Meet The Team: Sarah Elsayed & The Details That Keep Appco UK Ahead

Sarah Elsayed, Appco UK Executive Assistant

Behind every campaign, signed contract and met deadline is a layer of planning most people never see. For us, much of that behind-the-scenes work goes through one person: Sarah Elsayed, our executive assistant.  Roles like Sarah's are dynamic and suit a certain kind of person. She joined as a Personal Assistant, grew into Office Management, and now works as our Executive Assistant, but the title only hints at what the job really involves. 

In an agency like Appco UK, where campaigns connect charity partners with long-term donors across a wide network of teams and regions, the work doesn't move forward on its own. That cross-departmental perspective is what keeps a complex operation moving, and it's the part of the company most people never see. As Sarah puts it, she's "always in the background to make sure that if we have a deadline, a process, or something that needs to be met, it's followed through."

A role that grew with the company

Sarah joined Appco UK as a Personal Assistant, supporting our leadership team with scheduling, travel and day-to-day priorities. It didn't stay that way for long. Within six months, she had taken on Office Manager duties, overseeing client visits, internal meetings, agendas, and health and safety. A year and a half in, her title became Executive Assistant, but even that doesn't quite capture what she does.

"It's very hard to describe, because I could get involved in ad hoc things where I think, this is what they need, so I'm going to get involved."

Today, her work spans contracts, projects and the moving parts that keep the company's objectives on track. 

The mind map behind every task

Ask Sarah what makes her good at the job, and she points to the way her brain works. When someone hands her a goal, she's already breaking it into steps.

"They can make it sound very simple, but my brain is already thinking of the process to achieve that. We can't just get from A to Z. There's a lot more that goes into it."

That instinct shows up everywhere. Recently, she worked alongside Head of Business Development, Mark Cox, to run a research project. It was new territory, not the face-to-face fundraising Appco UK is best known for, and Sarah took it from the very first call on the main line, through contracts, through admin set-up, to delivery. 

"I really like being involved in everything from start to finish, where I can have more control of it.”

Implementing the processes others rely on

Sarah’s biggest challenge is also where she adds the most value: creating structure where none existed. "It's about documenting and standardising — giving people clear steps and deadlines so everything runs smoothly."

That standardisation matters in a business built on industry-leading compliance and procedures. As a trusted provider of face-to-face donor acquisition for charities since 1989, Appco UK depends on the kind of attention to detail that catches a problem early. As Sarah puts it, 

"One little thing that I spot could save us so much time, or save us from redoing all the work. Little things really do add to the end result."

The skills of an executive assistant 

An executive assistant role this broad succeeds with the right strengths and skills to support. Five specific skills stand out:

• Attention to detail. Best suited to someone who naturally catches the small things others miss, knowing that one little thing spotted early can save hours of rework, protect a deadline, or even save the company costs.

• Process-building and standardisation. Someone who turns gaps into systems by documenting and standardising work so teams have clear steps and deadlines to follow.

• Prioritisation and reputational weight. Someone who instinctively knows what has to happen first and weighs what should be actioned quickly. 

• End-to-end ownership. Someone who likes to take a project from the very first phone call through contracts and admin to delivery, staying close to the moving parts so they can spot what needs tweaking along the way.

• Cross-departmental perspective. Someone who sees the whole picture and understands how to get the best out of the different teams by understanding their priorities.

The stuff you don't see

What does Sarah wish partners understood better? Simply, how much planning goes into everything. "People usually just see the end result. But in the background, there's gathering information, following timelines, chasing people, and reporting. 

Looking ahead, Sarah is open. "I'm very moldable. I can get involved in any area where I can be useful." 

Mostly, she's driven by learning. 

"This is completely different from anything I have done before, and learning how it all runs just makes me excited."

It's that mix of constant learning and a high standard of quality work, recognised and nurtured within the team, that helps Appco UK remain one step ahead.