About
Athena Executive Services pairs part-time, virtual, Executive Assistants with entrepreneurs, executives, and leadership teams throughout the United States.
Our Values
- Confidentiality, Discretion & Security ~ Operating with the highest level of integrity required when you have people’s personal lives and personal data in your hands.
- Responsibility ~ Taking full ownership of what we say we will do and accomplish. Being in full communication.
- Being Peaceful ~ Nothing is wrong here.
- Being of Service ~ Fulfilling another’s intention the way they want it fulfilled. Proactively looking for how to be of service.
- Being Efficient ~ Taking the least amount of time from our clients that we can, to produce the desired result.
- Creativity ~ Creating many possible ways to solve the puzzle when the answer isn’t obvious.
our vision for our clients
Our vision for our clients is that they experience freedom and peace of mind, creating space in their life to achieve their goals and fulfill their dreams.
After working with us, our clients experience the balance in their life that they have been seeking: less stress; better work/life balance; more satisfaction, joy and fulfillment.
Their community, family, friends and staff are relieved and delighted that their loved one has an assistant. Our clients’ communities are left with a healthier, happier, more peaceful and effective boss, partner, parent or friend.
Our clients experience the peace of mind that comes from knowing that nothing is falling through the cracks. Our staff brings workability to a busy person’s life that most didn’t think was possible.
We provide our clients a partner in the management and tending of one of their most precious assets – their time. Much like one has a financial advisor to tend to the important investing of their money, we give our clients peace of mind knowing that their other most critical resource, time, is being invested and managed wisely, and that the hours of their very busy life are being used for its highest purpose.
Our clients are left spending their time on what they are most uniquely equipped to handle, leaving the rest to us.
Benefits clients report:
- They are happy that they are spending more time on what they are needed for most in their company and wasting less time on things that can be delegated.
- They have a new-found peace of mind and life balance (they are getting to the gym; ending the workday at a reasonable time; attending more family events; having time to do critical thinking on their business; etc.)
- They find it convenient and economical to only pay for the hours their assistant works (not paying for benefits, office space, equipment, payroll tax, etc.)
- They feel that they have a partner who has their back.
our vision for our contractors
Athena Executive Services makes a lifestyle available for our select contractors, providing them an income that makes a difference for them, in their ideal work environment. Our executive assistants love the freedom to work from most anywhere, at most any time.
Their community, family and friends are happy for their loved one in this role and reap the benefits of the flexibility they have working with Athena. Our contractors’ communities are left with a healthier, happier and more accessible partner, spouse, child, parent and friend.
They feel supported in growing as entrepreneurs and professionals who are effective at working from anywhere at any time. They appreciate the guidance and mentoring that comes from working with Athena.
our vision for our organization
We offer well-paying, part-time, work from home to smart, independent, people who operate with a high level of discretion and integrity. Fundamentally our contractors love to be of service.
We offer our clients executive assistance to support their very busy lives.
We mentor our contractors in being effective with our clients, and in effectively living this desired lifestyle, where there is both the benefit of flexibility and a demand for excellence.
In our world:
Anything is possible. No request is crazy.
We are creative, pro-active, inventive, generative, and sourceful.
Not knowing how is not an issue. We figure it out and find a way.
Software Used by Our Executive Assistants:
Calendar Programs
Outlook
iCalendar
Calendly
Schedulicity
Acuity
Project Management Software
Trello
Asana
Basecamp
Clickup
ToDoist
Wrike
Client Relationship Management (Crm)
Salesforce
Redtail
Pipedrive
Zoho
Wealthbox
Insightly
Hubspot
Freshsales
Social Media
Hootsuite
Accounting Software
Quickbooks
17hats
Freshbooks
Paypal
Website Platforms
WordPress
Squarespace
wix
Design
illustrator
Photoshop
Canva
indesign
page maker
basic video editing
filesharing
Dropbox
box
evernote
sharefile
onedrive
other
todoist
Evernote
Things
Slack
What Clients are Saying:
Ten years of pent up delegation. I had been running my solo practice by myself for 10 years when I added my first VA to handle my back office. A year later I discovered Athena and brought on Christina to handle the front office.
Christina has been an absolute Rockstar in handling all things administrative, freeing me up to focus doing what I do best. I highly recommend Athena Executive Services to anyone who is looking for a true partner to help them get the have-to’s off their plate and focus on the want-to’s.
I just want to say, “Wow!,” Teresa is amazing! She’s had a really significant impact on our business: implementing a new appointment-scheduling system, helping design a new quarterly service routine, and jumping in right-and-left to help with day-to-day tasks. And she does it all with such grace! She’s quickly become an inseparable part of our team.
Good for you for seeing Teresa’s potential and adding her to your team. I’m so grateful!
I have been working with Athena for over a year now. The process from the beginning has been easy and customized to fit the needs of myself and my company. The person that has come to work with us has been a pleasure to work with and highly capable. The fit couldn’t have been better. I recommend working with Athena to help you with all of your business operational needs to ensure you can scale and run fast to meet client demands.
Athena Executive Services is different. My assistant is like a magical organization and operations angel. She makes my life work.
I think a large part of what sets Athena apart is Athena trains the executive and the assistant to delegate via fulfilling on intentions. There is a big difference between having to tell someone all of the details of what I need to be completed versus explaining the overall intention of what I am looking to accomplish and working with my assistant to fulfill my intention. Gina’s coaching ensures the intentions are fulfilled.
Additionally, I never have to worry about my assistant getting demotivated because I’ve given them one of the most not fun tasks ever, like organizing all of our legal documents for the past 10 years. Gina ensures that each assistant is connected to what difference those tasks makes for the executive, so the tasks are done with care.
My Virtual EA has helped me be measurably more efficient. Sam (Virtual EA) has reduced the amount of time and mental space (key) that I was using with emails and loose ends (meetings, follow up calls, travel arrangements, document signing, etc).
With his help I have been able to concentrate more on the vision, culture, team, and resource allocation of our business in a way that has eluded me previously.
Here at Pretrial Justice Institute we were interested in exploring how EAs could support our leadership team. We had a team of three EAs working with our five leadership team members. Debra quickly became an essential member of my team supporting us with all requests- from managing my calendar to the project management of several small projects. Debra was well organized, dependable, committed to accuracy and efficiency, and a team player. And even more importantly, Debra held me accountable to the personal and professional goals I wanted to achieve by having an executive assistant. I enjoyed having her as a part of my team and was very pleased with her work ethic and commitment.
I’ve never done time at a corporate gig, my work experience is 100% business owner, so what I know about running a business is learned from hard-knocks, books, and great coaches. When my business starts expanding, my go-to reaction is to hunker down, handle the extra work and get it done… which is stupid, and enjoyable for no one, including my family. During this year’s busy season, I worked with Gina to bring on a VA. Guys, hiring a VA is seriously boss-level but on training wheels. Alison was able to get onboard quickly and identify the tasks that I hated doing and did them for me. I am certain that hiring an employee would have been a disaster, this is the best way to scale my time, and I recommend Athena to everyone now. They are awesome.
His presence and agility in contributing to our organization quickly became our new normal and helped with my ability to deepen connection to our customers, vendors, and colleagues in a fast-paced startup world critically dependent on professionalism and communication.
The Parliament
What is a Parliament, you ask? In Greek mythology, the owl is the symbol for Athena, the goddess of wisdom. Owls are generally solitary, but when seen together the group is called a “parliament” as they have long been considered to be of a wise disposition.
The Executive Assistants who are selected for our team go through an extensive 5-phase screening process, including an audition that usually takes two to four days to complete. This audition allows them to demonstrate their prowess and ability to do the kind of work we most often do for clients.
Athena's Leadership Team
Gina Cotner, Founder & CEO
Jennifer Tracy, Business Development & Client Care Manager
Dorian Zarbakhsh, Operations & Performance Manager
Angelika Wooten
Fun Facts:
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I graduated from UC Davis with a Pre Law degree
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My favorite place that I have lived is Texa
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I am a huge health & wellness advocat
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I volunteer every year for Walk 2 End Alzheimers
April Malfa
Fun Facts:
- I thrive on making a positive impact for someone
- As a professional Persian dancer, I performed at the Sydney Opera House
- I've been known to travel anywhere in the US to see Bruce Springsteen in concert
- I love long leisurely drives through the canyons and long road trips
Barbara Toth
Fun Facts:
- I danced ballet
- I speak 10 languages
- I love to travel and go to the beach
- I love animals
- I lead an environmental impact project
- I swam competitively for 6 years
Brandi Patton
Fun Facts:
- I love to read
- I love to bake! My latest obsessions are cheesecakes and sourdough bread
- We love to go to the desert and river
- I am a Girl Scout leader for my daughters troop
- I love spending time with family & friends
Brittany Goldman
Fun Facts:
- I am a serious coffee connoisseur
- I’m a tried and true “Valley Girl”
- I love DIY renovating my own home
- I have a French Bulldog named Bruno
- I have a sister with the same name as me (but spelled differently)
Caitlyn Cox
Fun Facts:
- I am an avid softball player
- Love being a vegan athlete
- Can't get enough of my two dogs: Max & JJ
- Serving others is a passion
Corene Caley
Fun facts:
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I studied English Literature and Creative Writing in college and still love to write!
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Julia Child is a hero of mine
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I truly enjoy being of service to others
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My husband and I are empty nesters and live in the beautiful Pacific NW
Danielle Fraser
Fun facts:
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Hail from the vibrant shores of Jamaica
- An accredited Yoga and Meditation Guru
- Former proprietor of a clothing boutique in the heart of Miami
- Despite my adventurous spirit, I'm not particularly fond of air travel
- Just one world marvel shy of conquering the Seven New Wonders—Petra in Jordan remains the final frontier
Diann Spicer
Fun facts:
- I am an opera singer
- I compete in karaoke competitions!
- I love to travel internationally
Ebony Muhammad
Fun Facts:
- I competed in the Slalom ski event growing up
- I learned to play the harp
- I roast my own coffee beans
- I love everything Cybersecurity
Hope Beach
Fun facts:
- Originally from Pittsburgh, PA
- My favorite thing is traveling the world with friends!
- AND following Phish!
- I love sharing my life with friends and family
Jeneva Hall
Fun Facts:
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I love building lego sets
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I am born and raised in Harlem, NY
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I enjoy bike riding - I completed a 50 mile bike ride on my own in the rain
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I am an IPEC certified coach (working on my ICF PCC certification)
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I enjoy solo traveling around the world
Karen Montes de Oca
Fun Facts:
- I love the beach and swimming in the ocean
- I'm a travel enthusiast and love exploring new cultures and cuisines
- Member of the LAFC (Los Angeles Football Club)
- I was a Diplomat for almost a decade for a foreign government
- I'm a certified sound therapy practitioner
Lindsay Hensley
Fun Facts:
- I love the water and can be found in the rivers and lakes of Montana during summer
- In the winter you can find me snowshoeing and skiing
- I am masterful at overcoming the odds
- I love supporting people in having their dreams fulfilled
- I’m a really good cook!
Linnea Johnson
Fun Facts:
- I'm half-African; my dad was born and raised in Sierra Leone
- I speak conversational Spanish and some Swedish
- Big comedy fan and have done a bit of standup myself
- I did a national commercial with my daughter when she was just 5 months old!
Rachel Brown
Fun Facts:
- I love to cook but baking is my passion
- I buy way more plants than a normal human being should
- I spend as many weekends that I can going to the beach
Siri Larkins
Fun Facts:
- I love to read
- Mexican food is my favorite cuisine
- I won a contest to paint a cow at the NYC Cow Parade
Stefanie Gomez
Fun Facts:
- I frequent Big Bear, CA with my family at least 4 times a year
- I enjoy watching and being involved with my son's soccer team as a coach or team mom, and am a girl scout mom
- I am a certified teen life coach and passionate about empowering teens
- My family is from Belize, Central America
I am so grateful to have been connected with Athena Executive Services. The level of care they put into making sure their contractors have everything they need to be successful is extraordinary. I have an endless amount of support and resources available to me, and I love having a team that I can turn to with anything that comes my way. It feels great to be able to provide that kind of exceptional service to my clients, and a huge part of that is because of the ‘package deal’ that comes with being a contractor with Athena — the client gets a high-caliber professional backed by a small (but mighty) army.
It really stands out how much they not only value their clients, but their contractors too. I have been paired with the most amazing clients, and couldn’t be happier.
Gina does an amazing job of generating value and connection with a virtual team. Though I worked as an individual and ran my own business, I also knew I had a team of amazing resources if ever I needed anything. Being part of the Athena team had me grow professionally and personally. We were always looking for where we could take the company vision, not just to clients, but to ourselves. Gina cares about the well-being of everyone she works with, clients as well as contractors. Athena truly takes on the definition of partnership and having your back. You absolutely know you’re going to get the results that make a difference when you work with Athena.