PA Courses

PA courses that transform how you work, not just what you know.

The Modern Assistant is practical, high-impact PA training for assistants who want more control, less stress and a more strategic role. Using Microsoft 365, Copilot and AI, this programme helps you reduce manual admin, improve workflow control and support leaders at a higher level. Book your place or enquire about team training.

Led by Paul Pennant, Microsoft MVP and former Executive Assistant, this is specialist assistant training built around real workplace application. It is designed for assistants who are busy, capable and committed, but know there must be a better way to manage the volume, pressure and constant demands of the role.

PA courses for modern assistant work

Being an effective PA today is about far more than staying organised and keeping up. You are expected to manage competing priorities, support leaders with better judgement, communicate clearly across stakeholders and keep work moving in fast-changing environments. At the same time, you are being asked to use Microsoft 365 and AI more effectively, often without practical guidance on how to apply either in the real world.

That is why generic PA courses are no longer enough. Learning isolated tips or software features does not solve the bigger problem. What changes performance is learning how to redesign the way your work is structured, managed and delivered.

Why many PAs still feel overwhelmed

Most assistants do not feel behind because they lack ability. They feel behind because too much of the role is still being handled manually, reactively and under pressure.

• Inboxes drive the day instead of priorities
• Diary management becomes constant firefighting
• Meeting follow-up depends on memory, notes and chasing
• Microsoft 365 is used partially rather than strategically
• AI feels important, but unclear, risky or difficult to apply properly
• Manual processes consume time that should be spent on higher-value support
• Training often adds information without changing behaviour

The result is a role that feels full but not always effective. You stay busy, but the work that would make the biggest difference keeps getting squeezed out by volume, interruption and repetition.

What this PA course helps you change

The Modern Assistant is assistant transformation first, Microsoft training second. It helps you step back from reactive working and build better systems for the real demands of the role. Instead of simply learning features, you learn how to use Microsoft 365, Copilot and AI together to make assistant work calmer, faster and more strategic.

This means improving how you manage communication, meetings, follow-up, planning, task visibility and executive support, so that your day is not driven by constant catch-up.

• Reduce repetitive admin and unnecessary duplication
• Create better structure across inbox, diary and follow-up
• Use Copilot and AI to draft, summarise and support decision-making
• Improve communication with clearer outputs and stronger follow-through
• Build more consistent ways of tracking actions and priorities
• Free up time for higher-value, more strategic contribution
• Support leaders with more confidence, visibility and control

What you will be able to do after the course

• Manage workload with better prioritisation and less reactivity
• Use Microsoft 365 more effectively across day-to-day assistant workflows
• Apply Copilot and AI confidently to real work, not just experiments
• Draft documents, summaries and updates faster
• Run meetings with clearer actions, ownership and follow-up
• Improve diary, task and communication processes
• Deliver stronger support to leaders through better structure and decision support
• Work with more confidence, less stress and greater professional impact

Why this is different from generic PA courses

There is a big difference between learning tools and changing how work gets done.

• Generic PA courses teach broad skills. The Modern Assistant focuses on practical workflow transformation.
• Generic Microsoft training teaches features. This course shows how Microsoft 365, Copilot and AI work together in real assistant work.
• Generic AI training explains possibilities. This course helps assistants apply AI safely and usefully in day-to-day support.
• Generic courses increase awareness. This programme is designed to create visible workplace change.
• Generic providers are tool-led. Today’s PA is assistant-first and outcome-led.

This is not passive learning. It is specialist training designed to help assistants improve the way work is organised, delivered and experienced every day.

Built for assistants who want more than survival mode

This programme is for PAs, Executive Assistants and senior assistants who know they are capable, but want to operate with more intention and less pressure. It is for assistants who want to stop spending so much time reacting and start contributing at a higher level.

• Assistants who want to improve how they manage workload and priorities
• Professionals who want better systems, not just more effort
• PAs who want to use Microsoft 365 properly rather than partially
• Assistants who know AI matters and want practical, relevant application
• Professionals who want more confidence, visibility and career progression

Why organisations invest in this course

For organisations, this is not simply about skills development. It is about improving the quality, consistency and effectiveness of executive support. When assistants use Microsoft 365 and AI better, leaders are supported more effectively, time is used more productively and existing technology investment delivers more value.

• better return on Microsoft 365 and AI investment
• less time lost to manual, inefficient processes
• more effective support for senior leaders
• stronger communication, follow-up and workflow control
• more confident assistants delivering higher-value contribution
• training designed around practical implementation, not theory alone

Why Paul Pennant and Today’s PA

Paul Pennant brings together three things most training providers do not. He has real Executive Assistant experience, over 20 years of specialist training expertise and recognised Microsoft authority as a Microsoft MVP. That combination means the training is practical, commercially relevant and grounded in the real pressures assistants face.

Today’s PA is not a generic software training provider. It is a specialist assistant transformation business focused on helping assistants work smarter, support better and progress further. That is why the training goes beyond teaching apps and focuses on changing how assistant work is actually done.

What results this course is designed to deliver

• less stress from clearer systems and less manual repetition
• more control over workload, priorities and follow-up
• better use of Microsoft 365, Copilot and AI
• stronger communication and better support for leaders
• more strategic contribution and greater organisational value
• increased confidence, visibility and career progression

Why now

The demands on assistants are increasing, not decreasing. Leaders need stronger support. AI is changing expectations. Microsoft tools are already available in many organisations, but often underused. Staying reactive is costly. It creates stress for assistants, inefficiency for teams and missed value for organisations.

The Modern Assistant helps you change that now, with practical training that translates into immediate workplace application.

Proof that the approach is practical

“His Copilot and AI training has opened my eyes to new ways of working smarter, not harder.”

Mia Lane – Manager, Executive & Administration, UKG

“On the first day I used it I completed 13 tasks.”

Sarah Sherriff – MOD

That is the difference between learning information and changing workflows.

Book a PA course that creates real workplace change

If you want a PA course that helps you save time, reduce stress, improve support for leaders and build a more strategic role, The Modern Assistant is designed for exactly that.

This is practical, specialist training for assistants who want more than a few new tips. It is for professionals who want to work differently, perform better and make a bigger impact.

Book your place

Book your place or contact us to discuss team training for your organisation.

Places are limited to protect the quality of the learning experience and support.