Employee engagement ideas your EA can help implement

Looking for employee engagement ideas that actually work? We’ve gathered 7 real initiatives led by our executive assistants. In each case, the EA spotted a challenge within their exec’s team and proactively proposed a solution. 

The outcome? A more motivated team and a leader who is seen as present and deeply invested in their people.

If you want to support your team but don’t have the time to manage all the details, lean on your EA. As Ava Thompson, Director of Executive Support at MongoDB, told us in a recent interview: “We’re often the first to know when something’s off. EAs are deeply embedded in the fabric of the business and play a quiet but powerful role in keeping it strong.”

Even if your team isn’t struggling with morale, EAs excel at identifying powerful ways to strengthen team cohesion and impact. That’s what makes them the perfect person to lead efforts like the ones below.

Table of contents

1. What can your EA do when new hires are overwhelmed?
2. What can your EA do when employees feel unappreciated?
3. How can your EA help improve low engagement scores on your leadership team?
4. How can your EA help team members who are buried in their inbox?
5. What if employees feel like leadership is out of reach?
6. What can your EA do if your team feels disconnected?
7. How can your EA help create better connections with board members and customers?

1. What can your EA do when new hires are overwhelmed?

The onboarding process of a new team member can make or break their experience at your org. A good way to set them up for success is to ask your executive assistant to keep an eye on them. One of our customers, the Head of Operations at a Series A startup, hired a new team member who felt overwhelmed by both strategic and admin tasks during their onboarding period. That’s when our Viva EA took over day-to-day logistics, such as scheduling or meeting prep, giving the new hire room to focus.

Actionable tips:

• Meet with new hires for 15 minutes at the end of their first week to go through some Magic Questions
• Help the new hire with the initial setup of their calendar, inbox, Slack, etc., to be well-organized
• Be the first line of defense for any questions that the new hire may have

2. What can your EA do when employees feel unappreciated?

One of our executive assistants noticed that her executive’s team was feeling unappreciated. The reason? Their leader, the CFO at a Series C startup, never recognized special occasions like Mother’s Day, Father’s Day, work anniversaries, or year-end moments. This Viva EA took it upon herself to set up formal recognition of holidays and key milestones. She proposed and set up a recurring schedule and SOP to celebrate these moments with personal messages and team-wide events. Don’t just expect the People team to take care of all the employees; make your team feel special on important days.

Actionable tips:

• Ask your EA to audit the company calendar for meaningful dates.
• Have them create a lightweight appreciation calendar and assign small gestures (like a message or gift).
• Ask them to set reminders for you and the team to acknowledge these moments.

3. How can your EA help improve low engagement scores on your leadership team?

One of our customers, the CTO of a Series E startup, had a clear leadership philosophy: Give his team autonomy and avoid micromanaging. But when the team filled out an internal sentiment survey, the results were unexpected: They felt neglected.

The SVP of People shared this feedback with the CTO’s executive assistant. Together, they took action. The CTO reinstated regular 1:1s and introduced virtual happy hours to find a better balance between independence and connection.

Actionable tip:

• Conduct a pulse survey with your direct reports
• Summarize insights and propose tactical solutions
• Build a system to drive greater team engagement (e.g., setting reminders, automating milestone celebrations, etc.)

4. How can your EA help team members who are buried in their inbox?

One of the underrated benefits of having an executive assistant is that they often become a trusted point of contact for the entire team, not just their executive. In one case, the newly onboarded COO at a California-based startup, had over 1,600 unread emails and was struggling to keep up. That’s when their Viva EA stepped in, took charge of triaging the inbox, and helped them regain control and clarity.

Actionable tip:

• EAs can help triage key leaders’ inboxes by labeling, prioritizing, or summarizing key threads.
• Set up a short weekly session between the EA and the overwhelmed team member to maintain the system.

5. What if employees feel like leadership is out of reach?

Adnan Khan, co-CEO at Viva, once said: “People reach out to me saying, ‘I know you probably won’t have any time, but…’” It’s a common dynamic: Leaders seem out of reach, and over time, employees stop reaching out altogether.

One of our customers experienced this exact challenge. Their CEO was seen as too busy, creating a sense of distance across the team. But his executive assistant noticed the gap and took action. She introduced intentional touchpoints: welcome messages, personal milestone shoutouts, and care packages, to help her employees feel that the executive was more present and approachable. Over time, the perception shifted, and so did the connection.

Actionable tip:

• Have your EA introduce a “welcome ritual” for new hires.
• Build a care response system (a small emergency fund) for hard moments.
• Let your EA coordinate messages or time blocks that show people leadership is present and reachable.

6. What can your EA do if your team feels disconnected?

Remote work has its perks, but it can also leave teams feeling isolated, especially when they’re spread across time zones and haven’t met in person. The obvious fix? Plan an offsite. And yes, EAs are pros at those. But when resources were tight, one Viva EA got creative.

She organized a virtual team kickoff filled with interactive activities to help team members connect. The result? A noticeable boost in daily interaction and morale.   

Actionable tip:

• Have your EA organize quarterly in-person or virtual team bonding activities.
• Prioritize small-group interaction, not just all-hands meetings.
• Create a simple feedback form to learn what works.

7. How can your EA help create better connections with board members and customers?

One EA noticed the lack of informal settings for team members, board members, and customers to interact. To help foster stronger connections among diverse stakeholder groups, she organized a holiday party that brought everyone together in a relaxed environment. The results were stronger relationships and more natural, meaningful conversations across the board.

Actionable tip:

• Ask your EA to plan one annual event that brings teams, board members, and customers together.
• Keep it informal. Think dinner, happy hour, or game night, not a PowerPoint marathon.
• Build in moments for conversation, not just celebration.

How can your EA drive employee engagement ideas?

• Your EA isn’t just there to protect your time. They can actively shape culture, support morale, and notice engagement issues before these surface in surveys.
• Give your EA the trust and tools to own these small but meaningful actions.
• These efforts don’t take big budgets. They take someone who cares, pays attention, and knows how to act.

TL;DR:

• Struggling to come up with employee engagement ideas? Your executive assistant might be your best untapped resource.
• EAs are experts at spotting team morale issues and leading with simple, creative solutions.
• From triaging inboxes to organizing team bonding activities, EAs can strengthen team connection without needing a big budget.
• EAs often notice engagement issues before they show up in surveys, so empower them to act on what they see.
• Want better engagement, stronger relationships, and a more human leadership presence? Start by leaning on your EA.

Need an executive assistant who can help you drive these employee engagement ideas? Book a call with our team and see how they can help you lead your team better than ever before.

Fadua Caicedo Díaz del Castillo

Fadua is a bilingual advertiser and holds a master’s degree in creative writing. With over ten years of experience, she has written countless advertising and social media campaigns, blogs, interviews, and everything in between. She writes about startups, the impact of executive assistants, and the stories behind their work. When she’s not writing, she is spending quality time with her husband and son, hiking, reading, or discovering new cafés.