Paula A. Thompson’s 40-year executive support career built on trust and resilience

Influential Women is featuring Cleveland-based Senior Executive Administrator Paula A. Thompson, whose four-decade career has supported leaders across multiple companies. Her story highlights how adaptability, reputation, and relationships have shaped her work through layoffs, cancer battles, and constant workplace change.

Why it matters: - Paula A. Thompson’s career shows how long-term executive support roles can shape business continuity through trust, discretion, and steady operations. - Her path also highlights how professionals without a college degree can build durable careers through experience, reputation, and adaptability. - Thompson’s story may resonate with women in administrative and executive support roles who are navigating workplace change, family responsibilities, and career growth.

What happened: - Influential Women is featuring Paula A. Thompson, a Senior Executive Administrator based in Cleveland, Ohio. - Thompson supports senior leaders across multiple companies and has worked in executive support for more than 40 years. - Her career has spanned executive support services, manufacturing, insurance, and wealth management. - Thompson’s specialties include executive support, project management, travel coordination, communications, and operations management. - The profile highlights her reputation for excellence, discretion, reliability, integrity, and compassion.

The details: - Thompson began her career in February 1985 as an administrative assistant at Alliance Capital. - She was 21, newly married, and caring for an infant son when she started. - Thompson entered the field without a college degree. - She is a high school graduate and has completed some community college coursework. - She raised three children while advancing in her career. - Thompson says balancing family and work helped her develop adaptability, consistency, and a positive outlook. - A 2008 merger led to a layoff after more than two decades with her longtime employer. - Thompson treated that transition as a new chapter and expanded the range of leaders she supported. - Executives she previously supported continued working with her for years after the merger. - Thompson also went through two battles with cancer while continuing to work and care for her family. - She says her greatest accomplishment is not the length of her career, but the trust and relationships she has built. - In her daily work, Thompson coordinates travel, manages projects, handles communications, and oversees operational details so executives can focus on leadership.

Between the lines: - Thompson’s story underscores how executive support is often built on consistency and reliability rather than formal credentials alone. - Her emphasis on reputation reflects a field where trust can translate into long-term opportunities and recurring professional relationships. - Her experience also shows how technology and workplace expectations have changed since 1985, requiring steady learning over time. - Thompson views change as something to embrace, not avoid, and says that mindset has helped her adapt across decades. - Her volunteer work suggests that faith, family, and service remain central to how she defines success.

What's next: - Thompson says the biggest challenge in her field is keeping pace with constant change. - She sees technology as an opportunity to improve productivity and connection in executive support. - Her advice to younger women is to take on unfamiliar challenges, keep learning, protect their reputations, and advocate for themselves. - She continues to volunteer with her church community and support organizations including Rescue Village, Maple Leaf Community Residences, Kicking Cancer in Heels, Susan G. Komen, and the CLL Society. - Thompson has also served as a United Way campaign coordinator. - More information is available through Paula A. Thompson’s Influential Women profile.

The bottom line: - Paula A. Thompson’s career is a reminder that trust, resilience, and steady performance can outlast job titles, reorganizations, and industry change.