Quick question if you have a PA or are a PA

[rubbishatballet]

Do you know the name of your PA's children (if they have any) and/or their basic living arrangements ie who they live with and roughly where (the PA, not the children), and/or a couple of things they enjoy doing in their spare time?

Or if you're a PA would your boss know this information if I asked them?

It would be useful if you could also say how long the PA/boss relationship has existed and at roughly what point in that relationship would this information have been known.

I'm interested as I'm trying to assess how reasonable (or otherwise!) my own expectations are for an Exec/PA relationship.

Thanks

Yes I know this place information. I’ve known since early on because we chit chatted about our circumstances to get to know each other.

Yes we do know that information about each other, we aquired it quite quickly over lockdown and working from home, neither of us have dedicated office space so we both have dogs, cats, children, partners, random builders popping up on camera, background noise, mysterious arm depositing mug of tea

I was a PA many years ago. My boss knew the name of my DH and what he did (this was pre children) and I knew the name of his wife and children (and birthdays / anniversaries). My assistant also knew my domestic arrangements and I knew hers. I’m not sure that my boss knew much about my assistant other than her name TBH.

I know my PA well and we even went away for the weekend together once!

That said I certainly know more about her than the other way round which isn't so equitable

I'm a PA - my last 3 bosses have been male and very senior.

One of them knew literally nothing about me, and it was part of the reason I left. I find it hard to go the extra mile for someone like that, even though it was just his business manner with everyone.

The other two I was/am very close to, we know a lot about each other and are friends. PA-boss can be a very strange relationship for a work context - it can be paternalistic on the boss' part but I find that the dynamics change all the time depending on situation.

I am a PA though I only do work stuff no personal admin for my boss. He is about 5 years older than me. I know his address, his date of birth and his food preferences / allergies, because these are kept on file for when I have to book travel or taxis etc. He has never told me the names of his wife and children. I know which school his children go to and their ages, roughly. I only know the sex of one child. He would probably take a stab at me being married with children and has a vague idea of their age, sex, and possibly their school as we are all local. He is nice to work for but too busy for chat! Wfh doesn’t help.

My husband has a PA, they know a bit about each other’s children (I bet he can’t remember their names though) she and my husband chat about weekend plans or holiday plans. They have worked together longer though.