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Finance/administrative assistant vs administrative staff

The differences between finance/administrative assistants and administrative staff can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 1-2 years to become both a finance/administrative assistant and an administrative staff. Additionally, an administrative staff has an average salary of $77,101, which is higher than the $39,756 average annual salary of a finance/administrative assistant.

The top three skills for a finance/administrative assistant include data entry, powerpoint and travel arrangements. The most important skills for an administrative staff are telephone calls, word processing, and travel arrangements.

Finance/administrative assistant vs administrative staff overview

Finance/Administrative AssistantAdministrative Staff
Yearly salary$39,756$77,101
Hourly rate$19.11$37.07
Growth rate-8%-8%
Number of jobs127,379119,030
Job satisfaction--
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 55%Bachelor's Degree, 63%
Average age5050
Years of experience22

What does a finance/administrative assistant do?

A finance administrative assistant is responsible for performing clerical duties and basic bookkeeping tasks to support financial operations under the supervision of financial executives. Finance administrative assistants generate financial and business reports, update account information on the database, assist with payroll release, and help the accounting staff in resolving financial discrepancies and disputes. They also reach out to the clients for payments and billing, respond to their inquiries and concerns, and escalate their complaints to the supervisor for immediate resolution.

What does an administrative staff do?

As the administrative staff, they primarily provide administrative and secretarial support for the department. Typically, they do report-writing, filing and scheduling, and payroll. They plan department weekly meetings, schedule conference calls, and work on solving administrative related concerns and issues. They do a complex task that involves multi-tasking from the preparation of department reports, analyzing data, and finding solutions. It is a requirement to be an experienced, collaborator, and trained cross-functional communicator. Moreover, other duties will include scheduling company-initiated activities, meetings, and events.

Finance/administrative assistant vs administrative staff salary

Finance/administrative assistants and administrative staff have different pay scales, as shown below.

Finance/Administrative AssistantAdministrative Staff
Average salary$39,756$77,101
Salary rangeBetween $29,000 And $52,000Between $58,000 And $101,000
Highest paying CityWashington, DCSan Francisco, CA
Highest paying stateConnecticutCalifornia
Best paying companyTALENT Software ServicesNVIDIA
Best paying industryProfessionalProfessional

Differences between finance/administrative assistant and administrative staff education

There are a few differences between a finance/administrative assistant and an administrative staff in terms of educational background:

Finance/Administrative AssistantAdministrative Staff
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 55%Bachelor's Degree, 63%
Most common majorBusinessBusiness
Most common collegeUniversity of PennsylvaniaUniversity of Pennsylvania

Finance/administrative assistant vs administrative staff demographics

Here are the differences between finance/administrative assistants' and administrative staff' demographics:

Finance/Administrative AssistantAdministrative Staff
Average age5050
Gender ratioMale, 12.8% Female, 87.2%Male, 31.9% Female, 68.1%
Race ratioBlack or African American, 9.4% Unknown, 3.9% Hispanic or Latino, 16.4% Asian, 3.8% White, 65.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%Black or African American, 9.2% Unknown, 3.9% Hispanic or Latino, 16.2% Asian, 3.8% White, 66.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%
LGBT Percentage6%6%

Differences between finance/administrative assistant and administrative staff duties and responsibilities

Finance/administrative assistant example responsibilities.

  • Initiate both domestic and international wire transfers as well as ACH payments to manage vendor payments.
  • Manage all AR, AP, sales orders, work orders, and prepay inventory reconciliation.
  • Orchestrate special events and reservations; manage customer relations and provide exemplary service to all customers.
  • Alphabetize, sort, files FAFSA's code, and assemble letters for mass mailing.
  • Help students and officials file and summit FAFSA application forms and develop and maintain spreadsheets for documenting cases.
  • Process accounts payable and receivable utilizing QuickBooks.
  • Show more

Administrative staff example responsibilities.

  • Support medical doctors, manage sensitive and confidential records pertaining to high risk patients with emphasis on accuracy.
  • Prepare PowerPoint presentations for management distribution.
  • Maintain payroll information by collect, calculate and enter data.
  • Prepare briefing slides and presentation material using PowerPoint and Visio.
  • Maintain accounting statements, databases, and other financial information such as payroll coding and budget preparation
  • Provide cloud base customer relationship management with Salesforce for optimization in coordination of the workforce development program and other community orient events
  • Show more

Finance/administrative assistant vs administrative staff skills

Common finance/administrative assistant skills
  • Data Entry, 11%
  • PowerPoint, 10%
  • Travel Arrangements, 7%
  • Purchase Orders, 6%
  • Financial Aid, 5%
  • Expense Reports, 5%
Common administrative staff skills
  • Telephone Calls, 19%
  • Word Processing, 16%
  • Travel Arrangements, 7%
  • Payroll, 6%
  • Personnel Actions, 6%
  • Financial Reports, 5%

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