What Admins' Managers Think About Their Work

What does your boss think of your work? Would you be surprised by the answer?

By Robert Elsenpeter, Star Tribune Sales and Marketing

Last update: September 7, 2006 - 10:14 AM

If you asked your boss what he or she thinks of your work, would you be surprised by the answer? Would you be surprised to find out how hard you work? Would you be surprised to find out whether your boss thinks you communicate well? What would your boss think about your balance of personal and professional lives?

Administrative professionals recently had the opportunity to find out what their managers think, and then compare their managers' views with their own.

The International Association of Administrative Professionals (IAAP) and national staffing service OfficeTeam jointly published a research study exploring the relationship between managers and their support teams. More than 250 managers and 300 administrative professionals were surveyed for the project. The findings were published under the title of "Making It Click."

"Administrative professionals are well-positioned to take on expanded responsibilities involving project management, communication, use of office technology and other vital business functions," says Kay Enlow, CPS/CAP, 2005-06 international president of IAAP.

"In today's fast-paced, high-tech workplaces, it's more important than ever that an administrative professional and manager maintain a strong partnership, one that makes the best use of the assistant's skills in support of the organization."

The Changing Face Of Work
A workplace truism for admins was validated by the study: Admins' work is changing. Both managers and admins - 86 percent of both groups - said that duties have grown more complex in the past two years. Admins seem to embrace this evolution. Eighty-two percent of admins said they want to assume more responsibility, while 70 percent of managers reported they want to tap their admins' skills.

"The study reveals the highly collaborative relationship between managers and support staff," says Diane Domeyer, executive director of OfficeTeam. "These roles have become increasingly interdependent, particularly as administrative workers have assumed greater responsibilities."

Time And Tools
When asked about work volume and the availability of tools to get work done, managers and admins again seemed to be in agreement. Nine out of 10 managers and eight out of 10 administrative professionals said the volume of work assigned to support staff is manageable. Further, 93 percent of supervisors said they foster a workplace where support staff are able to balance work and personal responsibilities; 84 percent of administrative personnel agreed.

"As supervisors and support staff work harder to tackle growing workloads, it's easy for both of them to forget about people's lives outside the office," says Dr. Susan Fenner, IAAP's manager of education and professional development.

Communication
It's no secret that good communication between an admin and his or her manager is an important skill. It also seems to be a skill which most administrative professionals seem to be doing well. Ninety-four percent of managers and 84 percent of administrative professionals rated their communication with each other as good or excellent.

"Managers and employees have the same objective: to provide their customers and clients with quality products and excellent service," says Erin O'Hara Meyer, president of Administrative Excellence, in Rosemount. "Communication is essential to that goal."

Robert Elsenpeter is a freelance writer from Blaine.

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