Today is a very special day for Bain and Gray. A major milestone in the company’s history, one that we have been meticulously preparing for; putting a lot of our time, energy, and passion into a platform which we believe will be positively game changing for the executive support community in London (potentially the UK).
The New Epidemic
But what is this platform and is an online community necessarily a ground-breaking idea? To answer this, we must look at what started this journey. We had sent a survey to our extended network of PAs, EAs and admin professionals across the Capital but a set of statistics made us uneasy. Nearly 48% of the recipients admit that they feel lonely at work from time-to-time, with 8% of that group admitting they feel lonely quite often. The executive support career can a tricky one; a typical PA can find themselves solely devoted to one individual or one family whilst the typical office manager might feel isolated, not belonging to any department or team of a business. We wanted to find a solution, offering our support to a community that have inspired and supported us throughout the years.
The LINKS Remedy
Designed in collaboration with EAs for their peers and contemporaries, LINKS will blossom into a one-stop shop to combat those lonely moments at work which will branch into two functions:
The platform will offer curated content specially tailored to the needs of the executive support network which will come in the form of blog posts, podcasts and a ‘little black book’ of trusted suppliers. One of the best features on the website will include an ‘agony aunt’ column to address those sensitive topics that an assistant might always have wanted to ask but have been reluctant to do so.
The second branch revolves around networking. Monthly round table events will encourage those in senior roles to share their wisdom with their less experienced peers, whilst our events will give everyone an opportunity to meet new friends who are like-minded and will understand the nature of one another's roles and responsibilities.
Final Teaser
We know that our community loves to digest information on the go. Stay tuned to our social media channels and be the first to listen to some initial interviews with trail blazing women including Ginnie Chadwick Healey (former editor of Vogue and advocate for sustainable style) and Nancy Best (founder of Ladies Who Crunch).
Managing Director, Emily Bain:
“It is vital that businesses go that extra mile to create a feeling of belonging that many have missed out on since Covid and the trend for hybrid working. Our aim is to support those who are searching for a new job and those who are happily and gainfully employed through an open community designed to foster a sense of belonging as well as inform and educate”.
