Hiring a personal assistant for yourself or your family can be a difficult decision. For private families, a PA who has worked in purely corporate settings might not be comfortable or experienced with dealing with the demands of a private family. So if you’re looking to hire a personal assistant, the choice and selection of candidates should be carefully examined. It can be difficult to hire a personal assistant with the right qualifications. There is a wide range of personal assistants looking for new opportunities with private clients. Here we outline the range and types of PAs and the expected qualifications they might hold. So you can hire a personal assistant that’s right for you or your family.
Entry Level PA
Experience Level: 0-2 years
Typical Qualifications Held: High school, college and may have a degree education.
Typical Salary Range: £24K-30K a year depending on the package being offered.
Pros: These are eager, keen to please PAs. They want to give their new position 100% and prove their worth and reliability. They are confident and driven, and will typically accept a lower salary. This is due to their entry-level and background not being specific to the new area they are looking to develop their career in.
Cons: They likely won’t have experience in the field as either a PA or a domestic/private PA. Meaning they may need additional support and training in the early stages. There is always a risk that they might not be able to do the job. Or they may feel that it isn’t the right career path for them to take.
Corporate to Domestic Transition PA
Experience Level: 2 years or more
Typical Qualifications Held: High school, college, Bachelor Degree and specific PA/EA qualifications.
Typical Salary Range: £26-40K a year depending on the package being offered.
Pros: These PAs have previous experience working as a PA, and they are keen to transition to a new stage in their career. They understand a corporate, high pressured environment, and are not phased by the work or the challenges set.
These PAs are likely to be confident in their skill set, and aware that they are on the right career path. Albeit wish to take a side step into a different environment. They are organised and will often take a lower salary offer. In order to get their foot in the door for a private client.
Cons: They are used to working in a corporate/office setting. They may not be used to the domestic environment. Their working habits will revolve around business needs rather than personal and domestic. Therefore they may need additional support in their early stages. They may be used to working set office hours. Besides that, the challenge of a domestic schedule with an on-call situation might not be suitable for them.
Private PA
Experience Level: 4-8 years
Typical Qualifications Held: High school, college, Bachelor Degree, Masters and specific PA/EA qualifications.
Typical Salary Range: £30-50K a year depending on the package being offered.
Pros: These are private PAs, with proven experience working for private individuals. They will have experience in the domestic setting and understand the expectations for their principals and clients. They are used to working hours suited to private families and are flexible in their approach and place of work. Highly organised and used to give their clients the support they require. These PAs are well versed with the challenges and rise to the occasion.
Cons: They may only feel comfortably focused on the family/domestic duties. Although most private PAs are happy to help with corporate and business tasks if required of them. They will be on a higher salary than the other types of corporate PAs. Due to the fact they have previously worked for private families.
HNW or Celebrity PA
Experience Level: 8 years or more
Typical Qualifications Held: High school, college, Bachelor Degree, Masters, PHDs and specific PA/EA qualifications.
Typical Salary Range: £50K upwards a year depending on the package being offered.
Pros: These are the creme de la creme of PAs. They will have worked for many years for HNW, VIP and celebrity clients. These PAs are used to fast-paced, high stress and quickly changing environments. These PAs are highly organised and efficient. They pride themselves on their attention to detail and the ability to get the job done. These PAs are at the highest point in their career. So clients who are looking for the very best will look to hire a personal assistant like these.
These PAs are happy to step into all aspects of PA work from domestic through to any business matters. They give the highest level of support to their clients. They ensure that every inch of the duties is covered to the most professional level.
Cons: Due to their experience and the type of clients they work for, the salary they expect is high. Therefore the clients budget must be fluid!
Do you now know how to hire a personal assistant with the right qualifications? If you are looking to hire a personal assistant we would love to help – give you advice or start a new search for you. Why not drop us a line today and one of our lovely consultants will get in touch to discuss your enquiry.