What does a Clerical/Administrative Assistant do?

An assistant secretary is responsible for performing administrative and clerical duties to support the daily operations of various departments and management personnel and ensure the efficiency of business functions. Assistant secretaries usually assist in business communications, responding to customers' inquiries and concerns, reaching out to existing clients to schedule appointments, welcoming guests on the office, and routing calls to the appropriate department. They also handle data entry procedures, updating customer information on the database, as well as creating reports on business and financial transactions.

There are some key differences in the responsibilities of each position. For example, clerical/administrative assistant responsibilities require skills like "data entry," "customer service," "multi-line telephone system," and "purchase orders." Meanwhile a typical assistant secretary has skills in areas such as "federal agencies," "real estate," "logistics," and "meeting minutes." This difference in skills reveals the differences in what each career does.

An assistant intern is responsible for facilitating administrative and clerical tasks as assigned by the management. Assistant interns' duties include keeping records of meetings, receiving calls and handling customer inquiries, assisting on writing reports and data entry processing, cooperating and providing support for business events, and adhering to company policies and regulatory procedures. Successful assistant interns must have excellent time-management, multi-tasking, and communication skills. They must be a team player and fast-learner to handle various tasks in the corporate industry.

In addition to the difference in salary, there are some other key differences worth noting. For example, clerical/administrative assistant responsibilities are more likely to require skills like "data entry," "clerical support," "financial statements," and "multi-line telephone system." Meanwhile, an assistant has duties that require skills in areas such as "patients," "patient care," "cpr," and "sales floor." These differences highlight just how different the day-to-day in each role looks.

A staff assistant is a company employee who is tasked to support and help staff members to adequately fill their roles and assuring that the organization is running efficiently. Working under an administrative supervisor, an assistant's tasks include answering phone calls, scheduling meetings or appointments, and booking the necessary travels. Moreover, an assistant should have excellent skills in written and verbal communication and is highly organized with minimal supervision. An assistant may be able to work in a wide variety of settings, which includes healthcare facilities and government offices.

The required skills of the two careers differ considerably. For example, clerical/administrative assistants are more likely to have skills like "multi-line telephone system," "purchase orders," "clerical tasks," and "office machines." But a staff assistant is more likely to have skills like "patients," "office procedures," "veterans," and "provides administrative support."

Office assistants perform various tasks to ensure that the business runs organized and efficient. An office assistant must possess excellent communication and multi-tasking skills to handle essential duties such as scheduling meetings, monitoring office supplies, storing documents and necessary paperwork, handling customer inquiries and appointments, coordinating in company events, and accomplishing other clerical tasks and administrative support. Office assistants are also required to communicate any observation that would possibly make an impact on the company's performance.