Executive Assistants are often the middleman in terms of communication. This is because they're the Executive's messenger - they're that person that sets up the Facebook events for a company dinner or confers a message to another employee on behalf of the boss while they're in a meeting. Find out what else being a liaison involves and how to get better at it.

What does it mean to be a liaison?

Many bosses would say that having someone communicate for them is the biggest perk of having an EA, according to Corporette. It saves them an enormous amount of time to hand over matters of communication and coordination with others.

Bosses get EAs to carry out a number of liaison activities such as talking with clients and colleagues in order to set up meetings, conference calls and directing any employees on the the boss' behalf. Executives often tell the EA to check that employees have completed paperwork on time, for example. Then, the EA can report back to the boss on whether or not everyone has met the deadline.

How to liaise well

In order to liaise effectively, however, an EA needs to know how to manage others, Business Insider said. The EA must be able to put pressure on employees and clients to meet deadlines that the Executive has set. It is essential that EAs learn how to inspire people to jump into action, not by just appealing to their boss' authority, but by conveying their own sense of command. People may second guess the importance of an order if it comes from an EA, so they need to develop their own way of directing people.

Another thing an EA needs to effectively act as a link to transfer communication between people or groups is access to their Executive's calendar and to-do list. This will make it easier than constantly asking the boss when they're available and what needs to be done next.

Make sure everyone is in line with the boss' schedule.

In short, EAs will benefit if they think of themselves as the main person that facilitates any communication that involves their Executive. They break down messages for people and make sure everyone is on the same page and ready to go, which ultimately keeps things running smoothly in the office.