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What does a front office administrator do?

Updated January 8, 2025
6 min read
What does a front office administrator do

Front desk administrators work for different industries at the front desk of the front office area. They are responsible mostly for handling calls and transfers these calls to extension/local numbers. They manage booking travel appointments, answering inquiries, doing paperwork, and maintaining a professional image. They greet visitors and attend to visitors' inquiries. In addition, they assist other departments by performing other miscellaneous administrative tasks as required, and they often serve as ushers during client visits. Moreover, this job requires excellent interpersonal skills and good communication skills.

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Front office administrator responsibilities

Here are examples of responsibilities from real front office administrator resumes:

  • Manage correspondence and documentation for OSHA compliance and hold some accounts payable responsibilities by coding invoices for processing and payment.
  • Handle day to day transactions, schedule patients, place patients onto traction tables and administer E-Stem/Ice.
  • Observe and perform patient's therapies such as, electric muscle stimulation, mechanical traction and acupuncture.
  • Cross train in veterinary technician duties including vaccines, administering medications, medical treatment for kennel and hospitalize patients.
  • Follow HIPPA protocol for sterilization of rooms/instruments.
  • Create a neck comparison using patient's cervical x-ray.
  • Recommend and sell nutritional support, lumbar supports, posture pumps, and cervical contour pillows.
  • Create PowerPoint presentations used for business development.

Front office administrator skills and personality traits

We calculated that 21% of Front Office Administrators are proficient in Patients, Front Desk, and Appointment Scheduling. They’re also known for soft skills such as Communication skills, Computer skills, and Integrity.

We break down the percentage of Front Office Administrators that have these skills listed on their resume here:

  • Patients, 21%

    Cross trained in veterinary technician duties including vaccines, administering medications, medical treatment for kennel and hospitalized patients.

  • Front Desk, 6%

    Managed medical front desk in areas of manual and computerized scheduling, billing, and medical/insurance records management.

  • Appointment Scheduling, 6%

    Provided general office support including contacting pharmacy/renewing prescriptions, filing, faxing, stocking examination rooms and appointment scheduling and confirmations.

  • Phone Calls, 6%

    Fielded all incoming phone calls, and collected all applicable co-pays, deductibles, balances, and cosmetic payments in full.

  • Excellent Interpersonal, 6%

    Maintained excellent interpersonal, project coordination, and vendor management skills.

  • Data Entry, 5%

    Worked closely with Data Entry Coordinator and Regional Business Office Manager regarding billing questions and patient concerns.

Most front office administrators use their skills in "patients," "front desk," and "appointment scheduling" to do their jobs. You can find more detail on essential front office administrator responsibilities here:

Customer-service skills. front office administrator responsibilities often require "customer-service skills." The duties that rely on this skill are shown by the fact that "general office clerks often provide general information to company staff, customers, or the public." This resume example shows what front office administrators do with customer-service skills on a typical day: "complete and submit various insurance claims for customers. "

Detail oriented. A commonly-found skill in front office administrator job descriptions, "detail oriented" is essential to what front office administrators do. Front office administrator responsibilities rely on this skill because "general office clerks perform many clerical tasks that require attention to detail, such as preparing bills." You can also see how front office administrator duties rely on detail oriented in this resume example: "front desk dental office admin - see detailed resume"

Organizational skills. Another skill commonly found on front office administrator job descriptions is "organizational skills." It can come up quite often in front office administrator duties, since "general office clerks file and retrieve records." Here's an example from a resume of how this skill fits into day-to-day front office administrator responsibilities: "demonstrated strong organizational skills in the proper charting, filing and maintenance of all patient demographic information. "

See the full list of front office administrator skills

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Compare different front office administrators

Front office administrator vs. Office clerk

Office clerks are administrative employees who handle clerical activities for the organization. They are in charge of managing company records, organizing and storing documents, filing and sorting hard copies of documents, and liaising with other departments or external partners. They are also in charge of handling and scheduling meetings and appointments, managing the reservation of office meeting rooms, and manning telephone lines. Office clerks may also be in charge of ordering office supplies, preparing purchase requisitions for office needs, sending out and receiving official company documents, and other correspondences.

The annual salary of office clerks is $2,589 lower than the average salary of front office administrators.While the two careers have a salary gap, they share some of the same responsibilities. Employees in both front office administrator and office clerk positions are skilled in front desk, data entry, and customer service.

There are some key differences in the responsibilities of each position. For example, front office administrator responsibilities require skills like "patients," "appointment scheduling," "phone calls," and "excellent interpersonal." Meanwhile a typical office clerk has skills in areas such as "office machines," "word processing," "scheduling appointments," and "clerical support." This difference in skills reveals the differences in what each career does.

Office clerks really shine in the transportation industry with an average salary of $31,504. Comparatively, front office administrators tend to make the most money in the non profits industry with an average salary of $34,991.office clerks tend to reach similar levels of education than front office administrators. In fact, office clerks are 0.6% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree and 0.0% less likely to have a Doctoral Degree.

Front office administrator vs. Administrative receptionist

An administrative receptionist is responsible for performing administrative tasks, handling visitors' inquiries and concerns, verifying appointments, and leading them to the appropriate personnel and department, as well as handling and routing calls. Administrative receptionists also keep records of the staff meeting and executive conference, including company and promotional events. They receive packages and mail, sort documents, manage office supply inventories, create incident reports, and report suspicious guests within the premises. An administrative receptionist must have excellent communication and customer service skills, especially on resolving and escalating complaints.

Administrative receptionist positions earn lower pay than front office administrator roles. They earn a $2,014 lower salary than front office administrators per year.A few skills overlap for front office administrators and administrative receptionists. Resumes from both professions show that the duties of each career rely on skills like "patients," "front desk," and "appointment scheduling. "

In addition to the difference in salary, there are some other key differences worth noting. For example, front office administrator responsibilities are more likely to require skills like "excellent interpersonal," "excellent organizational," "patient care," and "patient check." Meanwhile, an administrative receptionist has duties that require skills in areas such as "word processing," "telephone switchboard," "greeting visitors," and "meeting rooms." These differences highlight just how different the day-to-day in each role looks.

Administrative receptionists earn a lower average salary than front office administrators. But administrative receptionists earn the highest pay in the technology industry, with an average salary of $32,669. Additionally, front office administrators earn the highest salaries in the non profits with average pay of $34,991 annually.Average education levels between the two professions vary. Administrative receptionists tend to reach similar levels of education than front office administrators. In fact, they're 0.0% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree and 0.0% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.

Front office administrator vs. Office worker

An office worker is responsible for performing administrative and clerical duties to support the daily operations of the business. Office workers assist in receiving calls to respond to the clients' inquiries and concerns, as well as welcoming visitors, verifying their appointments, and leading them to the appropriate personnel and department for their business needs. They also do data processing, sorting mail, and filing documents for easy retrieval and reference, especially during meetings and company activities.

On average scale, office workers bring in higher salaries than front office administrators. In fact, they earn a $7,487 higher salary per year.By looking over several front office administrators and office workers resumes, we found that both roles require similar skills in their day-to-day duties, such as "front desk," "data entry," and "customer service." But beyond that, the careers look very different.

The required skills of the two careers differ considerably. For example, front office administrators are more likely to have skills like "patients," "appointment scheduling," "phone calls," and "excellent interpersonal." But a office worker is more likely to have skills like "scheduling appointments," "word processing," "office machines," and "computer programs."

Office workers earn the best pay in the education industry, where they command an average salary of $40,267. Front office administrators earn the highest pay from the non profits industry, with an average salary of $34,991.office workers typically earn similar educational levels compared to front office administrators. Specifically, they're 0.8% more likely to graduate with a Master's Degree, and 0.1% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.

Front office administrator vs. Business office associate

Business office associates are responsible for providing clerical and administrative support to the office staff for efficient and smooth operations of the office operations. They typically perform a number of tasks that include managing and entering data to spreadsheets and databases, organizing and maintaining files and documents, and assisting with bookkeeping activities. Additionally, they are responsible for managing work projects and overall office management, collaborating with other departments, and maintaining financial documents and customer information. Business office associates are also expected to oversee human resource activities such as handling of employment forms and administering health insurance.

Business office associates average a lower salary than the annual salary of front office administrators. The difference is about $3,887 per year.While both front office administrators and business office associates complete day-to-day tasks using similar skills like patients, front desk, and data entry, the two careers vary in some skills.Each job also requires different skills to carry out their responsibilities. A front office administrator uses "appointment scheduling," "phone calls," "excellent interpersonal," and "excellent organizational." Business office associates are more likely to have duties that require skills in "vehicle sales," "payable functions," "cash management," and "proper paperwork. "In general, business office associates hold similar degree levels compared to front office administrators. Business office associates are 1.6% more likely to earn their Master's Degree and 0.2% more likely to graduate with a Doctoral Degree.

Types of front office administrator

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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