What does an administrative and program specialist do?
An administrative and program specialist's main tasks are to develop, implement, and troubleshoot all programs used in a company. They must constantly evaluate their company's policies, activities, events, and processes to develop programs to improve efficiency. They must also ensure that programs will work with employees' capabilities, so they also work with their company's human resources department to monitor personnel. This position requires constant assessments, improvements, and updates of all company programs.
Administrative and program specialist responsibilities
Here are examples of responsibilities from real administrative and program specialist resumes:
- Assist SVP with managing transition to effectively disband correspondent department and close office.
- Assist in inventory and tracking of computer components, parts and other relate data through the management of spreadsheet or SharePoint.
- Design multiple SharePoint sites for various lines of business and revise and convert all internal web-base documentation to the new platform.
- Resolve discrepancies involving payroll, compensation and benefits.
- Aid in the maintenance of university departmental accounts payable/receivable, invoicing and payroll.
- Coordinate travel arrangements in DTS; schedule mode of transportation, prepare trip folders, arrange lodging reservations and develop itineraries.
- Process administrative paperwork for Medicaid/Medicare billing, and petty cash drawer.
- Schedule appointments to perform HUD require interviews making sure contractors/sub-contractors follow lead-safe rules and regulations.
Administrative and program specialist skills and personality traits
We calculated that 7% of Administrative And Program Specialists are proficient in SharePoint, Payroll, and Management System. They’re also known for soft skills such as Interpersonal skills, Organizational skills, and Writing skills.
We break down the percentage of Administrative And Program Specialists that have these skills listed on their resume here:
- SharePoint, 7%
Designed multiple SharePoint sites for various lines of business and revised and converted all internal web-based documentation to the new platform.
- Payroll, 6%
Aided in the maintenance of university departmental accounts payable/receivable, invoicing and payroll.
- Management System, 6%
Input commitments/obligations in to financial management systems and verify accuracy.
- Provides Administrative Support, 5%
Manage Executive member of management schedule and provides administrative support to alternate management as well as clients.
- Administrative Tasks, 5%
Maintained suspense logs for all correspondences and action documents -Successfully managed to accomplish a full array of administrative tasks as required.
- Administrative Functions, 5%
Provided administrative functions to multiple Professors, prepared Exams, re-typed manuscripts, answer phones, greeted students and parents.
Common skills that an administrative and program specialist uses to do their job include "sharepoint," "payroll," and "management system." You can find details on the most important administrative and program specialist responsibilities below.
Interpersonal skills. One of the key soft skills for an administrative and program specialist to have is interpersonal skills. You can see how this relates to what administrative and program specialists do because "secretaries and administrative assistants interact with clients, customers, or staff." Additionally, an administrative and program specialist resume shows how administrative and program specialists use interpersonal skills: "develop and enhanced skills in areas such as quality improvement, customer service and interpersonal skills. "
Organizational skills. Another essential skill to perform administrative and program specialist duties is organizational skills. Administrative and program specialists responsibilities require that "secretaries and administrative assistants keep files, folders, and schedules in order so that an office runs efficiently." Administrative and program specialists also use organizational skills in their role according to a real resume snippet: "process salary information and maintain organizational charts. "
Writing skills. This is an important skill for administrative and program specialists to perform their duties. For an example of how administrative and program specialist responsibilities depend on this skill, consider that "secretaries and administrative assistants write memos and emails when communicating with managers, employees, and customers." This excerpt from a resume also shows how vital it is to everyday roles and responsibilities of an administrative and program specialist: "experienced in meeting coordination, research, data entry, transcription, filing, payroll and writing press releases. ".
See the full list of administrative and program specialist skills
The three companies that hire the most administrative and program specialists are:
- University of Maryland, Baltimore3 administrative and program specialists jobs
- University of Tennessee3 administrative and program specialists jobs
- UNC Health Care3 administrative and program specialists jobs
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Compare different administrative and program specialists
Administrative and program specialist vs. Staff assistant
A staff assistant is a company employee who is tasked to support and help staff members to adequately fill their roles and assuring that the organization is running efficiently. Working under an administrative supervisor, an assistant's tasks include answering phone calls, scheduling meetings or appointments, and booking the necessary travels. Moreover, an assistant should have excellent skills in written and verbal communication and is highly organized with minimal supervision. An assistant may be able to work in a wide variety of settings, which includes healthcare facilities and government offices.
There are some key differences in the responsibilities of each position. For example, administrative and program specialist responsibilities require skills like "management system," "financial management," "state regulations," and "office management." Meanwhile a typical staff assistant has skills in areas such as "customer service," "patients," "data entry," and "office procedures." This difference in skills reveals the differences in what each career does.
Staff assistants earn the highest salaries when working in the professional industry, with an average yearly salary of $50,475. On the other hand, administrative and program specialists are paid more in the government industry with an average salary of $53,303.The education levels that staff assistants earn slightly differ from administrative and program specialists. In particular, staff assistants are 4.6% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree than an administrative and program specialist. Additionally, they're 0.6% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Administrative and program specialist vs. Executive secretary
The primary role of executive secretaries is to provide clerical support to an executive or a high-level administrator. They are the ones who conduct the different administrative support tasks for executives which include managing the calendar of executives, answering phone calls, conducting research and sorting important files, preparing and proofreading monthly reports and industry documents that are relevant to the role of executives, and performing some bookkeeping activities such as invoice creation and office inventory tracking.
In addition to the difference in salary, there are some other key differences worth noting. For example, administrative and program specialist responsibilities are more likely to require skills like "sharepoint," "management system," "statistical data," and "medicaid." Meanwhile, an executive secretary has duties that require skills in areas such as "office procedures," "financial statements," "secretarial support," and "clerical support." These differences highlight just how different the day-to-day in each role looks.
Executive secretaries may earn a lower salary than administrative and program specialists, but executive secretaries earn the most pay in the government industry with an average salary of $55,053. On the other hand, administrative and program specialists receive higher pay in the government industry, where they earn an average salary of $53,303.executive secretaries earn lower levels of education than administrative and program specialists in general. They're 7.3% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree and 0.6% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Administrative and program specialist vs. Executive administrator
An executive administrator is responsible for assisting the senior management staff in planning strategies and analyzing business decisions to achieve the company's goals and objectives. Executive administrators schedule meetings and handle appointments, as well as helping with the implementation of training and programs for the employees to reach their maximum operational potential and increase productivity to meet projects' demands and ensure the highest customer satisfaction. They must have exceptional time-management and organizational skills, especially on performing administrative and clerical duties as needed, as well as excellent communication skills to respond to clients' inquiries, concerns, and requests.
The required skills of the two careers differ considerably. For example, administrative and program specialists are more likely to have skills like "management system," "administrative assistance," "statistical data," and "medicaid." But a executive administrator is more likely to have skills like "customer service," "office procedures," "data entry," and "financial statements."
Executive administrators make a very good living in the technology industry with an average annual salary of $58,323. On the other hand, administrative and program specialists are paid the highest salary in the government industry, with average annual pay of $53,303.Most executive administrators achieve a similar degree level compared to administrative and program specialists. For example, they're 2.6% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree, and 0.4% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Administrative and program specialist vs. Program administrator
Program administrators are responsible for planning, directing, and coordinating their organization's program or service. Their duties and responsibilities may vary depending on the industry they work at, such as educational, community, and social services. Among these duties are selecting and supervising the staff to manage a certain program or project, managing the program's budget, and evaluating the success of a program. To become successful in this role, a program administrator must have in-depth knowledge of project management disciplines, leadership skills, and decision-making and problem-solving skills.
Types of administrative and program specialist
Updated January 8, 2025
