Top 10 Best Tools for Executive Assistants Approved by Leaders

Being an effective Executive Assistant in this day and age doesn’t have to be complicated. With so many tools and resources available on the market, EAs can now be empowered in their efforts to support their executives’ busy schedules.

As a leader, it can be valuable to make recommendations to Executive Assistants for tools and solutions that are built with executives and their teams in mind, so that they’re always being supported by the right software. 

In this article, we’ll discuss:

• Top 10 best tools for Executive Assistants approved by leaders
• The benefits of using leadership approved tools for Executive Assistants
• FAQs about Executive Assistant tools
• Final thoughts

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Top 10 best tools for Executive Assistants approved by leaders

1. Fellow

Fellow is the only all in one AI meeting management software for remote and hybrid organizations that helps executives and their teams have fewer, shorter, more effective meetings. It leverages AI to record, transcribe, summarize, and share meetings with attendees, to make workflows more efficient. 

Fellow is one of the most ideal tools for Executive Assistants thanks to delegated access. With delegated access, Executive Assistants can plan meeting agendas, respond to meeting requests, edit your Google Calendar, add meeting notes, talking points, action items, and more! 

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Fellow is a software that can improve your meeting culture and productivity org-wide, but it’s a game changer for Executive Assistants and helps them stay at the top of their game. Leaders who implement Fellow in their organizations ensure that their EAs can complete their job to the fullest, and get even more time back in their busy schedules.

G2 Rating: 4.7/5

2. Slack

With all the tasks and communication Executive Assistants engage in on a daily basis, having a top communication tool in their tech stack is essential. Slack enables Executive Assistants to chat, send files, and gather information quickly. 

Users can also easily connect with each other via “huddles” where they can video chat, share their screen, and more. Slack is the ideal tool for executives to implement in their organizations to facilitate communication for busy EAs.

G2 Rating: 4.5/5 

3. Todoist

Todoist enables Executive Assistants to build to-do lists and manage tasks in a clear and organized way. Tasks can be organized both personally, professionally, and ranked in order of priority. 

With all the to-dos that Executive Assistants need to manage, both for their leaders and themselves, having a tool like Todoist to support their efforts just makes sense from a leadership perspective. Todoist as a tool serves as a single space for Executive Assistants to manage tasks and priorities for themselves and the leaders they work with.

G2 Rating: 4.4/5 

4. Trello

This productivity tool is designed to make collaboration and communication a visual experience for Executive Assistants. Trello makes it easy to collaborate with the rest of the team, organize projects, and manage tasks in one location.

By organizing work and tasks into cards and placing them on boards, it’s easy for Executive Assistants to see multiple projects on the go at once in one singular view. Thanks to its visual organization interface, executive leaders know this tool is designed to improve task management for Executive Assistants.

G2 Rating: 4.4/5 

5. Asana

In contrast with Trello’s task focused interface, Asana’s area of expertise is project management. It enables Executive Assistants to stay organized and keep their responsibilities prioritized.

Because Executive Assistants are often responsible for organizing projects and tasks, Asana comes highly recommended by leaders for their Executive Assistants, notably for its connectivity. Asana seamlessly syncs with other productivity tools, communication software, and third party solutions to make managing projects a breeze.  

G2 Rating: 4.3/5

6. Monday.com

Another great project management tool is Monday.com. Its customizable interface is great for EAs to build boards and create columns to organize projects efficiently and effectively.

Monday has multiple views available to users, like “timeline” which enables users to visually and easily track the life cycles of their projects. This tool helps automate the task of task management, and is used by leaders and their teams alike.

G2 Rating: 4.4/5

7. Calendly

Having a scheduling tool that helps with external appointments is not only ideal for Executive Assistants, it’s essential. Calendly enables EAs to share calendar availability with a link, without sharing the details of the other events already scheduled in their executives’ calendars. 

With all the communication that can go into finding an appropriate time to meet, it’s no wonder why executives tend to recommend their Executive Assistants to leverage Calendly for seamless event and meeting planning.

G2 Rating: 4.7/5 

8. Grammarly

Having a tool to assist with formatting and editing is a must with all the writing Executive Assistants need to do in a day. Grammarly enables users to simply review text, and the tool makes suggestions and spots errors automatically.

There’s nothing more unprofessional than a poorly written email or memo, but writing can be a challenge for anyone. With Grammarly in an EA’s toolstack, executives can rest easy knowing that their most important posts, emails, and memos will be expertly written and executed.

G2 Rating: 4.7/5

9. Canva

This tool is every Executive Assistant’s secret weapon when it comes to creating professional looking creatives like invitations, social media posts, infographics, and more. Canva gives EAs access to professional looking design resources and stock photos for brilliant work that looks like it was made by a designer. 

Leaders love it when Executive Assistants can produce professional images without having to hire externally for the jobs or projects. Having Canva in your EAs toolkit is an essential for producing great looking work.  

G2 Rating: 4.7/5

10. Expensify

It’s not uncommon for Executive Assistants to need to deal with work expenses, expense reports, and managing receipts. This can mean a lot of financial juggling, where mistakes can be disastrous if not properly managed. This is where Expensify comes in. 

Expensify is an expense management app that makes it easy to track receipts, expense reports, company credit cards, invoicing, and more. Leaders love tools that can help their EAs stay organized and on top of their top priorities like expenses, so having Expensify in the toolkit of an Executive Assistant is a fantastic idea.

G2 Rating: 4.5/5

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The benefits of using leadership approved tools for Executive Assistants 

Ultimately, most Executive Assistants are given the freedom to choose whichever tools they feel will be most beneficial to setting themselves up for success. However, there’s always a benefit or two in choosing tools that are approved by leaders instead of solo sourcing them themselves. Here are some benefits of using leadership approved tools for Executive Assistants:

Security 

The top priority of leaders at any organization is usually security. This means that the tools they choose to be used within the organization need to meet top security standards when it comes to data, information, and connectivity. Fellow, for example, is proudly certified for SOC2, which means that your organization’s information and data are continuously being protected, and leaders can rest easy knowing that their Executive Assistants are using a reputable tool.

Reliability 

When doing research for productivity tools for Executive Assistants, it’s easy for someone to fall into the trap of jumping into a tool that looks appealing at first glance, but isn’t ultimately reliable in the long run. Choosing a tool with multiple G2 reviews from executives will give a good indication that the tool is reliable and will foster great results long term.

Transparency 

Communication between an Executive Assistant and their executive is essential for any good working relationship. If an EA decides to source their own tools without running it by their boss first, it can lead to future challenges that are unnecessary. Whether an EA provides a list of tools that are approved by other leaders, or leadership provides a list of tools they approve themselves, it’s always a great way to foster communication and trust in professional relationships.

Accountability 

Tools that are built to foster collaboration and not just for solo use are great at boosting accountability between Executive Assistants and leadership. Ones that can automate action items and create a space that makes it easy for everyone to stay accountable are ideal when leadership takes the lead and presents them as ideal tools to use for their EAs. 

Connectivity

As leaders, executives tend to have the most context when it comes to which tools are being used in their teams’ tech stacks across the organization. This means that when they select which tools to approve for their Executive Assistants, they know what to look for when it comes to how well it will integrate into the existing tech stack of the company. As an example, Fellow integrates with over 50 productivity tools, including some of the other examples in the above list, making it an ideal choice for a tool to centralize meetings, feedback, action items, and more. 

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FAQs about Executive Assistant tools 

Now that you know the top executive approved tools for Executive Assistants, and the benefits of choosing tools that are approved by leadership, here are some frequently asked questions about Executive Assistant tools. 

What types of Executive Assistant tools should be included in an EAs tech stack?

There are 5 different categories of productivity software that are ideal when it comes to building out a tech stack for your Executive Assistant, and you’ll want to choose at least one tool for each category. You’ll want one tool to help manage calendars and scheduling, one software that supports communication, one for managing tasks and action items, one central place for storing documents and information, and one app for taking notes. If you can find a software that supports all 5 of these categories, like Fellow, then that’s even better. 

Are there any extra tools my Executive Assistant should use if they’re fully remote?

Yes. Remote work has specific needs and challenges versus an in-person Executive Assistant job. Leveraging tools that support video conferencing is usually a must for remote EAs, along with platforms that foster collaboration, focus time, and remote access are all huge advantages to have.

How do I know if I’m choosing the right tools for my Executive Assistant?

With the overwhelming amount of choice on the market, it can be tough to find the best ones for your Executive Assistant. It’s important to be mindful of your EAs unique challenges and needs in their role, look for ones that have a robust review set on a reputable site like G2, take advantage of any free trials or discounted offers that any of these tools may have, and finally, be sure to do your research before committing to a tool, especially if it’s a paid one. 

How do I transition my Executive Assistant into using my approved tool stack?

If your Executive Assistant has a good amount of experience, chances are good they’ll be used to working with a different tech stack than what you’re used to. With that said, there are some strategies you can use to make the transition to your preferred tool stack seamless, including implementing the tools gradually, communicating expectations clearly, offering a sufficient onboarding grace period, and continually collecting feedback. 

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Final thoughts

There are numerous tools on the market that can make the workflow of an Executive Assistant easier and more efficient. It’s important to pick at least 1 tool from the 5 different categories of Executive Assistant tools, find the best way to transition them into your approved tech stack, and be sure to keep any extra tools for remote EAs in mind. Choosing a tool that has leadership approval is always a good move, because it ensures security, reliability, transparency, accountability, and connectivity.

When it comes to connectivity, one of the best tools for Executive Assistants is Fellow. With its delegated access, Executive Assistants can easily automate meeting prep work on behalf of their executives and excel at helping them have fewer, shorter, more effective meetings thanks to Fellow’s AI, behavior driving features, and seamless integrations with 50+ existing productivity tools.