Paula Harding is an Executive Assistant at the Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine (LSTM) supporting Professor Phil Hadfield, Dean of Education and the senior management team. Paula is the direct support of Phil who has responsibility for the strategic development of LSTM’s teaching and learning portfolio – a challenging and demanding role. Since leaving school in 1990 Paula has progressed from her first role as an office junior to an ambassador of the EA/PA profession. Passionate about encouraging EAs and PAs to discuss their roles and share their knowledge and network, in this exclusive interview for meetingsclub, Paula shares her thoughts on why EAs, PAs and VAs should network with business professionals on and offline to build business acumen and personal credibility.