How to recruit a great Admin Assistant

An Admin Assistant is vital for the smooth-running of a business. Also sometimes known as an Office Assistant, they provide both clerical and administrative support for individuals or a team. This is often a hybrid role incorporating elements of HR or Office Manager. As such they might be managing employee procedures, overseeing ad-hoc projects or dealing with general office tasks.

Duties could include anything from answering telephone calls or emails, receiving visitors, typing up documents, data entry, diary management and creating presentations. Along with the day-to-day running of the workplace, they will manage office budgets. This might involve keeping track of petty cash and other managing expenses. They will need to book and organise travel for other staff members and possibly even manage social media channels. Additionally, more experienced Admin Assistants can be responsible for overseeing the work of junior admin staff. The size of your business might determine just how varied the role is. Smaller businesses often need more jobs covered – including that of IT expert.

The job is usually office based and there is little expectation to travel. But this can be a demanding role and whoever you hire will need to be flexible. There is also an expectation to manage their workload to meet deadlines.

People applying for Admin Assistant jobs are often graduates wanting to gain experience in a certain industry or profession. In some cases, they will expect training on the job and hope to find skills, which can help to develop their career further. Investing in a strong member of your team can really pay off – as once you’ve got an employee who works well and that you can trust they can climb the career ladder to offer even more value to your business.

Some companies like to recruit Temps to fill the gap of a full-time Admin Assistant – if they need an extra pair of hands for a particular project. Temporary work can often lead to permanent positions as it gives you an opportunity to try different candidates before settling on someone who is a good fit for the role.

Depending on the scope of the job and size of the business, you might look for candidates with particular degrees but this is not a prerequisite for the role. If a degree is important to you look for those who have either studied a subject related to your industry or something such as property, finance or law. All of which bring transferable skills.

Alternatively someone with strong communication or writing skills, knowledge of business management, computer sciences or public relations or office-based work experience could make a candidate stand out to you. Passion and an interest in the sector you are hiring for will also come across in the right person.

We expect our candidates to have excellent IT and typing skills. Likewise, competency with software such as Microsoft is essential, as is experience using content management systems. As an added bonus we look for people who are familiar with industry-specific programmes and software.

Whoever you recruit, they will need to be able to hit the ground running. So they should be efficient and have high attention to detail. Our recruitment consultants look for people who can work productively on their own, use their initiative and follow instructions well. They need to be manage well under pressure and above all exude good attitudes such as tact, discretion and reliability.