As a manager, you know that the organizational health of your company lives and breathes by having the right administrative staff in place. They can keep everyone on track and handle all the day-to-day functions of your business when you’re concentrating on being successful. So when you’re in need of a new administrative assistant, how do you determine who is the right candidate for you? While you’re engaging in the hiring process, here are some of the things you need to look for to find a great administrative assistant for your team.
1. An excellent communicator.
Your superstar administrative assistant needs to have above-average communications skills. They can be supporting all levels of the organization as well as acting as a liaison to vendors and clients. Without the ability to communicate effectively, aspects of the job may fall through the cracks at exactly the wrong time. Being able to relate to a wide variety of personalities is vital. The administrative assistant could be talking to a C-suite executive one minute and then an entry-level job candidate.
2. Detail oriented.
While organizational skills are critical to an administrative assistant’s success, it needs to be paired up with an attention to detail. When you rely on an administrative assistant, it is because they handle everything that would direct your focus away from the work that you do on a day-to-day basis. If things do not get done, it could cause the entire system to grind to a halt. Management doesn’t have the time to micromanage their daily behaviors, so finding a person who is on top of the details will make everything flow better.
3. Great time management skills.
Hand in hand with detail and organization is time management. In fact, in many cases, it may be more important. Almost all work that you will do in your organization, regardless of the industry, will be time sensitive to one degree or another. Your administrative assistant should be able to prioritize projects as they come in and help you keep everything on track along the way.
4. Knowledgeable about your industry.
Lastly, you don’t want to hire just anyone with administrative skills. Your business is unique and someone with knowledge about your specific industry will be better suited to succeed in your organization. For instance, if you’re an IT company, you may not want to hire someone who has only worked in manufacturing environments in the past. If you find someone with the first three skills, you can teach a great employee about your industry. That type of training is much easier (and attainable) than trying to teach an administrative assistant about communication and time management.
Finding qualified, experienced personnel can be a challenge. With more than 20 years of experience, CornerStone Staffing can help you find the right match for your open position. Contact us today to work with one of the top staffing agencies in Texas, with 11 offices located in the Metroplex.
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