Fractional EA in London: what it costs and how it works
A fractional EA is a senior executive assistant who works with you on a retained basis for part of the week, rather than as a full time employee. You get experienced support across your diary, inbox, travel and personal logistics, without the cost and commitment of a permanent hire.
I work as a fractional EA for founders, CEOs and directors in London and across the South. Before setting up The Executive Private Office, I spent over 15 years supporting CEOs, an ambassador and senior leadership teams, including running a diplomatic office. What I see again and again is that most leaders don't need someone at a desk beside them five days a week. They need someone who knows how they work, takes ownership of the moving parts and is there when it matters.
This is what a fractional EA arrangement looks like in practice, what it costs and how to tell whether it's right for you.
What a fractional EA takes off your plate
The work is the same as a full time senior EA. What changes is how the time is arranged. In a typical week, I might be:
Managing your diary, protecting focused time and sorting clashes before they reach you
Working through your inbox, drafting replies and flagging only what genuinely needs you
Preparing you for meetings and following up on the actions afterwards
Planning travel, from a day in Manchester to a trip with several stops abroad
Liaising with your team, clients, suppliers and advisers on your behalf
Handling the personal side too: family diary, appointments, household suppliers, gifts and reservations
That last point matters more than people expect. A founder's responsibilities don't stop at the office door, and the personal admin is often what keeps them up at night. Because I hold both, nothing falls between the two.
How a fractional EA retainer works
A retainer is an agreed monthly arrangement. Rather than buying hours task by task, you retain one person who takes ownership of agreed responsibilities and gets to know how you operate.
A good retainer sets out:
Scope. The areas I take ownership of, such as diary, inbox, travel or personal logistics, and what sits outside them.
Availability. The days and hours I'm working for you, and how urgent requests are handled outside them.
Response times. How quickly you can expect a reply during working hours, so you never have to wonder.
Third party costs. Flights, hotels, gifts and bookings are paid by you or recharged at cost, kept separate from the retainer.
Review points. A regular check on whether the scope still fits, because a growing business rarely stands still.
The arrangement is remote. That works well for almost everything an EA does, from diaries to travel to supplier liaison. Where something genuinely needs a person on site, we agree it in advance rather than assuming.
It starts with a short onboarding period. I learn your preferences, your key people and how you like decisions brought to you. After that, the support becomes proactive: I'm anticipating what's coming, not waiting to be asked.
What a fractional EA costs
The cost of a fractional EA retainer depends on what I take ownership of, not simply on a number of hours. The main factors are:
Scope and complexity. Managing one diary is different from coordinating a founder's business, family and three companies.
Availability. How many days a week you need, and whether you need cover outside normal hours.
Response times. Faster guaranteed responses take more capacity to deliver.
Pace of the role. Frequent international travel or a fast growing business needs more support than a settled one.
The fairer comparison is with what the alternative really costs. A full time senior EA in London means a salary, employer's National Insurance, pension, holiday, recruitment fees, equipment and the time it takes you to hire and train them. With a fractional EA, you pay for the support you actually need, and there's no recruitment or employment overhead.
There's also the cost of doing nothing. If you're spending hours each week on your own diary and inbox, that's time not spent on decisions, clients or growth. Only you can put a value on that, but it's usually the number that settles the question.
Who a fractional EA suits
A fractional EA tends to work best for London founders, CEOs and directors who:
Have outgrown managing their own diary and inbox, but don't need a full time EA yet
Have just lost an EA and need experienced support while they decide what's next
Run more than one business, or combine a demanding role with a busy personal life
Travel often and need someone holding the logistics while they're away
It's less suited to roles that need someone physically in the office every day, or to work that's mainly data entry or high volume admin. In those cases, an in house assistant or a task based service is usually the better fit.
I've written more about this in What a Fractional EA Actually Does, and Who It Suits.
Fractional EA | Full time EA | VA agency | ||
Who you work with | One experienced person | One employee | Often a rotating pool | |
Commitment | Monthly retainer | Permanent contract | Hours or tasks bought as needed | |
Hiring overhead | None | Recruitment, onboarding, employment costs | None | |
Knows how you work | Yes, over time | Yes, over time | Rarely | |
Proactive or reactive | Proactive | Proactive | Mostly reactive | |
Business and personal | Both | Usually business only | Usually tasks only | |
On site presence | By arrangement | Yes | No | |
A full time EA makes sense once you need someone every day, including in person. A VA agency suits well defined, repeatable tasks. A fractional EA sits between the two: senior judgement and continuity, sized to what you actually need.
Common questions
Is a fractional EA the same as a fractional PA? Largely, yes. "EA" usually leans towards business support and "PA" towards personal support. As your fractional EA, I cover both, so you don't need two people.
Do I need to be based in London? No. I work remotely with clients across London, Sussex, Surrey, Hampshire and the Cotswolds, and much of what I do works from anywhere.
How quickly can we start? After an introduction call and an agreed scope, onboarding usually takes a couple of weeks while I learn your diary, contacts and preferences.
Will you work with my team? Yes. I liaise with your team, advisers and suppliers directly, so you stop being the go between.
What if my needs change? The retainer is reviewed regularly. If your role grows or settles, the scope changes with it.
A confidential first conversation
If you're a founder, CEO or director in London wondering whether a fractional EA would give you your time back, the simplest next step is a short, confidential introduction call. We'll talk about how you work now and whether a retained arrangement makes sense. If it doesn't, I'll tell you.
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