Hire Administrative Assistants

Hire Administrative Assistants

An administrative assistant is an organization’s secret weapon. Administrative assistants are one of the few people in the company who deal with employees at every level. Their job is not only limited to scheduling, arranging travel, or managing the itinerary, but also includes additional duties. The average base pay is $44,285 approximately in the US and can go up to $65,000 with attractive perks to go with it. Learning how to hire an effective administrative assistant will make the entire business operate more smoothly. 

The tasks at hand

An administrative assistant organizes meetings, events, appointments, business trips, and off-sites. In addition, they are also responsible for preparing and filing important documents, answering and directing incoming emails, managing visitors, and handling administrative processes like the procurement of office supplies. Most importantly, administrative assistants are a point of contact for a range of staff and external stakeholders. It is expected that the person filling this role is equipped to answer and solve a range of complex problems; from keeping the office running smoothly to customer service. An administrative assistant is as much a front line strategic partner as a behind-the-scenes supervisor. 

Ticking the right boxes

Effective communication skills, problem-solving abilities, attention to detail, being a self-motivated worker, organizational skills, multi-tasking, adaptiveness, and resourcefulness are some of the key skills that an administrative assistant must possess. The hiring manager typically requires someone who has people skills, knows how to solve bottlenecks in the day to day running of an organization, can effectively communicate across hierarchies, is emotionally intelligent enough to excel at conflict resolution, is proactive, and has a sense of judgment to know when and what to prioritize. 

Fitting like a glove

Stellar problem-solving skills top the list of prerequisites for an administrative assistant’s role in 2020. With remote work and flexible schedules on the rise, today’s modern workplace demands out-of-the-box thinking to keep everything running smoothly. Of course, this isn’t limited to internal interactions. The administrative assistant’s role is often outward facing, as they are responsible for handling incoming calls, reaching out to vendors, or speaking directly with high-level execs at other companies. It is important to keep these qualities and requirements in mind when seeking to hire a successful administrative assistant.