Her Story
About Shayna
I'm an Executive Assistant at a technology service provider, where I've been for about a year, though I have 9 years of total experience in this role across different sectors including state government and education. My day-to-day work includes providing general support for our CEO and Vice President, along with significant financial responsibilities like invoicing and monitoring account health. What makes my current role unique is that I've become one of our company's forerunners in AI adoption and serve as a specialist for operational initiatives. My most notable achievement has been building an entire internal intelligence hub website for all of our AI content that is self-updating, and I created it all using AI despite having no tech experience or coding background. It was a lot of learning throughout the way, but I recently won our company's internal AI innovation challenge with this project, which was pretty awesome being at a tech company and having someone with no tech background win. I hold a bachelor's degree in biochemistry and a master's degree in public health, and while I'm not using those degrees directly, the data analysis and research skills I gained through both have really helped me get to where I am now. What drew me to being an executive assistant is that it aligns really closely with my personality traits - being really well organized and really enjoying helping and coordinating things. I get a lot of personal satisfaction from seeing a project through to the end.
Her Interview
Ten minutes with Shayna
01What do you attribute your success to?
I think my internal drive to succeed and to see a project through to the end has been the key to my success. I've always kind of been like that, you know, even as a young child - I really wanted to make sure that when I started something, I finished it. That commitment and determination has really served me well in both this role and a lot of my professional endeavors throughout my career.
02What’s the best career advice you’ve ever received?
I just went to an EA conference a few weeks ago, and I think the most powerful advice I took away was about communication and specifically, as an executive assistant, thinking of yourself as less of support and more of strategy for the person that you're supporting. So it's not just calendaring and answering emails - it's about protecting their time, looking at priorities, and really making some executive decisions without needing input. That shift in perspective from support to strategic partner has been really impactful for me.
03What advice would you give to young women entering your industry?
I would just say never stop learning. This field is moving quickly, and you really just can't be afraid of the change. You have to really embrace it and learn from it, and kind of adapt as things change. The pace of innovation, especially in tech, means that staying curious and flexible is essential to success.
04What are the biggest challenges or opportunities in your field right now?
I think the biggest challenges are just being a woman in the tech field. There are not many of us, and I'm constantly working on making sure that I'm proving that my knowledge and capabilities extend just beyond the scope of my job - that I'm capable of doing almost any project that's given to me with the right set of tools. As far as opportunities, I think it's a really pivotal time in tech, specifically with AI, and so I really feel like I'm at a really good point in my career and in my company where I have a lot of growth opportunity as well.
05What values are most important to you in your work and personal life?
I would say integrity and transparency are the values most important to me in both my work and personal life.
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