Chief of Staff interview prep when AI can write the memo

Choose the priority. Prepare the decision. Follow through.

What companies say they’re looking for

“What can wait or get dropped so I can work on the presentation?” (opens the source)

Eric Nehrlich, Executive leadership coach; former Chief of Staff, Google Search Ads · Chief of Staff Network, Jun 17, 2026 · at 18:50

A new request needs an explicit trade-off.

“Sometimes she'll set the vision, and then I'm really responsible for coming in and helping translate that into execution.” (opens the source)

Jamie White, Chief of Staff, Marketing, Notion at the time of the interview · Chief of Staff Network, Nov 26, 2025 · at 16:01

Give the executive a choice, evidence and a clear ask.

“It is negotiating priorities and ensuring that they get done because you can't do it all yourself.” (opens the source)

Agree the owner and dependency before promising a date.

“nothing gets pushed to production to our customers without human oversight.” (opens the source)

Check the source record before releasing the recommendation.

“Definitely rely on local teams for their contextual awareness.” (opens the source)

Anna Aden, Chief of Staff to the Managing Director, Asia Pacific, TBI as introduced in the interview · Chief of Staff Network, Sep 23, 2026

Ask the local owner what the central brief is missing.

Eric Nehrlich, Executive leadership coach; former Chief of Staff, Google Search Ads, at the time. Chief of Staff Network, “AI Is a Productivity Boost, Not a Compass with Eric Nehrlich”, Jun 17, 2026, at 18:50. Open the source. Checked against the published text.
Jamie White, Chief of Staff, Marketing, Notion at the time of the interview, at the time. Chief of Staff Network, “Context Into Action: Systems Thinking as a Chief of Staff”, Nov 26, 2025, at 16:01. Open the source. Checked against the published text.
Ryan Kelly, Chief of Staff, Veremark, at the time. Chief of Staff Network, “Chief of Staff to the CEO, or to the Business? with Ryan Kelly”, Oct 21, 2026, at 59:23. Open the source. Checked against the published text.
Delong Lu, Chief of Staff, Proton, at the time. Chief of Staff Network, “Steering AI at a Privacy-First Company with Delong Lu”, Jun 10, 2026. Open the source. Checked against the published text.
Anna Aden, Chief of Staff to the Managing Director, Asia Pacific, TBI as introduced in the interview, at the time. Chief of Staff Network, “What AI Policy Is Borrowing From Humanitarian Work with Anna Aden”, Sep 23, 2026. Open the source. Checked against the published text.

Last reviewed Nov 10, 2026