How to Break the Glass Ceiling

Eager to rise to leadership as an administrative professional? Hear from Rae Morlan, VP of Administration at First PREMIER Bank, on how she broke barriers and seized opportunities to level up in her career.

Recorded at EA Ignite Spring 2024 and produced by the American Society of Administrative Professionals - ASAP. Learn more and submit a listener question at asaporg.com/podcast.

[music playing]

Leah Warwick: Hi, everyone. I am Leah Warwick, and you're listening to "The Admin Edge." This episode was recorded at the EA Ignite Spring 2024 event, produced by the American Society of Administrative Professionals, or ASAP, with guest Rae Morlan and interviewer Katie Hendrickson. Their conversation is about breaking the glass ceiling as an administrative professional, and how being self-driven can help you smash through it.

Katie Hendrickson: Hi, I'm Katie Hendrickson, ASAP Advisory Board Member, and my guest today is Rae Morlan, a fellow Advisory Board Member, and Vice President of Administration at First Premier Bank. Welcome to the podcast, Rae.

00:00:47                     

Rae Morlan: Thanks, Katie. How you doing?

Katie Hendrickson: I am doing fantastic. How are you?

Rae Morlan: I am wonderful.

Katie Hendrickson: Wonderful. Well, we're here to talk about breaking through the glass ceiling. I'm wondering: What is the glass ceiling, and what does it look like for you in your career trajectory?

Rae Morlan: Okay. Glass ceiling, I guess, because I'm a seasoned – we'll call it a seasoned admin. It's something that was a popular phrase probably back in the '60s and '70s. Glass ceilings represent a barrier, whether it's self-inflicted or inflicted by the business that you're in, that won't allow you to get any higher than your current position. For instance, when I came to the bank, I started reporting directly to the CEO. I said, "What's up next?" And they said, "Well, you're at the top." And I'm like, well, but that makes sense. That's where I kind of come from, that whole mentality of the glass ceiling and how do you break through that.

00:01:43

I have been with the bank for 16 years and have been able to break that glass ceiling and become a vice president at the bank. 

Katie Hendrickson: That's wonderful. I know that it can be really discouraging when you feel like you've reached your top potential and then you have nowhere to go, especially for those of us that are really focused on our professional development, which, obviously, everyone listening to this podcast is or else they wouldn't be listening to us.

Rae Morlan: Very true. True statement.

Katie Hendrickson: So what do you believe are the most significant barriers contributing to the glass ceiling for administrative professionals, and how can we collectively address them?

Rae Morlan: For me, it was my own confidence level. What we as admins do is we tend to look and compare ourselves to each other. "Well, I did more than Suzie did and Matt might've done a little bit more than I did, but I know I worked harder than…" You can't do that. You're not going to get anywhere. You're just comparing yourself to a peer. My approach was to look and see what the next level up is doing. I looked at what directors were doing and vice presidents and senior vice presidents, and then I went back and looked at everything that I had accomplished as an admin.

00:02:55

I sat down, partnered with my CEO, wrote him a lovely note. We sat down and talked through it. He said, "You know, you're right. I didn't realize you were doing all of this." 

Katie Hendrickson: Wow, so that helped you break that barrier.

Rae Morlan: Yeah. He talked to, obviously, the rest of the exec team to verify and check on things, but yeah. It's that communication piece. We can't be afraid to advocate for ourselves.

Katie Hendrickson: How do you feel it is that administrative professionals can develop those skills, not just the communication skills but other hard skills and qualifications needed to really advance to those higher-level positions within their organizations?

Rae Morlan: For me, it was "don't say no." Whatever challenge came up, I was willing to take it and learn from it and learn more about the business and learn more about our vendors and learn more about our clients, and keep building and building everything that I knew until I had the tools to be able to take that next step.

00:03:58

I'm very much a self-driven person. I don't expect other people to do things for me. I will do it myself. And that was a process for me to get through that and say, "This is what I want. This is how I'm going to get it. This is what I'm going to do." But organizations like ASAP and these events, like EA Ignite or APC, you can gain so many tools from that. I strongly recommend going out and getting that additional training, [and] meeting these connections out here that can help you get to that next level. 

For me, it's nice because they're not in my corporation. I've got the outsider's view of what I'm doing, and when I can talk to them about that, they can say, "Eh, Rae, you're blowing sky. That's not happening." Or they can say, "You know, that's right. You may want to look at it this way." 

00:04:46                     

Katie Hendrickson: No, I totally agree, and I feel like – this is my third EA Ignite, and being able to connect with new people every time, and hear those different perspectives, really helps me get a broader understanding and gets me outside of myself.

Rae Morlan: Exactly. That's a great way to put it. There hasn't been a session I've been to that I haven't pulled a nugget that I can take back and utilize on a daily basis. That's where I'm a big advocate of that continued education. Like I said, I'm nearing the twilight of my career – knock on wood. Hopefully, in the next few years, I'll be able to retire and go on to other things. Man, there is still so much to learn. There's still so much that I don't know that I find that continuing-education piece vital.

Katie Hendrickson: That's wonderful. So as our administrative professionals are looking to the future, in what ways do you feel that they can really advocate for themselves and negotiate for those opportunities that can help them shatter that glass ceiling?

00:05:49                     

Rae Morlan: For me, it's partnering. Take your CEO or your supervisor as a strategic partner in that. They're the bottom line. So, once you get their buy-in, you can work together. When I talk to my CEO about it, "Lay out what I need to do. This is where I want to be. You need to tell me what I need to do to get to that next step." Like I said, take them as that strategic partner. Partner with some other direct reports that they have. Our CFO has been a great resource for me. I can walk into him and say, "This is what I'm thinking. Yay or nay?" And he'll give me that feedback and be able to help me get to where I want to go.

The other thing I would say is: Don't be afraid to ask for that feedback. I've had a former direct report tell me: "Feedback is like fruitcake. You either like it or you don't." I'm telling you, "Learn to eat fruitcake. Take that feedback and run with it. It's only going to make you stronger, make you better at what you do." 

Katie Hendrickson: That's great. Final question we have for you today, Rae. It comes to us from an executive assistant to the president who was undergoing self-evaluation and reflecting on proposing a title change to better match her current scope of work. So, here's what she wrote in to us: "I'm the only administrative professional within our whole organization, so there are no guidelines to follow or other admins I can go to for advice. Since my role has already transcended traditional liaison support, how do I suggest a title recalibration and advance my position when it has never been done before at my company?"

00:07:31                     

Rae Morlan: Girl, you're talking to the right person. It had never been done before at my company either. What I would say is take those partners. There's no other admin, so you're not comparing yourself to anyone at that level, which is, in my opinion, easier. I would go to your other team members that are above you and get their feedback. "What do you think I should ask for?" They would know. They know how much you do and what you don't do and should be able to give you a pretty good idea of where you can go with that.

00:08:00

But I strongly, again, recommend going to your CEO or your supervisor and just say, "I want to revisit this. Where do you think it can go?" Give them your ideas and give them your wish list, and see where it takes you. 

Katie Hendrickson: That's wonderful. Well, thanks again for joining us on "The Admin Edge," Rae. Where can our listeners find you online?

Rae Morlan: Ooh! I am on LinkedIn as Rae Morlan.

Katie Hendrickson: Wonderful, thank you.

Rae Morlan: Thanks so much, Katie.

[music playing]

Leah Warwick: Thank you for listening to "The Admin Edge," produced by the American Society of Administrative Professionals. Original music and audio editing by Warwick Productions, with audio and video production at EA Ignite by 5Tool Productions. If you liked this podcast, please leave us a nice review and five stars wherever you listen to podcasts, and subscribe. If you'd like to submit a listener question, you can do so on our website at asaporg.com/podcast.