When you’re deep in the day-to-day of supporting your Executive, feedback can sometimes feel like a quick “thank you,” a “you’re a star” email, or a passing comment in the hallway. These moments are nice, but they can also be fleeting. As Assistants, we don’t always get formal, structured feedback regularly. Most of the time, it’s those informal acknowledgements that let you know you’re doing a great job, even if they don’t always feel official enough to lean on when it comes to performance reviews or career conversations. Making feedback count as an EA is about recognizing the value of those moments and turning them into something tangible.
That’s why, when you start collecting and using that feedback intentionally, it becomes one of the strongest tools you have. It helps you build your confidence, strengthen your partnership with your Executive, and make a clear, confident case during performance reviews and salary conversations. By taking this approach, you are actively making feedback count as an EA.
In this article, we’ll explore how you can make feedback work for you, capture it consistently, and turn it into career currency that reflects the real value you bring to your role.
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Your Executive is usually your closest working relationship. How they perceive your support plays a big role in how visible and valued your work is. Setting up a simple, regular feedback loop helps you get a consistent feel for where the expectations are, whether you’re meeting them, and where you might be exceeding them. It helps you stay on the same page with your Executive and shows that you’re proactively managing the relationship, not just reacting to needs as they arise. Making feedback count as an EA starts with understanding how aligned you and your Executive really are and taking active steps to maintain and strengthen that alignment. This small shift in practice is key to making feedback count as an EA.
Executive-Assistant Alignment Score
One practical way to start is by introducing a regular check-in. Ask your Executive to rate, on a scale of 1 to 10, how supported and informed they feel. Keep it simple and straightforward. This might feel like a lot to add in, especially when you’re both so busy, but it’s worth doing. Creating these habits helps in truly making feedback count as an EA.
Getting the timing right is essential; you want to ensure you’re asking for feedback when your Executive has enough headspace to give thoughtful answers. That way, the feedback will be more meaningful, and it shows you’re being respectful of their time while still prioritizing the relationship. Every small step you take toward gathering feedback helps with making feedback count as an EA. You might ask:
Do you feel up to date on your key priorities?
Is the way we communicate working well for you?
Is there anything you’d like me to manage differently or take off your plate?
If the scores stay high, that’s measurable proof of strong, consistent support. If you notice a dip, it’s a chance to adapt early and reinforce your value. Over time, this creates a clear story of alignment and impact you can confidently bring into performance review conversations. These strategies ensure you’re consistently making feedback count as an EA.
To help you get started, here’s a simple email template you could send to your Executive:
Subject: Quick Feedback Check-In
Hi [Executive’s Name],
I’d love to set up a quick check-in to gather some feedback on how things are going from your perspective. It would really help me ensure I’m fully supporting you and staying aligned with your priorities.
If you have a few minutes, could you quickly rate on a scale of 1–10:
How supported do you feel with current priorities?
How informed do you feel about key updates and tasks?
How is our communication flow working for you?
If there’s anything specific I can adjust or improve, I’d really appreciate hearing it. Thank you for your time and support!
Best, [Your Name]
And if you want to introduce this new way of working more informally, you could start the conversation like this:
Conversation Starter:
“I’ve been thinking about ways to ensure I’m always aligned with your needs, especially as things get busier. Would you be open to giving me a quick score each quarter on how supported and informed you feel? It would only take a few minutes, and it would help me keep refining how I work with you. I completely understand how busy things get, so I’d aim to do this just a few times a year – enough to stay connected on expectations without adding anything extra to your plate.”
Introducing this type of feedback rhythm might feel like a new step, but it’s a practical and proactive way to manage expectations and strengthen your partnership. By suggesting quarterly check-ins, you’re creating a structure that doesn’t overwhelm your Executive or yourself. It strikes the right balance – frequent enough to stay aligned, but not so often that it becomes a burden. Timing and sensitivity are key. Choose the right moment to introduce the idea, and always be mindful that your Executive’s headspace will make a big difference in how your request is received. When done thoughtfully, these regular feedback touchpoints can quickly become one of your most valuable tools for career growth. Building this rhythm into your workflow is part of making feedback count as an EA.
While your Executive’s feedback is key, it’s important not to overlook the impact that feedback from colleagues, project teams, and external partners can have on shaping your professional brand. As Assistants, we often act as the glue connecting many different parts of the organization. Every interaction you have, whether it’s scheduling meetings, coordinating projects, or troubleshooting issues, is an opportunity to build trust and demonstrate your value. This level of preparation is what making feedback count as an EA looks like in action.
We know you’re busy, and it can sometimes feel like there’s no time to collect feedback on top of everything else. But keeping this kind of feedback front and center in your mind is crucial. It provides a fuller picture of your impact, beyond your Executive relationship. It’s about showing that you’re a key player in the broader team environment. It’s all part of the bigger picture of making feedback count as an EA.
Making feedback count as an Executive Assistant also means being strategic about when and how you gather it. This isn’t something to chase every day, but it’s worth building in a rhythm, once a quarter is usually the sweet spot. That way, you’re capturing meaningful insights without overwhelming yourself or your colleagues. Picking the right moment is key: after a project wraps up, following a successful event, or during a natural check-in are perfect opportunities to ask for feedback when the experience is still fresh and positive. Structuring your feedback this way is critical to making feedback count as an EA.
Also, start gathering moments of positive feedback – a quick thank you email, a comment after a meeting, or a note of appreciation for a clear update. For example:
“Thanks for the clear summary. It saved us so much time!”
“Your meeting notes were exactly what we needed to move forward quickly.”
Keep a running document where you capture these moments. Over time, you’ll start to spot patterns in what people appreciate most about your work. These insights should form the basis of your conversation around reward and recognition. Building a habit of collecting feedback ensures you’re truly making feedback count as an EA.
Once you’re collecting feedback, the next step is organizing it so it mirrors the key areas of your role. Making feedback count as an EA includes structuring it to showcase the full range of your responsibilities. Find a place to store this feedback that’s easy to access when you need it – this could be a dedicated email folder, a document in your shared drive, a private file you update regularly, or even screenshots saved from messages you receive on Slack, WhatsApp, Teams, or other platforms. The key is to have everything in one place so you can quickly reference real examples when preparing for performance conversations or career discussions. Group feedback into categories like:
Executive Support (Pulse scores, alignment feedback)
You might receive frequent feedback here after key 1:1 meetings, quarterly reviews, or big project milestones. Positive signs could include your Executive mentioning how “on top of things” they feel or how well priorities are being handled without needing reminders.
Communication (Clarity, updates, briefings, communication KPIs)
This type of feedback often pops up after you send out a project update, meeting minutes, or a detailed briefing before a major meeting. Quick “thank you” messages or comments about how helpful your updates were are important to capture.
Project and Task Management (Efficiency, deadlines met, priorities managed)
You’re likely to hear feedback here after successfully coordinating large projects, meeting tight deadlines, or managing busy event schedules. Colleagues or project leads might comment on how smoothly everything ran or how quickly you resolved issues.
Relationship Building (Collaboration, trust, stakeholder management)
This feedback shows up when you’ve supported cross-functional teams, managed complex stakeholder relationships, or represented your Executive in meetings. Positive comments about your professionalism, collaboration skills, or ability to keep everyone aligned are strong indicators.
Problem Solving and Initiative (Spotting risks early, creating solutions)
You might receive praise here when you proactively flagged an issue before it escalated or suggested a process improvement that saved time or prevented a problem. Even small acknowledgments about “great catch” or “thanks for thinking ahead” are worth saving.
By categorizing feedback this way, you’re not just highlighting that you’re doing a good job but building a clear, structured narrative of your strengths, backed up with real examples. Over time, this narrative becomes incredibly powerful, especially when it comes to your performance review or pay conversations. By tracking consistent feedback across the year, you can tell a compelling story about how your role has evolved, where you’ve had the biggest impact, and how you’ve added value to your Executive and the wider team. It gives you more than isolated examples—it gives you a timeline of success. This kind of preparation not only shows that you’ve been proactive in tracking your growth, but it also positions you as someone who is strategic about your career development and committed to continuously adding value. Being intentional with how you gather and present feedback is central to making feedback count as an EA.
Feedback isn’t just a feel-good exercise. It’s one of the most powerful ways we can:
Strengthen our visibility and impact within the organization
Build our confidence through real results
Walk into performance conversations fully prepared
Make a stronger case for promotions, raises, or expanded responsibilities
Making feedback count as an EA is about being proactive. It doesn’t have to be a huge project. You can start small with a simple feedback tracker or a quarterly reminder to check in.
Often, the impact we make as Executive Assistants isn’t always tangible. It’s how we make people feel—how we create clarity, calm, and momentum for the teams and individuals we support. We’re the ones keeping projects moving, smoothing communication, and making the day-to-day easier for everyone around us. But when it comes time for a performance review or pay conversation, those contributions can be hard to measure if we don’t have the evidence.
That’s why collecting and organizing feedback is so important. It helps you build a powerful narrative around the real impact you have. When you can show that the Executives you support are hitting their targets, earning bonuses, leading successful projects, and that you were instrumental in that success, you shift the conversation. You’re not just an extra pair of hands; you’re someone who helps drive outcomes that directly affect the bottom line. Capturing your impact through feedback is a key step in making feedback count as an EA.
With this feedback, you have proof that your work and influence have enabled others to succeed. You can demonstrate that the wins would have been harder to achieve without your support. This elevates your role, shows your strategic contribution, and positions you as an essential part of the organization’s success.
And if you’re managing teams, projects, or high-level tasks, collecting feedback becomes even more important. Work like managing complex travel itineraries, delivering major events, leading committees, or overseeing strategic initiatives often represents a full-time role in itself. Yet, because of the nature of our work as Assistants, these massive contributions can sometimes be overlooked or underestimated. Capturing feedback from these projects, documenting the impact you’ve made, and presenting it alongside everything else you do is crucial. It highlights the scope of what you manage and the value you bring to the business. This feedback creates a powerful record that clearly shows how your work directly supports the success of the organization, and makes it impossible to overlook your contribution when it’s time to discuss performance, promotions, or salary. Keeping track of these wins is at the heart of making feedback count as an EA.
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