Wal-Mart Looking for Administrative Assistants

by Alex A. Kecskes

With more than 8,100 retail units employing over 2.1 million associates in 15 countries, Wal-Mart needs all kinds of employees. Chief among them would be Administrative Assistants.

As a Wal-Mart Administrative Assistant, you would help supervisors with scheduling, maintaining, and updating calendar events. You would also resolve scheduling conflicts, handle meeting requests, help plan and coordinate department activities, and schedule meeting rooms.

You would take messages, and evaluate and resolve caller requests, issues and questions. Other duties would include drafting, proofing, and updating presentations using computer software. You would compose and organize hard copy letters and emails, and manage these and other communications.

Some computer experience would be helpful as you're called upon to maintain data in documents and electronic forms. You'll also help with "number crunching" to evaluate data patterns and trends. You'll use your organizational skills to process invoices and expense reports. And you'll use computers and graphic software to create presentations, reports and templates.

You'll need some social skills as well, since you'll be acting as a coordinator or liaison for visiting associates and guests. And if you like setting up events, you'll enjoy planning and preparing for key conferences Wal-Mart conducts throughout the year. You'll even become a travel agent of sorts, scheduling travel-related activities for senior management.

Wal-Mart has been under pressure to enhance its benefits package and has done so in recent years. Another thing Wal-Mart has done is to reduce the number of overtime hours it demands of its non-hourly employees. While some complain about Wal-Mart's limited advancement, there are opportunities to move up if one works hard.

For an additional perspective, check out this video: