Making magic happen behind the scenes at Palo Alto Networks.

Marie Parish

Senior Executive Assistant

EMEA | Blog | Career Development

Monday, January 13, 2025

Life at Palo Alto Networks as an Executive Assistant

Being an Executive Assistant isn’t just about managing tasks, it’s about making magic happen behind the scenes. Each day is unpredictable, challenging, and full of surprises. It’s like playing an endless game of Tetris, where the pieces are meetings, last-minute requests, high-pressure timelines, and complex travel itineraries. Just when you think you’ve cleared your to-do list, a new request drops in: “Can you move the 3 PM to 4 PM, secure a conference room for 12, and book flights that get me to New York by sunrise?”

It’s also about keeping up with the technical talk of sales and strategy, making sure everything is aligned for the big picture. Whether it’s getting teams together for important collaborations or preparing the perfect slides for a crucial presentation, you’re always in the thick of it. And, as the go-to person in the office, you’re the one everyone turns to for answers, help, or even just a coffee run. Plus, there’s always the stack of receipts piling up on your desk, waiting to be sorted and logged, because someone’s got to make sense of those expenses.

But it’s not all about the logistics, it’s also about building relationships, whether with clients, vendors, or your team, is what makes the chaos manageable… That’s what keeps it exciting… and somehow, you always make it fit.