what is an office assistant?
An office assistant helps organize an office's relevant documents. As an office assistant, you’re also the face of the company, taking phone calls, greeting visitors, and delivering messages to the proper personnel. Your additional responsibilities include delivering mail to the company's employees, entering data, printing reports and even running routine errands when necessary. Depending on the company, you could have to order supplies and distribute those supplies around the office.
Office assistants work in a variety of fields, everywhere from law firms and hospitals to entertainment companies. As such, your responsibilities depend directly on what services the company performs. In a law firm, you may assist the paralegals in printing contracts. At an entertainment company, you could distribute call sheets. In most companies, however, you have the responsibility of bookkeeping, updating files and records, and sending out correspondence. You’ll use your excellent typing skills to write up correspondence, letters, and documents for companies. Since answering phone calls is often necessary as well, your phone demeanor is important.
Would working as an office assistant suit your skills in negotiation and networking? Then read on to find out what competencies and qualifications you need to thrive in an office assistant role.
view jobs near youaverage office assistant salary
Would you like to know what an office assistant earns? Where the highest salaries are paid for an office assistant? Then check out this salary page and find out all about the salary of an office assistant in the USA.
Wondering what you can earn as an office assistant? Find out immediately with the Randstad salary checker! You can quickly and easily see what the average salary of an office assistant is.
types of office assistants
Being an office assistant can mean taking on a variety of responsibilities, as there are different types of office assistants. The type of company you work for determines your exact job requirements. In a law office, you would be a legal secretary, and your job would be helping the lawyers at the firm organize their legal cases. On the other hand, if you work in a financial firm, your tasks would be maintaining financial records. There are also hospital office assistants, real estate office assistants, dental office assistants, and architectural office assistants. In fact, most companies need an office assistant to help them run their day-to-day activities.
Most office assistants work in healthcare, education, scientific, and technical services.
working as an office assistant
As an office assistant, your responsibilities will vary depending on the company you're working for. However, there is some overlap.
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office assistant job description
As an office assistant, there are a variety of responsibilities. Some of these include:
- answer and direct calls: Your job as an office assistant is to answer and direct calls to the appropriate people or departments.
- schedule appointments and meetings: As an office assistant, your job is to schedule conferences, appointments, and meetings. Managing the company's calendar is another responsibility you may have to take on.
- greet visitors: You are the first point of contact for visitors, which means it is your responsibility to greet them and direct them to the right department or the right person.
- file and organize documents: Maintaining files and records as well as keeping digital documents is another responsibility you have. The company employees need to have everything at their fingertips, so you should be able to locate documents easily.
- communication: You may need to send emails and letters on behalf of your supervisors.
- order office supplies: As an office assistant, your job is to ensure that the office has enough office supplies.
- run errands: There may be routine errands and small tasks the company asks that you do. This depends on the employees and their needs.
- help with specific projects: Besides your day-to-day responsibilities, you may need to do additional tasks, such as writing reports or summarizing data.
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office assistant work environment
Office assistants most often work indoors. There are often quite a lot of administrative tasks, which means you will most likely need to use a computer or laptop daily. Your office may be small and intimate, or it may be a large, busy space. If you are in the public sector, such as a government office or school, you may not have your own office. Instead, your desk may be in a large room with other employees. Private sectors tend to be in smaller and more intimate settings, and you may have a desk in the lobby area. In most cases, the location is one office with no travel requirements. Some companies may let you work from home, if not most of the time, then at least part of the time.
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who are your colleagues?
When you work as an office assistant, you have supervisors who you will report to. If you are a legal secretary, your job is to work closely with lawyers and paralegals. If you work at a real estate firm, you work with real estate agents to ensure their documents and contracts are well organized. As an office assistant, your colleagues are often your direct supervisors, and these supervisors differ depending on the company.
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work schedule
Office assistants tend to work the typical office hours, which are 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday to Friday. Busier offices may require that you put in some overtime. However, most companies should compensate you for any overtime hours if you are a salaried employee. Weekend hours are not often required, though if there is a pressing deadline coming up, you may need to work some weekends. There are plenty of part-time office assistant positions as not every company needs an office assistant all the time. This makes it an ideal position if you are a student or if you have other obligations. If the company works at night, such as a hospital, there may be night-time positions available and weekend positions. Most office assistants tend to have regular hours, though.
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job outlook for office assistants
The U.S Bureau of Labor Statistics predicts an 8% decline in the need for office assistants from 2021-2031. As of 2021, there were 3,413,600 office assistants, but this number should fall by 286,900. The benefit of becoming an office assistant is that there are plenty of opportunities to move up the ladder within the company. Legal assistants can attend school to become a paralegal at the same company, for instance. If you are an office assistant at a real estate company, you could get your real estate license and become a real estate agent.
You could also transition to similar jobs, which involve some of the same skills. These include:
- bookkeeping
- financial clerks
- medical records specialist
- medical transcriptionists
- court reporter
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benefits of working for randstad as an office assistant
Working through Randstad offers you a range of benefits:
- being paid weekly
- flexibility
- always a contact person you can fall back on and ask for help from
- many training opportunities
- a range of jobs in your area
Want a permanent contract? But you wonder why it would be interesting for you to work with a staffing company? A temporary job as an office assistant is often a stepping stone to an attractive permanent job. Every year, thousands of people earn a permanent contract with great employers thanks to a temporary job found through Randstad. What's more, many companies recruit their permanent employees through Randstad too!
office assistant skills and education
Most office assistant positions require a high school diploma or a GED. Although some employers may prefer a college degree, this is not a necessity.
There are soft skills and technical skills that are necessary, however. These may include:
- organizational and time-management skills
- proficiency in computer software programs, such as Microsoft Office and Google Suite
- strong written and verbal communication skills
- attention to detail
- excellent customer service skills
If you want to strengthen your resume, there are additional certification programs you may want to pursue. For example, you can obtain the Certified Administrative Professional (CAP) credential from the International Association of Administrative Professionals. This provides you with a higher level of proficiency in administrative skills. Other certification programs you may want to pursue are software programs, such as Microsoft Excel.
Continuing education courses related to the field you want to work in can be helpful, too. If you are interested in working at an accounting firm, for example, taking an accounting course could help familiarize you with the lingo you may see in many of the documents.
skills and competencies
If you are looking to advance as an office assistant or even move up in the company, there are several skills that are useful.
- leadership skills: As you move up the ladder, you may need to manage other employees. Having strong leadership skills can be essential.
- problem-solving skills: As an office assistant, you may encounter some challenges and problems. How you tackle these problems shows your ability to solve problems and find workable solutions.
- project management skills: In instances where you are responsible for multitasking or putting together complicated tasks, having strong project management skills will help.
- technical proficiency: Technology continues to advance, and it is your job to stay up to date with software and any new computer technology that emerges.
- communication skills: As an office assistant, your job is to interact with anyone who steps into the office. Having strong communication skills is essential. Part of this responsibility is to listen well, express your thoughts clearly, and communicate well with all employees and visitors.
- time-management skills: You may have a large workload. It's important to learn how to prioritize tasks and manage a variety of deadlines.
FAQs about working as an office assistant
Here you will find answers to the most frequently asked questions about office assistants.
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are financial clerks the same as office assistants?
Although there is a degree of overlap, financial clerks have slightly different responsibilities. Financial clerks are responsible for processing financial transactions, keeping detailed records, and helping with financial reports. Financial clerks typically work for financial companies.
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is there room for advancement if you start as an office assistant?
Yes, climbing the ladder at a company is possible if you start as an office assistant. Strategic planning is important. It's also important that you show initiative, develop new skills while you're there, network, communicate your goals, and look for opportunities.
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does an office assistant need a college degree?
For the most part, you do not need a college degree to become an office assistant. However, in more specialized offices, it can be beneficial as you will be familiar with the documents you are organizing and filing.
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what kind of software do you need to learn to become an office assistant?
As an office assistant, you should know some of the more common software programs. These include Microsoft Office Suite, such as Word and Excel; project management software, such as Asana; Google Workspace, such as Google Docs; accounting software, such as QuickBooks, and customer relationship management (CRM) software.
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are there remote office assistant jobs?
Yes, remote work is steadily increasing and companies are offering employees the opportunity to work from home. Your office assistant responsibilities would be the same as a traditional office assistant, such as organizing digital documents, scheduling meetings, answering phone calls, and assisting with office jobs.
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how do I find a job as an office assistant?
Applying for an office assistant job is easy: create a Randstad profile and search our office assistant jobs for vacancies in your area. Then simply send us your CV. If you do not have a resume, no worries. Just check out our resume builder. This state-of-the-art tool will help you to create your own resume. Need help with your application? Check out all our job-hunting tips!
