5 Skills Administrative Assistants Need to Succeed

By Julie Perrine

For the most part, you enjoy being an administrative assistant. And you’re pretty good at it, too. You can find a missing budget report in six seconds flat. Your customer service voice is always on point. And you have the uncanny ability to know what your executives need before they even realize they need it. Your administrative assistant skills are second to none — for now.

But that doesn’t mean you should remain stagnant. As with any profession, there’s always room for improvement. And if you want to remain the office hero that everyone knows and loves, you need to learn how to continuously develop your administrative assistant skills — not just maintain them. If you’re looking for ways to stand out from the crowd and advance your career, here are some areas to focus on for professional development.

1. Technology

Love it or hate it, technology is always changing. You’ve only just learned the shortcuts for one program when another is thrust on you, and it’s back to square one.

Frustrating, yes. But today’s managers and executives increasingly rely on their assistants to be tech-savvy. There are plenty of online administrative assistant courses on everything from software basics to cybersecurity and beyond. Many of those courses are affordable and sometimes even free. Set a goal to attend just one online administrative assistant course or webinar on the latest technology each month and keep yourself from falling behind.

2. Organization

Contrary to popular belief, staying organized involves more than a clean desk. It’s about creating and using systems and procedures that allow you to improve your productivity at work and get the job done correctly the first time.

On any given day, you’re responsible for projects, processes, and even people — and keeping it all straight is a big chore. Set yourself up for success by learning how to be more organized in every aspect of your job and you’ll reap the rewards. Here’s a great article on ways to keep organized, from using cloud storage to going digital.

3. Communication

As an administrative assistant, you’re often the office go-between, which means your communication skills need to be phenomenal. One poorly worded email or missed phone message can compromise your reputation whether you’re acting as a liaison between departments, dealing with clients and vendors, or simply communicating within your own department.

Fortunately, there are plenty of online communication courses for administrative assistants, and the topic is regularly covered at conferences and seminars.

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