What does an office assistant do?
Office assistants perform various tasks to ensure that the business runs organized and efficient. An office assistant must possess excellent communication and multi-tasking skills to handle essential duties such as scheduling meetings, monitoring office supplies, storing documents and necessary paperwork, handling customer inquiries and appointments, coordinating in company events, and accomplishing other clerical tasks and administrative support. Office assistants are also required to communicate any observation that would possibly make an impact on the company's performance.
Office assistant responsibilities
Here are examples of responsibilities from real office assistant resumes:
- Manage filing, photocopying, collating, and faxing public and seal case documents.
- Manage CI s SharePoint pages and serve as CI s subject matter expert on SharePoint working groups.
- Manage operational FedEx relationship through order fulfillment, shipment tracking, and communication with parties involve in shipment transaction.
- Compile payroll records, detect and reconcile discrepancies, accurately report outcomes using QuickBooks.
- Maintain office services by organizing office operations and procedures, preparing payroll, controlling correspondences, and designing filing systems.
- File client paperwork upholding HIPAA standards.
- Research CPT and ICD-9 coding discrepancies for compliance and reimbursement accuracy.
- Train in HIPAA information and how to deal with patient sensitive information.
- Process and verify claims using correct medical ICD-10 codes and CPT codes.
- Provide technical support; troubleshoot computer and printer issues (hardware/software).
- Serve as a liaison between employees and corporate hr to ensure understanding of policies and benefits.
- Install, troubleshoot, and support operating systems, utilities, communication, and software applications.
- Proofread and edit documents, forms, records, and/or correspondence for correct grammar, spelling, and punctuation.
- Perform general accounting duties for the facility, including A/R, A/P, payroll, sales commissions, cash receipts.
- Work in clerical tasks such as filing and organizational tasks, including A/R and invoice tracking, sending and answering e-mails.
Office assistant skills and personality traits
We calculated that 16% of Office Assistants are proficient in Data Entry, Patients, and Customer Service. They’re also known for soft skills such as Customer-service skills, Detail oriented, and Organizational skills.
We break down the percentage of Office Assistants that have these skills listed on their resume here:
- Data Entry, 16%
Offered and accepted various positions while still job hunting including data entry, receptionist, administrative assistant and procurement associate.
- Patients, 14%
Supported and assisted patients with physical therapy exercises and insurance issues
- Customer Service, 9%
Provided excellent customer service and information to constituents, prepared responses to inquiries, maintained and improved customer relations.
- Telephone Calls, 7%
Received and directed telephone calls and relay conversation and pertinent messages to others while maintaining accuracy, clarity and confidentiality.
- Scheduling Appointments, 6%
Provided assistance to Retention Counselors in scheduling appointments, coordinated orientation for incoming freshmen, and attended different seminars.
- Front Desk, 6%
Front Desk Reception *In charge of client expenses/bookkeeping *Received, logged and distributed legal correspondence *Responsible for inventory and office supplies
Most office assistants use their skills in "data entry," "patients," and "customer service" to do their jobs. You can find more detail on essential office assistant responsibilities here:
Customer-service skills. To carry out their duties, the most important skill for an office assistant to have is customer-service skills. Their role and responsibilities require that "general office clerks often provide general information to company staff, customers, or the public." Office assistants often use customer-service skills in their day-to-day job, as shown by this real resume: "provided customer service by answering telephones and providing customers with information regarding scheduling appointments, directions, and other inquiries. "
Detail oriented. Many office assistant duties rely on detail oriented. "general office clerks perform many clerical tasks that require attention to detail, such as preparing bills.," so an office assistant will need this skill often in their role. This resume example is just one of many ways office assistant responsibilities rely on detail oriented: "greeted customers and provided detailed cooperate packages researched problems with billing related situations answered multiple phone lines while scheduling appointments. "
Organizational skills. office assistants are also known for organizational skills, which are critical to their duties. You can see how this skill relates to office assistant responsibilities, because "general office clerks file and retrieve records." An office assistant resume example shows how organizational skills is used in the workplace: "possess sound judgment and strong organizational skills while upholding appropriate protocol while managing office procedures after normal business hours. "
The three companies that hire the most office assistants are:
- Robert Half76 office assistants jobs
- Ascension Michigan59 office assistants jobs
- WellSpan Health56 office assistants jobs
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Compare different office assistants
Office assistant vs. Front desk administrative assistant
A front desk administrative assistant is responsible for performing administrative duties to support daily business functions and operations. Front desk administrative assistants assist guests, respond to their inquiries and concerns, and direct them to the appropriate personnel for their needs. They also monitor office inventories, write purchase requests, and distribute mails across the departments. A front desk administrative assistants review business and financial transactions to generate reports, update information on the company's database, and sort documents for reference.
These skill sets are where the common ground ends though. The responsibilities of an office assistant are more likely to require skills like "scheduling appointments," "front desk," "office support," and "office operations." On the other hand, a job as a front desk administrative assistant requires skills like "phone calls," "front desk operations," "check-in," and "appointment scheduling." As you can see, what employees do in each career varies considerably.
Front desk administrative assistants earn the highest salaries when working in the professional industry, with an average yearly salary of $34,812. On the other hand, office assistants are paid more in the government industry with an average salary of $33,817.On average, front desk administrative assistants reach similar levels of education than office assistants. Front desk administrative assistants are 0.3% less likely to earn a Master's Degree and 0.1% less likely to graduate with a Doctoral Degree.Office assistant vs. Assistant secretary
An assistant secretary is responsible for performing administrative and clerical duties to support the daily operations of various departments and management personnel and ensure the efficiency of business functions. Assistant secretaries usually assist in business communications, responding to customers' inquiries and concerns, reaching out to existing clients to schedule appointments, welcoming guests on the office, and routing calls to the appropriate department. They also handle data entry procedures, updating customer information on the database, as well as creating reports on business and financial transactions.
Each career also uses different skills, according to real office assistant resumes. While office assistant responsibilities can utilize skills like "data entry," "patients," "customer service," and "office support," assistant secretaries use skills like "financial statements," "federal agencies," "real estate," and "logistics."
Assistant secretaries earn higher levels of education than office assistants in general. They're 5.3% more likely to graduate with a Master's Degree and 0.1% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Office assistant vs. Clerical/administrative assistant
An administrative assistant, also known as a secretary or office clerk, is someone who carries out daily clerical and administrative tasks. Admin assistants do a variety of tasks such as answering phone calls, organizing files, maintaining contacts, schedule meetings and appointments, and many more. Their task can be extensive, depending on the needs of operations and higher management. They serve as a gatekeeper of the company, so strong verbal and written communication skills are a must. They should also exhibit great organizational skills and time management since they act as the resource of the company.
Some important key differences between the two careers include a few of the skills necessary to fulfill the responsibilities of each. Some examples from office assistant resumes include skills like "patients," "patient appointments," "office support," and "office procedures," whereas a clerical/administrative assistant is more likely to list skills in "financial statements," "multi-line telephone system," "purchase orders," and "hard copy. "
Clerical/administrative assistants earn the best pay in the government industry, where they command an average salary of $33,943. Office assistants earn the highest pay from the government industry, with an average salary of $33,817.Most clerical/administrative assistants achieve a similar degree level compared to office assistants. For example, they're 0.1% more likely to graduate with a Master's Degree, and 0.1% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Office assistant vs. Office secretary
An office secretary is responsible for performing administrative and clerical duties to ensure the smooth flow of operations and prevent delays with project deliverables. Office secretaries also welcome guests, respond to their inquiries and concerns, and direct them to the appropriate department or personnel for their appointments. They schedule meetings, sort documents, handle incoming and outgoing mail, as well as manage inventories for the adequacy of office supplies. An office secretary must have excellent time-management and multitasking skills to conduct tasks within a strict deadline and minimal supervision.
Types of office assistant
Updated January 8, 2025
