Part-time executive assistant · Part-time EA · Set days
Part-time executive assistant · what one does, how many days, when it fits
A part-time executive assistant supports one or more senior leaders on fewer days or hours than a full-time week, usually as an employee of one company on a set pattern. They run the diary, the inbox, travel, meetings and the papers, and act as the leader’s gatekeeper. The job is whole; the week is shorter.
This page covers what a part-time EA does, how the days fall, how part-time differs from fractional, virtual and temporary support, and when it fits. Open roles are on executive assistant jobs. To hire a part-time executive assistant, send us the brief. We recruit part-time, fractional, interim, temporary and permanent staff for leadership teams.
How a brief runswhat we undertake
- 01Brief30-MINUTE SCOPING CALLDay 0
- 02Shortlist of 3–5VETTED · RATE BENCHMARK · IR35After the brief
- 03InterviewsYOU MEET THE SHORTLISTYour diary
- 04Scoped startFIRST-MONTH OUTCOMES AGREEDYou set the date
- 05Fractional, interim and permanentIR35 POSITION SET OUTOn every brief
Shortlist3–5
15 minutes · video or phone
Book 15 minutes to hire a part-time executive assistant
Tell us the scope and the days a week. We come back with Executive Assistant candidates, their day rates and availability.
- 0115 minutes, video or phone
- 02We scope the role and the days a week
- 03A shortlist of 3–5 after the call
- 04Fractional, interim and permanent briefs
Pick a day that suits · live availability
On the board · last 3 months
Part-time executive assistant jobs on the board
No Part-time executive assistant roles on the board right now.
We only show real vacancies from the last three months, each marked whether we could confirm it is still open — we never pad the board. New Part-time executive assistant roles appear here as our pipeline finds them.
Current executive assistant and business support roles
Fractional Quest is a fractional recruitment agency: send a Executive Assistant brief and we come back with a shortlist of three to five vetted candidates.
01/ the role
What is a part-time executive assistant?
A part-time executive assistant is an EA employed for an agreed number of days or hours each week. “Part-time” describes the hours, not the level: a part-time EA can support a chief executive or a whole leadership team, on set days, and is on the payroll like any other employee. Most work for one company, often in the office for some or all of their days.
The work is the work of an executive assistant: managing diaries and inboxes, arranging meetings and travel, preparing papers, taking actions and handling confidential information. The National Careers Service profile of the role sets out the routes in, from a college course or a Business Administrator apprenticeship to working up from an administrative job.
Part-time EA or part-time PA?
The titles overlap. An EA usually works for a senior executive or a leadership team and takes on more of their business: board papers, projects, stakeholder management. A PA usually supports one person, with more of the personal and practical side. Either can be part-time; write the brief around the work, not the label.
Part-time is not fractional or virtual
A fractional executive assistant usually works for several principals or companies on a contract, invoicing for the time. A virtual executive assistant works remotely, often self-employed or through a service. A part-time EA is usually an employee of one company, with a payslip and employment rights. The fractional EA page covers the contract route in more depth.
02/ scope
What the role covers, and how the days fall
A leader’s week does not stop on the EA’s days off, so a part-time EA organises the work to run without them. In most roles the week covers five things.
Diary and inbox
Owning the calendar, triaging email, protecting time for the work that matters. On the days off, clear rules decide who can book what.
Meetings and papers
Agendas, board and committee papers, minutes and the actions that follow. The meeting cycle is usually the first thing a part-time pattern is built around.
Travel and logistics
Trips, events and visits, planned in advance on the working days, with a single document the leader can use when the EA is out.
Projects and people
Office moves, offsites, recruitment coordination and the stakeholder relationships that run through the leader’s office. Part-time EAs take projects with clear deadlines that fit their days.
Cover on the other days
An office manager, another assistant or a shared inbox picks up what cannot wait. Agree it in writing, and keep the handover note in one place.
03/ comparison
Part-time, fractional, virtual or a full-time EA
Four ways to get executive support. They differ in the days, where the work is done and above all the contract.
04/ timing
When a part-time executive assistant fits
Part-time fits when a leader needs a dedicated assistant who knows the business, but the work does not fill five days.
Scenario 01
A founder is drowning in admin
The diary, the inbox and the travel are eating the founder’s week. A few days of a good EA gives the time back.
Scenario 02
The leader works part of the week in the office
The EA’s days match the leader’s office days and the meeting cycle. The rest runs on rules and a shared inbox.
Scenario 03
The best candidate wants fewer days
Many experienced EAs want a shorter week. Offering it reaches people a five-day advert never does.
Scenario 04
Remote support is not enough
Some work needs someone in the room: papers, visitors, the office itself. Part-time keeps an employee there on set days.
05/ vetting
How we vet part-time executive assistants
What we undertake on every brief, before a candidate reaches you.
- 01
Qualification screen
Verify Executive Assistant tenure, sector context and stage fit.
SOURCING - 02
Mandate fit
Match to your situation — stage, board dynamics, timing.
MATCHING - 03
Reference deep-dive
We take references ourselves, from recent past clients — real outcomes, not titles.
VERIFY - 04
Shortlist
Three to five candidates with day rate, availability and IR35 position set out.
SHORTLIST OF 3–5
06/ pay
What a part-time executive assistant earns pro rata to the days
A part-time EA is normally paid a salary pro rata: the full-time rate for the role, in proportion to the hours worked. For full-time reference points, the Lily Shippen 2026 Salary Survey, from a business support recruiter, puts permanent EA salaries at £50,000 to £70,000 in London, with a median of approximately £54,500; £40,000 to £55,000 in Manchester and the North West, with a median of approximately £44,500; and £40,000 to £50,000 across the rest of the UK.
Virtual assistants charge by the hour instead. The Society of Virtual Assistants reports from its 2024 UK survey an average virtual assistant hourly rate of £32.35, with specialists charging £50 an hour or more. That is a self-employed VA rate, not an EA salary. Part-time employees should get the same pay rates, pension opportunities and holidays as comparable full-time staff, with some benefits pro rata, as GOV.UK sets out; GOV.UK’s holiday guide explains how part-time leave is worked out. Our executive assistant salary page has more, each figure sourced.
07/ part-time, fractional or virtual
Part-time, fractional or virtual: the contract and the place
A part-time EA is your employee: on the payroll, under your policies, usually working only for you, often in the office. A fractional EA supports you for part of the week on a contract and often supports other leaders too. A virtual EA or VA works remotely, self-employed or through a firm, usually billing by the hour or the month. A temporary EA, usually supplied through an agency, covers a gap such as leave.
Which one is right turns on two questions: does the work need someone in the room, and do you want an employee? Employment status decides the rights and responsibilities on each side, whatever the contract is called. An employee can request flexible working, including different hours, days or working from home, from their first day; Acas explains how home and hybrid working requests are handled. If a part-time EA works from home, the HSE is clear that an employer has the same health and safety responsibilities for home workers as for anyone else.
08/ hiring
Hiring one: the short version
Start with the leader’s week: which days they are in, when the meeting cycle runs, what cannot wait. That sets the EA’s days. Then write down what the role owns and who covers the other days. The executive assistant job description is a starting point.
Test for judgement as well as organisation: give candidates a messy week of diary clashes and see what they protect. Ask how they have handed work over on their days off before, and take references from the leaders they supported. For how people come into the role, see how to become an executive assistant.
To hire a part-time executive assistant through us, send the brief. We send a shortlist of 3–5, each with pay or day rate, availability and IR35 position set out, after our five-stage vetting.
09/ questions
Part-time executive assistant FAQ
The questions people ask before bringing in a part-time executive assistant.
Book 15 minutes · shortlist of 3–5
Bring the brief. We architect the team.
A shortlist of 3–5 with day rate, availability and IR35 position set out, after five-stage vetting.
