Executive Assistant to the CEO

Executive Assistant To The CEO

The Executive Assistant to the CEO serves as a strategic partner to the Chief Executive Officer, with primary responsibility for anticipating needs, protecting executive capacity, and ensuring the CEO's time, energy, and focus are aligned with the YMCA's highest priorities. This role is designed to reduce CEO workload, prevent burnout, and enhance executive effectiveness by proactively managing priorities, schedules, relationships, and follow-through without reliance on task lists or repeated direction.

Beyond administrative support, this position requires sound judgment, executive-level professionalism, and the ability to think ahead, connect dots, and independently own outcomes. The Executive Assistant ensures the CEO's day, week, and commitments are intentionally structured for success, that people-centered responsibilities are well supported, and that the CEO is able to lead without unnecessary after-hours, weekend, holiday, or vacation work.

Guided by the YMCA's core values—Caring, Honesty, Respect, and Responsibility—this role models professionalism, discretion, and proactive leadership in all interactions with Board members, staff, volunteers, and community partners as we foster a culture that is Welcome, Genuine, Hopeful, Nurturing, and Determined.

Executive Prioritization and Anticipation:

• Proactively anticipate the CEO's needs by understanding priorities, rhythms, leadership responsibilities, and decision-making patterns.
• Independently identify tasks, preparation needs, follow-ups, and schedule adjustments without requiring written task lists.
• Regularly look ahead to upcoming days, weeks, and months to identify potential issues, preparation needs, or opportunities to streamline workload.

Strategic Calendar and Time Management:

• Actively manage the CEO's calendar to ensure days and weeks are intentionally designed for effectiveness, not just filled with meetings.
• Build in preparation time, transition buffers, and recovery time as appropriate.
• Identify opportunities to shift, shorten, consolidate, or delegate meetings to reduce excessive work hours.
• Proactively recommend schedule changes to protect evenings, weekends, holidays, vacations, and personal time.

Meeting, Board, and Event Readiness:

• Fully own preparation for meetings, Board functions, and events from start to finish.
• Draft agendas independently, send them to the CEO for review, incorporate feedback, and distribute finalized materials without prompting.
• Anticipate materials, talking points, logistics, and follow-up needed for meetings and events.
• During events, support the CEO by:
  • Ensuring opportunities to connect with key individuals (e.g., board members, donors, staff, volunteers)
  • Managing timing and flow so commitments are honored
  • Handling logistics so the CEO can focus on relationships and leadership presence

People-Centered Executive Support:

• Ensure the "people functions" of the CEO role are well supported, including:
  • Staff recognition and celebrations
  • Board and volunteer communication and follow-up
  • Relationship-building touchpoints that might otherwise be missed due to time constraints
• Independently manage planning, scheduling, and follow-through so these responsibilities do not fall back to the CEO.

Energy, Sustainability, and Boundary Protection:

• Actively support the CEO's sustainability by recognizing when workload, schedule, or expectations need adjustment.
• Help protect time off by ensuring appropriate coverage, communication plans, and follow-up processes are in place.
• Identify tasks or expectations that can be shifted or handled by others to prevent over-extension.

Executive Communication and Representation:

• Represent the CEO and the YMCA with polished, executive-level professionalism in all written and verbal communication.
• Draft and manage communications on behalf of the CEO with Board members, volunteers, and partners with clarity, confidence, and discretion.
• Ensure appropriate CEO visibility on communications initiated by CEO direction, without unnecessary over-communication.

Ownership and Accountability:

• Take full ownership of assigned and implied responsibilities from initiation through…