Administrative Assistant Career Advice

What is the career path of an administrative assistant?

It really depends on the company and size of company overall as to what your growth potentials may be. After proving yourself in the AA role, chances are a good manager will recognize you for it and recommend a promotion...again, depending on the type of company and size it could be anything such as Office manager, administrative manager, Executive secretary, or a role in an entirely different department where the company may be willing to train you in as well. Try to determine what your career goal is - where you want to be 5 years down the road and ensure you are in a company that can offer you that growth...or at least the experience for your resume that will pave the way for you to switch jobs at some point in the future.

What are the duties and responsibility of administrative assistant?

PRIMARY RESPONSIBILITIES ARE:

1. Meet and greet clients and visitors.
2. Create and modify documents using Microsoft Office.
3. Answer telephones and transfer to appropriate staff member.
4. Maintain hard copy and electronic filing system.
5. Perform general clerical duties to include but not limited to: photocopying, faxing, mailing, and filing.
6. Sign for and distribute UPS/Fed Ex/Airborne packages.
7. Research, price, and purchase office furniture and supplies.
8. Coordinate and maintain records for staff office space, phones, parking, company credit cards and office keys.
9. Setup and coordinate meetings and conferences.
10. Maintain and distribute staff weekly schedules.
11. Collect and maintain PC inventory.
12. Support staff in assigned project based work.
13. Other duties as assigned.

ADDITIONAL RESPONSIBILITIES ARE:

1. Provide office orientation for new employees.
2. Setup accommodation and entertainment arrangements for company visitors.

How can I improve my career as an administrative assistant?

You could start by taking classes at your local community college. You can learn the Microsoft Office programs better (Excel and Project are two good ones that require some specialization). Microsoft has tests where you can become a certified professional in one or several of their programs, so those might look good on your resume.

You could also go into business and/or finance/accounting. Also, administrative assistants don't make as much as management assistants do so if you can get a position either within your own company or at another company being the assistant to an executive the pay will be higher. But often, experience is a big requirement to do well in administration, especially experience at the same company. Bigger companies wil usually pay more and offer more mobility in moving around.

You could also use this as an opportunity to go to school and get the technical AS or BS you've always wanted and pursue your dream career. You've got lots of possibilities.

Administrative Assistant: What kinds of businesses would one work at?

Almost every industry uses administrative assistants. At a public company, you could be the assistant to the executives. Lawyers and accounting firms also often have assistants.

To be a good assistant, you need to be organized because you keep track of the schedules, you need good people skills, you need to be willing to do whatever is asked of you (can by typing e-mails, ordering food for a meeting, or running to a local store to pick up something needed asap), you need good typing skills, and you need to perform tasks quickly.