Five Skills for the Modern Admin Worker

Administrative assistants serve as the backbones for small and large corporations. These are the workers who ensure that the daily operations of businesses run smoothly, and they serve to support the bigger needs of their companies. Modern workers now need new administrative skills that weren't required in the past.

Support staff generally handles various tasks that other workers in the company cannot. This might include answering the phones, passing messages along to other workers, responding to client questions, filing, and other office tasks. Here are five skills you need for an administrative job:

1. Organization is one of the more important skills needed to work in the field. Companies look for employees with administrative skills, but those companies also want employees who can effectively organize large numbers of tasks at the same time.
   
    
2. The need for employees with strong communication skills is also important in the modern world. According to a recent article in Forbes, employers want applicants who appear personable and friendly during the interview phase. It doesn't matter how many administrative skills you have if you cannot talk to coworkers, pass messages along, discuss problems with clients, and tell supervisors about issues that you have.
   
    
3. A strong grasp of using business devices is necessary for an entry-level administrative job. This includes knowing how to use fax machines, copiers, scanners, and any other electronic devices that the company keeps on hand.
   
    
4. Many employers will not hire support staff unless those people have more than passing familiarities with basic computer programs. Computer skills and the ability to use Microsoft Office are a must, which means that you may need to brush up on your skills if you use other operating systems and software. Some companies also look for employees with administrative skills relating to other document processing software and photo editing suites. Depending on the field, the company might have its own in-house software, and if you don't have experience working with the programs, your employer will want you to be a fast learner.
   
    
5. With more work now done online, companies look for applicants with administrative skills relating to researching, writing, and proofreading reports and documents. The company will want to ensure that it finds someone for the administrative job who can create compelling and error-free documents that can be shared with clients.

Companies no longer use steno pools where workers take messages and create reports on old typewriters. These modern companies now want employees willing to work hard and use their administrative skills to further their careers. Strong communication skills, effective writing and researching abilities, and experience using different computer programs are other necessary skills that employers want their employees to possess.

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