a stubborn confidence,
her administrative career. From humble beginnings at her
Natalie has worked hard to develop open and trusting
mum’s office while still in high-school, and now the EA
relationships with her managers, which she knows makes
to multiple senior managers at Optus in Sydney, Natalie
her much more productive.
has a wealth of experience to draw from. I interviewed
“I try and build a relationship with my manager where
Natalie after she won Up and Coming PA of the Year at the
I feel I can openly ask questions, give feedback or an
2018 Executive PA Awards to discuss what wisdom she had
opinion,” Natalie contends.
learned from her career so far.
I also wanted to know how Natalie thought the EA role
Natalie started working in offices while she was still in
had progressed. Her own career experience has seen the job
school and helped out where she could. “I’d meet my mum
develop and grow, and I was curious to see if her opinion, or
in her office and I’d do a bit of data entry and filing and
the opinions of others on her role had changed as well.
things like that,” remembers Natalie.
“I thought people saw EAs as a work-wife. Or a guardian
From there, Natalie went on to chase bigger adventures
and a gatekeeper. I know a lot of people don’t know what
and expand her skills in a variety of roles. “I started working
an EA is—they think we just manage emails and dairies.
in offices in Sydney. I started in a team assistant role, and
I’ve actually found it really heart-warming when people in
then I progressively moved up into admin manager, then
Optus come up to me and say ‘I could never do what you do.
office manager.”
You run this place.’”
With a diploma in HR, Natalie was at an
“I think the more people work with EAs, they
impasse. Looking to move into recruitment,
understand
that we are not limited to things like
suddenly her aspirations changed. “I got my job
expenses and travel. They understand that we are
as an EA at Optus. It wasn’t a conscious decision,
more integrated into the team and the business.
I found the admin side of things almost second
We have our fingers on everything. We know
nature. It was either going to be HR or EA, so I
OPTUS
what is going on along all different paths and
went for the EA.”
departments,” Natalie continues.
I asked her if she was happy with that decision.
Optus is the
With this in mind, Natalie has kept pushing
“Oh, definitely. There is so much more to it than
second largest
telecommunications
her own role forward and striving for more
what most people think. It’s encompassing and
company in Australia.
responsibility and a deeper understanding of the
challenging in a way that I never thought it would
Optus owns and
organisation.
be. I definitely don’t regret my decision.”
operates its own network
infrastructure and
“I’ve agreed with one of my bosses to be sent
Now a fully fledged EA, Natalie has a breadth
provides internet, mobile
out
to our regional areas so I can find out what
of experience in the field, and at one time was
services, home phones
our regional reps do. I see all their expenses and
working for four managers at once. I wanted to
and cable television to
millions of Australians.
travel requests, but I don’t really know what they
know how she balanced the interests of so many
Optus employs more
are doing out on the road all these days. Now I
people simultaneously—surely each manager had
than 8000 people and
can take on more responsibility, my manager isn’t
an urgent schedule and immovable meetings.
has a national retail store
network that provides
going to be bombarded by emails because I can
“It was all about managing expectations,”
services and support
give answers to people.”
said Natalie. Managing four bosses was a delicate
to customers.
However, these opportunities didn’t fall
exercise of making sure everyone knew where
www.optus.com.au
into Natalie’s lap. She sees herself as the one
they stood, but it was also an opportunity for
responsible for developing her role, and thinks
Natalie to expand her knowledge.
that EAs are in a unique position to ask for more.
“One of my managers at the time was doing
“The more we get involved and the more
a transformation of Optus, shaping the way the
evolved we become in our roles, the more respect we
company was going. So I learned a lot that way. It’s not
will get. Half of that is on you. You need to step up and
insider information that I’ve picked up, it’s more about
show that you want to do it, and the other half is having a
learning the day to day workings of each department as
relationship with your manager where they can give you that
much as you can so you can take the knowledge of each
responsibility with confidence. A lot of managers are afraid
department with you if you want to progress or move into a
to hand off things, so there needs to be trust,” Natalie said.
different role. You’ve got to have an understanding of how
At the end of our conversation, I asked Natalie to reflect
the business works.”
on her awards night experience, and asked her what it felt
With this knowledge, not only was Natalie able to become
like to be the Up and Coming PA of the Year for 2018.
more flexible within Optus, but she was also able to approach
“I’d met all the other nominees earlier in the day, and
managers with confidence when she wanted to give advice
when it came down to me and one other person, I turned
or question something. And not just privately, Natalie
occasionally raises her queries in front of the whole company. to my mum and said ‘I’m not winning this’. I’d met her
“I’m very open. If I have something on my mind, or I have earlier in the day, and she was super professional, really
well-spoken and presented. When my name was called out I
an opinion on something that’s happening in the business, I
nearly passed out. I was so excited,” Natalie remembers.
will raise it. We do a weekly forum with the whole company
“I found it really eye opening, and enjoyed being able to
at Optus. My team always laughs when I get up, and are
sit there and talk with other EAs about the things that they
excited to see what I have to ask, because they know other
do. It was all about learning how to better myself, so I can in
people won’t do it. They talk amongst themselves, whereas
turn go and tell other EAs the same thing.” S
I’ll get up on the microphone in front of a thousand odd
Issue 3 2019 | Chief of Staff 51