Agency boss Brian Daniel is advertising on his website for an executive assistant to work with a celebrity CEO – and he would prefer someone with “prior jet management” experience. “This dream job,” says the ad, “will bring the candidate around the world because the position requires about 60 per cent or more travel.” As glamorous as it seems, the job is fairly standard for Brian’s
exclusive agency, The Celebrity Personal Assistant Network (
www.findcelebrityjobs.com), which specialises in placing EAs and PAs in full-time positions with movie stars, business moguls, roy- alty and assorted billionaires. Based in San Francisco, Brian promotes himself as ‘Headhunter
to the Stars’ and has a message for all PAs: “I want to hear from you”. He opened the agency in 2007, fresh from working in what could be the ultimate PA job – chief-of-staff to the Saudi royal family, based in Saudi Arabia. Today he has offices in Chicago, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Miami and New York, but he places his candidates with VIP clients all over the world. He warns that the hours can be tough, but the rewards are
fabulous: salaries can soar beyond £90,000 a year (plus year- end bonuses), luxury cars, first-class international travel, five- star hotels and restaurants, and close contact with rich and famous people. “These people like to poach,” says Brian. “Billionaires steal
each other’s assistants, because when you reach that level you must have more than just the skills. You must have the time and flexibility, the emotional commitment, a thick skin. When some-
one has those qualities, there are bidding wars: ‘I’ll give you a bigger house ... bigger Mercedes ... bigger year-end bonus’. Once you reach that level, you are the best of the best.” Enthusiastic and animated with a hint of humour, Brian
spends nearly two hours on his Skype interview with Executive PA Magazine. But no amount of questioning can persuade the 41-year-old to disclose the names of his celebrity clients. There’s a good chance you see them all the time though, star- ring in movies, walking the red carpet, accepting an Oscar or running a corporation. But the only way to identify a Brian Daniel client is by applying for a job through his agency and getting through to the client interview.
How did you first become a personal assistant? “I moved to Los Angeles from the mid-west when I was 19. I had stars in my eyes and a strong work ethic. I started as a personal trainer in a Beverly Hills gym, working with people from the entertainment industry, lawyers, publicists, some actors, but mainly behind-the-scenes people. “After a few years I decided to go into hospitality and was
working the front office in a five-star hotel in Beverly Hills. You are literally dealing with presidents, kings and queens, digni- taries, Hollywood celebrities and ultra-high-net-worth indi- viduals, and that’s when I was introduced to a member of the Johnson & Johnson family and started my first PA job. Later I became PA and estate manager to Bob Corff, a voice coach to the stars.”
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