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What does an administrative support associate do?

Updated January 8, 2025
6 min read

An administrative support associate's role is to perform clerical support tasks and take part in overseeing different office procedures, ensuring efficiency and smooth workflow. Typically, their responsibilities revolve around processing and organizing documents, answering calls and correspondence, supervising budgets and schedules, arranging meetings and travel appointments, and procuring office supplies as needed. They may also take part in training new employees, overseeing the performance of different departments, relaying information to various personnel, and implementing the company's policies and regulations.

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Administrative support associate responsibilities

Here are examples of responsibilities from real administrative support associate resumes:

  • Orchestrate special events and reservations; manage customer relations and provide exemplary service to all customers.
  • Assist with migration from LiveLink to SharePoint.
  • Maintain and update SharePoint on daily, weekly and monthly basis.
  • Provide support for data analysis, production of reports, and PowerPoint presentations upon request.
  • Complete candidate dispositions post interview via Taleo.
  • Verify accuracy of payroll and make corrections and reconciliations as needed.
  • Review claims by lawyers and patients and determine resolutions before court involvement.
  • Ensure payroll are administered in compliance with applicable federal and state regulations.
  • Implement a solution for staffing restructure that reduce overall salary expense while maintaining productivity for a rehabilitation inpatient nursing unit.
  • Enter claims for reimbursement in DTS for travelers that do not have access to DTS.
  • Approve and initiate all temporary duty travel requests for the branch personnel using DTS system.
  • Create database in SQL incorporating data from order systems to assist logistics personnel regulating product receive in the warehouse.

Administrative support associate skills and personality traits

We calculated that 15% of Administrative Support Associates are proficient in Customer Service, Administrative Tasks, and Data Entry. They’re also known for soft skills such as Interpersonal skills, Writing skills, and Organizational skills.

We break down the percentage of Administrative Support Associates that have these skills listed on their resume here:

  • Customer Service, 15%

    Provide excellent customer service to students seeking academic advisement by answering queries regarding courses, registration and educational plans.

  • Administrative Tasks, 9%

    Performed operational administrative tasks which included the maintenance of office supply inventory.

  • Data Entry, 9%

    Performed clerical assignments including data entry and scheduling.

  • Patients, 9%

    Reviewed claims by lawyers and patients and determined resolutions before court involvement.

  • PowerPoint, 7%

    Compose, edit, and proofread letters, faculty annual reports, PowerPoint presentations, Excel spreadsheets and grants.

  • Payroll, 7%

    Ensured payroll was administered in compliance with applicable federal and state regulations.

Common skills that an administrative support associate uses to do their job include "customer service," "administrative tasks," and "data entry." You can find details on the most important administrative support associate responsibilities below.

Interpersonal skills. To carry out their duties, the most important skill for an administrative support associate to have is interpersonal skills. Their role and responsibilities require that "secretaries and administrative assistants interact with clients, customers, or staff." Administrative support associates often use interpersonal skills in their day-to-day job, as shown by this real resume: "utilized excellent interpersonal skills in dealing with co- workers, the public, patients, and physicians. "

Writing skills. Many administrative support associate duties rely on writing skills. "secretaries and administrative assistants write memos and emails when communicating with managers, employees, and customers," so an administrative support associate will need this skill often in their role. This resume example is just one of many ways administrative support associate responsibilities rely on writing skills: "mortgage imaging, writing, and data entry"

Organizational skills. administrative support associates are also known for organizational skills, which are critical to their duties. You can see how this skill relates to administrative support associate responsibilities, because "secretaries and administrative assistants keep files, folders, and schedules in order so that an office runs efficiently." An administrative support associate resume example shows how organizational skills is used in the workplace: "booked discounted trip reservations for large school and organizational groups. "

Most common administrative support associate skills

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Compare different administrative support associates

Administrative support associate vs. Support

A support employee is responsible for assisting the business operations and responding to customers' inquiries and concerns regarding its goods and services. Support logs all customers' interaction and escalates potential complaints to the appropriate department. They also help with implementing strategic procedures to improve operations and reach maximum productivity. A support employee must have excellent communication and customer service skills, ensuring clients' satisfaction with the services and maintain good feedback to boost the company's brand, attract more clients, and increase revenues.

The annual salary of supports is $2,324 higher than the average salary of administrative support associates.While the two careers have a salary gap, they share some of the same responsibilities. Employees in both administrative support associate and support positions are skilled in customer service, data entry, and patients.

There are some key differences in the responsibilities of each position. For example, administrative support associate responsibilities require skills like "administrative tasks," "hr liaison," "excellent organizational," and "office equipment." Meanwhile a typical support has skills in areas such as "cash management," "customer satisfaction," "inventory control," and "ladders." This difference in skills reveals the differences in what each career does.

Supports earn the highest salaries when working in the professional industry, with an average yearly salary of $50,563. On the other hand, administrative support associates are paid more in the technology industry with an average salary of $35,907.On average, supports reach similar levels of education than administrative support associates. Supports are 2.5% less likely to earn a Master's Degree and 0.3% more likely to graduate with a Doctoral Degree.

Administrative support associate vs. Support staff

School support staff provide specialized instructional and student support while utilizing school facilities. They often include diverse staff members whose main role is to ensure that students learn in a supportive and safe learning environment. It is also their duty to enhance school climate by promoting the involvement of parent and family in education as well as to encourage trusting, positive student relationships. They should inhibit positive behavior and send uplifting messages to students as they often connect with them throughout the day.

Support staff positions earn lower pay than administrative support associate roles. They earn a $2,131 lower salary than administrative support associates per year.A few skills overlap for administrative support associates and desk clerks supervisors. Resumes from both professions show that the duties of each career rely on skills like "customer service," "powerpoint," and "office equipment. "

In addition to the difference in salary, there are some other key differences worth noting. For example, administrative support associate responsibilities are more likely to require skills like "administrative tasks," "data entry," "patients," and "payroll." Meanwhile, a support staff has duties that require skills in areas such as "developmental disabilities," "mental health," "meal preparation," and "direct care." These differences highlight just how different the day-to-day in each role looks.

Desk clerks supervisors earn a lower average salary than administrative support associates. But desk clerks supervisors earn the highest pay in the finance industry, with an average salary of $32,113. Additionally, administrative support associates earn the highest salaries in the technology with average pay of $35,907 annually.desk clerks supervisors earn similar levels of education than administrative support associates in general. They're 2.7% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree and 0.3% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.

Administrative support associate vs. Support clerk

A support clerk is primarily in charge of performing administrative support tasks in an office, making the daily workflow easier. Their responsibilities typically include preparing and processing documentation, answering and forwarding calls, handling correspondence, disseminating and organizing files, and running errands as needed. They may also update databases, maintaining records of all transactions. Furthermore, as a support clerk, it is essential to maintain an active communication line with staff, coordinating to ensure efficient and smooth workplace operations.

On average, support clerks earn higher salaries than administrative support associates, with a $1,256 difference per year.By looking over several administrative support associates and support clerks resumes, we found that both roles require similar skills in their day-to-day duties, such as "customer service," "data entry," and "patients." But beyond that, the careers look very different.

There are many key differences between these two careers, including some of the skills required to perform responsibilities within each role. For example, an administrative support associate is likely to be skilled in "administrative tasks," "payroll," "hr," and "hr liaison," while a typical support clerk is skilled in "patient care," "computer system," "inventory control," and "financial transactions."

Support clerks earn the best pay in the government industry, where they command an average salary of $35,567. Administrative support associates earn the highest pay from the technology industry, with an average salary of $35,907.When it comes to education, support clerks tend to earn lower degree levels compared to administrative support associates. In fact, they're 5.1% less likely to earn a Master's Degree, and 0.3% less likely to graduate with a Doctoral Degree.

Administrative support associate vs. Assistant/clinic administrator

An assistant/clinic administrator is in charge of overseeing the daily operations in clinics or similar establishments. It is their duty to set goals and guidelines, manage budgets and schedules, supervise medical staff, and develop strategies to optimize operations. They may also perform clerical tasks such as producing progress reports and presentations, maintaining records, handling calls and correspondence, organizing meetings, and liaising with external parties such as suppliers and vendors. Furthermore, an assistant/clinic administrator must encourage the workforce to reach goals while implementing the clinic's policies and regulations.

Assistant/clinic administrators average a lower salary than the annual salary of administrative support associates. The difference is about $990 per year.While both administrative support associates and assistant/clinic administrators complete day-to-day tasks using similar skills like customer service, administrative tasks, and data entry, the two careers vary in some skills.

Even though a few skill sets overlap between administrative support associates and assistant/clinic administrators, there are some differences that are important to note. For one, an administrative support associate might have more use for skills like "hr liaison," "i-9," "store management," and "interview process." Meanwhile, some responsibilities of assistant/clinic administrators require skills like "patient care," "cpr," "appointment scheduling," and "vital signs. "

Assistant/clinic administrators reach similar levels of education compared to administrative support associates, in general. The difference is that they're 2.6% more likely to earn a Master's Degree, and 0.5% more likely to graduate with a Doctoral Degree.

Types of administrative support associate

Updated January 8, 2025

Zippia Research Team
Zippia Team

Editorial Staff

The Zippia Research Team has spent countless hours reviewing resumes, job postings, and government data to determine what goes into getting a job in each phase of life. Professional writers and data scientists comprise the Zippia Research Team.

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