Pre-Conference Workshops

The Elite EA Masterclass

9:00 AM – 12:30 PM

From Support Role to Strategic Partner: Your Career Transformation Starts Here!

• The most successful Executive Assistants aren’t defined by the executives they support, but by how they transform those executives’ effectiveness through strategic partnership rather than mere support.

• The Executive Assistant who masters both human connection and technological advancement doesn’t just survive disruption—they become the indispensable bridge between the efficiency of automation and the emotional intelligence that drives organisational success. The difference between a career plateau and continued advancement for Executive Assistants isn’t technical skill—it’s the courage to step beyond your assigned role and into the strategic vacuum others haven’t yet recognised

Are you ready to be recognised as the strategic asset you truly are?

The Elite EA Masterclass isn’t just another training program—it’s your career reinvention blueprint. Designed exclusively for ambitious Executive and Personal Assistants who refuse to be boxed in by outdated perceptions, this intensive experience  transforms how you work, how you’re perceived, and where your career can go.

The Reality EAs Face in 2025:

• Expected to master AI tools without proper training
• Transitioning from administrative to strategic roles with little guidance
• Navigating unclear pathways from “assistant” to “advisor”
• Managing increasing responsibilities without corresponding compensation
• Fighting to be recognised as more than “just an Assistant”

Your 4-Session Journey to Excellence:

1. Confidence, Empowerment, and Mindset breakthrough limiting beliefs and develop the executive mindset that
commands respect

2. Executive Presence and Creating Opportunities Master the subtle art of presence that turns heads and opens doors

3. Strategic Thinking and Leadership Elevate your thinking from task execution to strategic partnership

4. Effective Partnering and Career Progression Position yourself for advancement and negotiate your true value

The 5 Essential Skills Every EA Needs in 2025:

1. Insight & Decision-Making Capabilities - Move beyond executing decisions to shaping them

2. Adaptability in Rapidly Changing Environments - Thrive amid uncertainty while others merely survive it

3. Executive-Level Communication - Speak with the clarity and influence that drives organisational outcomes

4. Critical Thinking Beyond Basic Problem-Solving - Anticipate needs and develop strategic solutions before problems arise

5. Digital Literacy, Especially AI Integration - Harness technology as a force multiplier for your effectiveness
EXCLUSIVE BONUS: Receive a custom AI prompt template designed specifically for EAs to automate routine tasks and
reclaim valuable time.

Don’t just survive your workday—learn to thrive within it. Your executives (and your peace of mind) will thank you.

Through expert-led sessions, immersive exercises, and personalised guidance, you’ll emerge with both the mindset and
practical tools to transcend the traditional boundaries of your role.

Your career evolution doesn’t have to wait. The strategic partner your executive needs is already within you—we just help bring it to the surface.

SUMMIT DAY 1 – 23rd September 2026

9:00 AM: Mihi Whakatau

9:20 AM: Opening Remarks from Emcee

Melanie Unstead is one of New Zealand's leading voices on leadership development and executive partnership. As an executive coach, founder of Exec Assist, and experienced leadership facilitator, she has worked alongside leaders and executive assistants across a wide range of organisations to build stronger partnerships, develop leadership capability, and create high-performing teams.

Drawing on extensive experience in organisational leadership, coaching, and executive effectiveness, Melanie brings a practical, people-first approach to leadership that empowers professionals to think strategically, lead with confidence, and maximise their impact.

Over the next two days, Melanie will guide delegates through the summit, connecting the key themes, facilitating discussions, and helping translate powerful ideas into practical leadership insights.

Session 1
9:30 AM: The Room You Don't Realise You're Already In: Recognising Your Influence, Finding Your Voice, and Knowing When to Use It

Many Executive and Personal Assistants spend their careers striving to become more strategic or influential, believing influence is something that must be earned or granted. But what if you're already influencing outcomes every day without realising it?

In this engaging and practical session, we'll explore The Three Circles of Executive Partnership—Tasks, Operations, and Influence—to uncover how EAs and PAs shape decisions, mitigate risks, strengthen relationships, and drive better outcomes through their judgement, insight, and everyday actions.

Through real-world examples, audience interaction, and personal stories, we'll challenge common assumptions about influence, examine the difference between visible and invisible impact, and discuss how to contribute with confidence without feeling like you're overstepping. Attendees will also learn practical ways to make their thinking, observations, and professional judgement more visible.

You'll leave with a fresh perspective on your role, recognising that influence isn't defined by a title or a seat at the table—it's built through the value you bring, the decisions you shape, and the conversations you choose to have every day.

10:10 AM: Leadership Networking

10:30 AM: Morning Tea

Session 2:
11:00 AM: Executive Presence in High-Stakes Rooms

Most AI training treats Executive Assistants like data entry clerks with better tools. That misses the point entirely.

The EA sits at the most sensitive intersection in any organisation: the place where confidential information, executive judgement, and operational tempo meet. AI is reshaping every part of that role right now. The question is whether you shape it back, or get shaped by it.

This session moves past prompt libraries and productivity hacks. It looks at the real shift underway: EAs are becoming the first line of AI judgement in the business. You decide what AI sees, what it touches, what it remembers, and what it should never go near. That is not a productivity question. It is a trust question, a security question, and a strategy question.

You will leave with:

• A clearer view of where AI strengthens your executive's position, and where it quietly exposes them

• Practical frameworks for workflows that scale judgement, not just speed

• Cyber awareness habits that protect confidential information in an AI-saturated environment

• Confidence to lead AI conversations in your office, not just respond to them

But the real prize sits one level deeper. Used well, AI does not just speed up your work. It changes how you think, what you notice, and the quality of the questions you bring to your executive. Multiply that across an EA function, and something rare starts to happen: the organisation begins to compound its intelligence rather than just its output. That is the EA's hidden lever, and almost no one is pulling it yet.

SESSION 3
11:50 AM: Executive Presence: The Key to Recognition & Career Growth Opportunities

Walking into senior leadership meetings and high-stakes environments is not just about being present, it is about how you position yourself in the moments that shape your career.

Executive presence is not defined by title. It is built through how you think, communicate, and show up under pressure.

• In this session, you will learn how to elevate your presence from trusted support to strategic partner, so you are recognised, trusted, and considered for greater opportunities.

• Position Yourself as a Strategic Partner - Move beyond task execution and contribute at a higher level by aligning your input to business priorities. This is how you build a more senior, credible presence in the room.
• Communicate with Clarity and Authority - Executive presence shows up in how you communicate. Speak with clarity, confidence, and control in high-pressure environments, so your voice is heard and respected.
• Turn Visibility into Career Growth - Use key moments to build trust, advocacy, and recognition. This is how your presence translates into real opportunities, progression, and next-level roles

1:00 PM Lunch

SESSION 4
1:50 PM: Thinking Like an Executive: From Decision Support to Strategic Career Growth

The most influential EAs do more than manage logistics. They shape decisions, clarify priorities and think commercially alongside their executive. In this powerful session, learn how to approach challenges with an executive mindset, frame options clearly, anticipate risk and present information in ways that drive confident decision-making.

At the same time, explore how mastering decision support elevates your own career trajectory. Discover how to expand your scope, strengthen your strategic credibility and position yourself for greater responsibility, influence and progression. When you think like an executive, you don’t just support leadership, you become an essential part of it.

SESSION 5: Behind Every Great Executive Is a Great Partnership
2:40 PM: What It Really Takes to Support Leadership at the Highest Level

The strongest executive partnerships are built on far more than efficiency. They are founded on trust, sound judgement, strategic thinking, and a shared commitment to organisational success.

This session explores what it takes to become an indispensable partner to executive leadership. Discover how to anticipate challenges, understand executive priorities, and contribute beyond day-to-day support by bringing commercial awareness, sound judgement, and a strategic mindset to every decision.

Gain practical insights into how exceptional Executive Assistants build trusted partnerships that create the confidence, clarity, and support leaders need to perform at their very best.

3:30 PM Afternoon Tea

SESSION 6
3:40 PM: The Courage to Change Course

For many people, success looks like reaching a goal and staying there. But some of the most rewarding opportunities come from having the courage to evolve, take risks, and embrace new challenges.

From dietitian to MasterChef winner, entrepreneur, author, television personality, and farmer, Nadia Lim has built a career defined by growth, reinvention, and a willingness to back herself in unfamiliar territory.

In this inspiring keynote, Nadia shares the lessons she has learned from stepping into the unknown, navigating change, and redefining success at every stage of her journey.

You will leave with practical insights into trusting your instincts, embracing new opportunities, and having the confidence to pursue a path that is uniquely your own.

4:40 PM Closing Reflections and Insights to Action

4:50 PM Close of Day one & Networking Drinks

Conference Day Two | 24TH September

9:00 AM: From Insight To Action – Key Take Aways From Day 1

SESSION 1: Leading Yourself Before You Lead Others
9:00 AM: The Habits That Build Confidence, Credibility and Long Term Success

The best Executive Assistants don't wait for confidence to arrive before stepping into bigger opportunities. They develop the habits, mindset and self-leadership that allow them to perform consistently, even in complex and demanding environments.

Drawing on her work coaching Executive Assistants and leadership teams across New Zealand, Melanie Unstead explores how personal leadership shapes professional success. Discover practical ways to strengthen your confidence, manage self-doubt, stay adaptable through change and take greater ownership of your career.

SESSION 2
10:00 AM: Brave Conversations: Managing Up Without Burning Bridges 

Working closely with senior leaders requires the ability to communicate openly and constructively, even when conversations become difficult. Whether managing expectations, raising concerns, or addressing competing priorities, the ability to manage up effectively is a critical leadership skill.

In this practical session, explore how to approach challenging conversations with professionalism and confidence while maintaining trust and strong working relationships.

11:00 AM: Morning Tea

SESSION 3
11:30 AM The Power of Being Yourself

For much of our careers, we are encouraged to fit a particular mould. To be more polished, more confident, more authoritative, or more like someone else. Yet some of the most successful and influential people are those who have learned to embrace who they are rather than trying to become who they think they should be.

Over a career spanning journalism, television, radio, and some of New Zealand's most recognisable media organisations, Hilary Barry has built a reputation for authenticity, resilience, and an ability to connect with people from all walks of life. Along the way, she has learned that confidence does not come from perfection. It comes from self acceptance, perspective, and having the courage to show up as yourself.

In this inspiring and highly entertaining keynote, Hilary shares stories from her remarkable career and reflects on the lessons she has learned about confidence, criticism, resilience, and staying true to yourself in a world full of expectations.

Because leadership becomes far more powerful when you stop trying to be someone else and start backing who you already are.

12:30 PM Lunch

SESSION 4
1:30 PM: Know Your Value: How Understanding Your Strengths Makes You a Better Executive Partner


No two Executive Assistant and executive partnerships are the same. The most successful relationships are built on understanding not only your leader's needs, but also the unique strengths, perspective and value you bring to the role.

Having progressed from Executive Assistant to a hybrid leadership role spanning executive support, operations, communications and engagement at BNZ, Katie Jones shares why self-awareness has become one of the most important skills in her career. Learn how recognising your strengths, adapting to different leadership styles, and leaning into what makes you uniquely effective can transform the way you support your executive and influence organisational outcomes.

Discover how understanding your value allows you to build stronger partnerships, contribute with greater confidence, and create an impact that extends well beyond your job description.

SESSION 5
2:20 PM: More Than a Gatekeeper: Building Resilience, Influence and Authenticity as an EA 

The role of an Executive Assistant has never been more complex—or more influential. From navigating organisational change and shifting leadership dynamics to managing competing priorities and stakeholder expectations, resilience has become an essential leadership skill.

Drawing on personal experiences including supporting nine different managers in four years, leading teams through significant change, returning to the workforce after an extended career break, and advocating for a child with additional needs, Melanie will share practical lessons on adaptability, courage and finding your voice.

This session explores how building authentic relationships, establishing healthy boundaries, and leading with confidence can transform the way you show up as an EA. You'll leave with practical strategies to strengthen your professional relationships, influence without authority, and remain true to yourself while thriving in a demanding role.

3:10PM Afternoon Tea

SESSION 6
3:30 PM: The Power Partnership: Leading Without the Title and Shaping Culture from Within 

The strongest Executive Assistants don't influence through hierarchy. They influence through trust, judgement, emotional intelligence, and the relationships they build every day.

Having supported senior executives across healthcare, emergency services, innovation, and now one of New Zealand's leading aged care organisations, Michelle Lowe has seen first-hand how Executive Assistants help shape executive thinking, strengthen leadership teams, and influence organisational culture without formal authority.

In this session, Michelle shares the lessons she has learned from working alongside CEOs and Boards, navigating complex leadership environments, and understanding the subtle dynamics that sit behind high-performing executive relationships. Discover how to build trust, read the room, communicate with influence, and become the calm, strategic presence executives rely on during both everyday decisions and high-pressure moments.

Because some of the most influential leaders in an organisation are the ones who never need the title to lead.

4:30 PM: Bringing it all together: Final From Insights to Action

As the summit draws to a close, take a moment to reflect, reset and refocus. In this energising closing session, will guide you through the key insights of the past two days and help you turn inspiration into practical action. Identify your next steps, clarify your priorities and commit to the changes that will elevate your impact. Leave feeling focused, confident and ready to step forward as a trusted, capable and future-ready executive partner.

4:30 PM Conference Close

09:00 Goal setting, positive mindset & steps to leadership success for women