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It could be anything. His assistant is out today or he doesn’t like his/her, assistant is bad her his/her job… whatever the reason, just make an impression. Do an amazing job. He may use you for other much bigger jobs
Also wondering if OP is the only female on the team and selected for sexist reasons or just if because they are the most junior.
As someone who has done exactly this, I'd suggest wholeheartedly taking this and any other similar opportunities particularly ones that offer exposure beyond your current circle. Don't worry about whether the work appears "admin" - in the current instance.
Experience has taught me that often such things are little dots that come together in unexpected ways in the big picture of your professional life 🙂
Go for it.
Wow...after reading the question, some advice my mother gave me as a teen came flooding back to remembrance. She said "Son, everything we do has a way of preparing us for something later in life." This sounds like one of those moments. Good luck!
OP this is 100% an opportunity. VP is asking for you to be involved. Take notes. Absorb. Who knows you could form a meaningful opinion/ perspective on the meeting and get to share it with VP afterward. If that happens and it resonates next thing you know you’re in a trusted circle.
It’s an opportunity. See and treat it as such
Rising Star
Absorb! Exactly
It could mean any number of things, but it all appears to be positive. It may not be a formal test, but, in a sense everything is a test. Just show that you're capable and do a good job and it can only help you.
Be professional in looks and behavior.
Take good notes and make it presentable and neat.
He must see something in you that caught his attention if you think this is a surprise . You must have a good work ethic.
I am a male. I was asked to do the same thing by the head of department (female) 15 years ago. Her main reason for asking me to do this was that the discussions in the meetings were quite technical in nature, and her admins did not understand, and could not record them well.
It turned out to be a great opportunity for me as I got face time with the heads of all other departments and their senior managers. Thus, I became visible to the higher management layers in the entire company. Soon, everyone wanted me on their projects. I got the pick of the best projects in the company to manage. Helped my career a lot.
@Project Manager 1 - I’m also curious, aside from taking notes during the meetings, did you do anything else for the head of department? Like did you schedule 1-1s with her to debrief the notes? Were you responsible for making sure the action items from the meetings were followed through? Not sure whether I should just be taking notes or taking more initiative
As a woman in a tech field, I got asked to take notes a lot. While I'm certain I was viewed as an admin by some, I look at it like this:
My notes were the permanent record of the discussion, so it was my voice, my word choice, my interpretation that became the documented history.
I also got to be in the room with decision-makers and that was useful exposure and networking connections. I could ask questions (to 'clarify the notes') and learn that way as well.
Yes, I was able to make the move from asking clarifying questions to asking substantive questions, again under the auspices of needing to know for the notes.
Example: "Making sure I captured this properly, did you mean X or were you thinking Y?" (Where Y is my own idea I wanted to contribute.)
Sometimes the answer was a simple 'no, we meant X' but often my question would spark more discussion, and I was seen as an active contributor, not simply a passive listener.
I even had folks coming to me asking to facilitate the discussion along with or instead of taking notes (I would invite another person I wanted to give an opportunity to take notes), and soon the meetings were running well, staying on track, yielding available decisions once I was able to really bring my full skillset to the table.
Hopefully that answers your question! Feel free to DM me if you want to chat about strategies to navigate this. I enjoy mentoring and sharing the benefit of 30 years as a woman in tech.
Rising Star
Taking notes means taking notes. Be extra accurate, make your body blank. In other words, if someone says something goofy, do not react. Depending on your newfound relationship with the VP you may be afforded the opportunity to comment; but not in the meeting, unless specifically asked. You are getting a rare opportunity to be in-the-room where it happens. And no matter what, what happens in the meeting, stays in the meeting. I wish you luck.
@nielsenIQ1 thanks for the insight, totally makes sense. I’ll focus on taking good notes for now!
are you attractive? what size company is this that the vp directly asks you to take notes and not go through coc? not speculating but if the vp hasn't met you before, it could be tied to my first question. you can't know if he sees as you admin unless feedback comes through directly or someone else. can you refuse and say i don't got bandwidth?
oh that's a little strange if it's just been a month and he asked for you specifically. unless you stood out the previous month through your work, it could be your looks if you're attractive. or it could be random as others pointed out. maybe your boss recommended you to him or someone he knows and the word spread. but the one month part still points to my first question.
coc is chain of command, people at vp have assistants that help them with everything except decision making and even if the assistant was out sick or whatever they get a replacement immediately for the day or two.
I wouldn't ask someone to take notes in a meeting if I didn't have a good impression of that person. Dont make the mistake of turning him down because you think this is beneath you. it isn't.
I’d never take notes no matter how much I’m “trusted”. With 2 masters degrees in STEM, that’s definitely beneath me, I’d do it but start job hunting immediately
Very good opportunity. He wants to see how you organize your thoughts on paper. I did this for my boss once, and turned the notes on our team meetings into a weekly newsletter. He loved it.
I did this for years and got nowhere. I think it can be one or the other. Do it and take the gamble that's my opinion
Oh that makes sense now…and I could totally see why that would happen in your case. Still terrible for them to cancel the approval behind your back though (although it’s somewhat a compliment too). I’ll make sure to keep this in mind! Thanks for sharing
I would be wary. He sounds sexist. Asking you to take notes...Is your salary on par with your male peers? THAT is what would really say whether he respects and values you.
take them up on it, it will be a good learning experience and exposure for you. It could turn out to be a route to a job that you never even thought of
I wholeheartedly agree with the Senior Architect's post
And this is why, here is an opportunity for you to shine in the presence of those who make the final decisions regarding business direction, personnel changes, advancements, etc
You could do very well being a butterfly on those walls!!
Will do!! Thank you for the encouragement :)
When I was a consultant I took a lot of notes and they were very much appreciated by my coworkers
If you never had previous experience with this VP any engagement is an "opportunity". With this is a creative opportunity to engage with his audience (during and/or after) to build relationships.
That’s true! Can you elaborate on the opportunities to engage with his audience after? Just want to know which boundaries I can cross and not cross with these Sr execs
I think the VP is asking you to be his proxy at this meeting. It’s actually a good sign. I would ask , in advance, whoever shares the meeting to record it. This will give you a chance to research topics you may not be knowledgeable about. You can even reach out to the participants after the fact to get more background. I wouldn’t do this during the meeting because it would be kind of poor form. Good luck.
I think of something I was told early my career. Be nice to the receptionist - they know everything. Regardless of all the things it might be or not be, this is a great chance to be on the inside hearing what's really going on. You'll know soon enough if you want to keep doing this. Also if you want to stay at that company.
Opportunity for sure to hear what high priority stakeholders work on.
By all means take on the new responsibility and learn. Learn more about your own position, learn about the goings on in the meetings, the ethical manners and the organizational matters.
Everyday is a school day.