How to hire a front desk administrative assistant

How to hire a front desk administrative assistant, step by step

Here's a step-by-step front desk administrative assistant hiring guide:

• Step 1: Identify your hiring needs
• Step 2: Create an ideal candidate profile
• Step 3: Make a budget
• Step 4: Write a front desk administrative assistant job description
• Step 5: Post your job
• Step 6: Interview candidates
• Step 7: Send a job offer and onboard your new front desk administrative assistant
• Step 8: Go through the hiring process checklist

What does a front desk administrative assistant do?

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1. Identify your hiring needs

   Before you start hiring a front desk administrative assistant, identify what type of worker you actually need. Certain positions might call for a full-time employee, while others can be done by a part-time worker or contractor.

   Determine employee vs contractor status

   Is the person you're thinking of hiring a US citizen or green card holder?

   Yes

   No

   Hiring the perfect front desk administrative assistant also involves considering the ideal background you'd like them to have. Depending on what industry or field they have experience in, they'll bring different skills to the job. It's also important to consider what levels of seniority and education the job requires and what kind of salary such a candidate would likely demand.

   Here's a comparison of front desk administrative assistant salaries for various roles:

   Type of Front Desk Administrative Assistant	Description	Hourly rate
   Front Desk Administrative Assistant	Secretaries and administrative assistants perform clerical and administrative duties. They organize files, prepare documents, schedule appointments, and support other staff.	$12-18
   Administrative Support	Administrative support specialists provide different types of governmental assistance. They carry out varied clerical duties in almost all industries... Show more	$12-25
   Administrative Staff	As the administrative staff, they primarily provide administrative and secretarial support for the department. Typically, they do report-writing, filing and scheduling, and payroll... Show more	$27-48

2. Create an ideal candidate profile

   Common skills:

   • Customer Service
   • Patients
   • Data Entry
   • Phone Calls
   • Front Desk Operations
   • Check-In
   • Appointment Scheduling
   • PowerPoint
   • Office Equipment
   • Payroll
   • Multi-Line Phone System
   • HR
   • Word Processing
   • Telephone Calls

   Check all skills

   Responsibilities:

   • Manage day-to-day operations including scheduling and coordinating appointments, verify patient insurance, prepare correspondences between medical providers and their patients.
   • Process member and team member paperwork; including member cancellations, updates, new hires/terminations/status changes, and payroll paperwork.
   • Monitor and complete payroll information.
   • Demonstrate great initiative in assisting tech team with minor technical issues and create PowerPoint presentations for business strategic purposes.
   • Register patients, verify eligibility of insurance, interview them in order to obtain other demographic information that are needed.
   • Manage day-to-day operations including scheduling and coordinating appointments, verify patient insurance, prepare correspondences between medical providers and their patients.

   More front desk administrative assistant duties

3. Make a budget

   Including a salary range in the front desk administrative assistant job description is a good way to get more applicants. A front desk administrative assistant salary can be affected by several factors, such as the location of the job, the level of experience, education, certifications, and the employer's prestige.

   For example, the average salary for a front desk administrative assistant in Montana may be lower than in Connecticut, and an entry-level engineer typically earns less than a senior-level front desk administrative assistant. Additionally, a front desk administrative assistant with lots of experience in the field may command a higher salary as a result.

   Average front desk administrative assistant salary

   $15.88hourly

   $33,037 yearly

   ---

   Entry-level front desk administrative assistant salary

   $27,000 yearly salary

   Updated December 5, 2025

   Average front desk administrative assistant salary by state

   Rank	State	Avg. salary	Hourly rate
   1	Massachusetts	$41,878	$20
   2	Washington	$40,369	$19
   3	Minnesota	$39,578	$19
   4	California	$38,531	$19
   5	Oregon	$37,332	$18
   6	Ohio	$36,462	$18
   7	New Jersey	$35,516	$17
   8	Colorado	$34,787	$17
   9	Maryland	$33,560	$16
   10	North Dakota	$33,510	$16
   11	Tennessee	$33,336	$16
   12	New York	$33,311	$16
   13	North Carolina	$33,173	$16
   14	Virginia	$32,989	$16
   15	Arizona	$32,633	$16
   16	Missouri	$32,521	$16
   17	Wisconsin	$32,418	$16
   18	New Mexico	$32,246	$16
   19	Texas	$30,546	$15
   20	Indiana	$29,967	$14

   Average front desk administrative assistant salary by company

   Company

   Rank	Company	Average salary	Hourly rate	Job openings
   1	University of California-Berkeley	$42,867	$20.61
   2	ZS	$41,811	$20.10	2
   3	PepsiCo	$39,058	$18.78	5
   4	DLR Group	$38,764	$18.64
   5	Guidewire Software	$37,059	$17.82	2
   6	Exponent	$36,569	$17.58	4
   7	Moffatt & Nichol	$36,549	$17.57
   8	The Judge Group	$35,914	$17.27	1
   9	Keller Williams Capital Properties	$35,735	$17.18	2
   10	Equity Real Estate, LLC	$35,590	$17.11
   11	Wolanski Eugene G MD	$34,408	$16.54
   12	Law Offices Of Dan Newlin	$34,390	$16.53
   13	Wesley Homes	$33,804	$16.25
   14	Mary's Center	$33,506	$16.11
   15	Lee Hecht Harrison	$33,417	$16.07	22
   16	Terrapin Beer Co.	$32,982	$15.86
   17	Tews	$32,911	$15.82	5
   18	American Residential Services	$32,903	$15.82	1
   19	PTE Systems International	$32,794	$15.77
   20	Camden	$32,771	$15.76	2

4. Writing a front desk administrative assistant job description

   A front desk administrative assistant job description should include a summary of the role, required skills, and a list of responsibilities. It's also good to include a salary range and the first name of the hiring manager. To help get you started, here's an example of a front desk administrative assistant job description:

   Front desk administrative assistant job description example

   Who we are: Prelude Services is an IT Services Company focused on providing innovative, secure, and high-quality IT Management Services. For over 24 years, Prelude has provided IT outsourcing and support services for senior living, housing, home and community services organizations.
   
   What you will be doing: Looking for an exciting opportunity with a dynamic and fast-growing business? Great, we are looking for a very resourceful and reliable Administrative Assistant . Prelude is a busy, high-volume but friendly environment that will suit an organized person with a great eye for detail and plenty of team spirit. If you are professional, friendly and open manner, demonstrate a positive attitude, and actively problem solve, apply today!
   
   Our Administrative Assistant must take pride in their work, as they keep the gears of progress moving smoothly by providing administrative assistance to all groups, interacting with employees, clients and vendors, answering the telephone and directing calls, inventory and ordering of office/building/breakroom supplies, maintaining office equipment, managing vehicle fleet, monitoring office cleanliness, coordinating building repair and maintenance, distributing the mail, planning and facilitating meetings, events, catering, and coordination of logistics for marketing/charitable events. You must have the ability to work in the office M-F 8am-5pm, with remote work flexibility.
   
   What you need to apply:

   1. An AMAZING attitude and the ability to take pride in your work!
   2. Minimum of two years of experience in administrative assistance support roles.
   3. Excellent administrative, communication and computer skills.
   4. Ability to multi-task in busy office atmosphere.
   5. Strong focus on customer service.
   6. Willingness to perform a variety of duties which support all groups.
   7. Demonstrated proficiency with Microsoft Office Products.

   
   Our fast-paced and supportive environment will offer you lots of benefits - a competitive salary, and opportunities for training and development.
   
   What you will love about us: We offer a wide range of benefits to our employees; medical (HSA), dental, vision, 401k (with match), Company paid LTD, STD and Life Insurance, which you are eligible for the first of the month after your date of employment. Other great benefits Prelude offers... casual dress, 6 paid holidays and PTO, accrue 20 days your first year! Our culture is guided by our core values: respect for others, personal responsibility, sound judgment, innovativeness, and open and honest communication.
   
   Prelude is committed to creating a diverse environment and is proud to be an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, gender, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, national origin, genetics, disability, age, or veteran status.

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5. Post your job

   There are various strategies that you can use to find the right front desk administrative assistant for your business:

   • Consider promoting from within or recruiting from your existing workforce.
   • Ask for referrals from friends, family members, and current employees.
   • Attend job fairs at local colleges to find candidates who meet your education requirements.
   • Use social media platforms like LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter to reach potential job candidates.

   Post your job online:

   • Post your front desk administrative assistant job on Zippia to find and recruit front desk administrative assistant candidates who meet your exact specifications.
   • Use field-specific websites.
   • Post a job on free websites.

6. Interview candidates

   During your first interview to recruit front desk administrative assistants, engage with candidates to learn about their interest in the role and experience in the field. During the following interview, you'll be able to go into more detail about the company, the position, and the responsibilities.

   It's also good to ask about candidates' unique skills and talents. You can move on to the technical interview if a candidate is good enough for the next step.

   The right interview questions can help you assess a candidate's hard skills, behavioral intelligence, and soft skills.

7. Send a job offer and onboard your new front desk administrative assistant

   Once you have selected a candidate for the front desk administrative assistant position, it is time to create an offer letter. In addition to salary, the offer letter should include details about benefits and perks that are available to the employee. Ensuring your offer is competitive is vital, as qualified candidates may be considering other job opportunities. The candidate may wish to negotiate the terms of the offer, and it is important to be open to discussion and reach a mutually beneficial agreement. After the offer has been accepted, it is a good idea to formalize the agreement with a contract.

   You should also follow up with applicants who don't get the job with an email letting them know that you've filled the position.

   To prepare for the new employee's start date, you can create an onboarding schedule and complete any necessary paperwork, such as employee action forms and onboarding documents like I-9 forms, benefits enrollment, and federal and state tax forms. Human Resources should also ensure that a new employee file is created.

8. Go through the hiring process checklist

   • Determine employee type (full-time, part-time, contractor, etc.)
   • Submit a job requisition form to the HR department
   • Define job responsibilities and requirements
   • Establish budget and timeline
   • Determine hiring decision makers for the role
   • Write job description
   • Post job on job boards, company website, etc.
   • Promote the job internally
   • Process applications through applicant tracking system
   • Review resumes and cover letters
   • Shortlist candidates for screening
   • Hold phone/virtual interview screening with first round of candidates
   • Conduct in-person interviews with top candidates from first round
   • Score candidates based on weighted criteria (e.g., experience, education, background, cultural fit, skill set, etc.)
   • Conduct background checks on top candidates
   • Check references of top candidates
   • Consult with HR and hiring decision makers on job offer specifics
   • Extend offer to top candidate(s)
   • Receive formal job offer acceptance and signed employment contract
   • Inform other candidates that the position has been filled
   • Set and communicate onboarding schedule to new hire(s)
   • Complete new hire paperwork (i9, benefits enrollment, tax forms, etc.)

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