Personnel assistant vs office administrator

The differences between personnel assistants and office administrators can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 1-2 years to become both a personnel assistant and an office administrator. Additionally, a personnel assistant has an average salary of $38,830, which is higher than the $37,423 average annual salary of an office administrator.

The top three skills for a personnel assistant include human resources, data entry and office equipment. The most important skills for an office administrator are customer service, patients, and data entry.

Personnel assistant vs office administrator overview

	Personnel Assistant	Office Administrator
Yearly salary	$38,830	$37,423
Hourly rate	$18.67	$17.99
Growth rate	-	-5%
Number of jobs	6,684	118,096
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 53%	Bachelor's Degree, 48%
Average age	43	47
Years of experience	2	2

What does a personnel assistant do?

Personnel assistants are professionals who perform administrative duties while assisting the human resources director to maintain and keep the records and confidential files of employees working in an organization. These assistants must communicate with all personnel about their compensation policies while ensuring that the company policies and procedures are consistently applied. They are required to coordinate with supervisors to create job descriptions and develop recruiting advertisements. Personnel assistants must also purchase office supplies while maintaining the cleanliness and orderliness of their office area.

What does an office administrator do?

Office administrators are employees who ensure that the office is running in tip-top shape. They manage the administrative needs of the office. They answer calls directed to the official company phone, manage the inventory of supplies, take charge or purchase requisitions for needed supplies, and ensure the office equipment and fixtures are taken care of. Office administrators also manage correspondences, official memoranda, and other official company documents. They also keep track of files and records to ensure that these are properly organized. At times, office administrators also take charge of welcoming guests and accompanying them to their respective meetings.

Personnel assistant vs office administrator salary

Personnel assistants and office administrators have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Personnel Assistant	Office Administrator
Average salary	$38,830	$37,423
Salary range	Between $29,000 And $51,000	Between $28,000 And $48,000
Highest paying City	Monterey, CA	Washington, DC
Highest paying state	California	Alaska
Best paying company	Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison	Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory
Best paying industry	Non Profits	Government

Differences between personnel assistant and office administrator education

There are a few differences between a personnel assistant and an office administrator in terms of educational background:

	Personnel Assistant	Office Administrator
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 53%	Bachelor's Degree, 48%
Most common major	Business	Business
Most common college	University of Pennsylvania	Western Carolina University

Personnel assistant vs office administrator demographics

Here are the differences between personnel assistants' and office administrators' demographics:

	Personnel Assistant	Office Administrator
Average age	43	47
Gender ratio	Male, 18.5% Female, 81.5%	Male, 14.7% Female, 85.3%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 12.5% Unknown, 5.0% Hispanic or Latino, 17.2% Asian, 9.1% White, 55.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.0%	Black or African American, 10.1% Unknown, 4.8% Hispanic or Latino, 20.5% Asian, 7.9% White, 55.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.1%
LGBT Percentage	15%	6%

Differences between personnel assistant and office administrator duties and responsibilities

Personnel assistant example responsibilities.

Manage new employee orientation training, including e-verify.
Maintain employee's timekeeping and personnel records.
Coordinate staff reports, monthly activity, insurance updates and EEO activity.
Record data for each employee, including absences, coaching and timekeeping.
Maintain and handle confidential information such as grievances, EEO relate matters, etc.
Create and maintain a database for the sick line, FMLA tracking, payroll document tracking, and benefit adjustment tracking.

Office administrator example responsibilities.

Monitor calls, manage calendars, travel, meeting arrangements, video conference and teleconferencing.
Formulate various procedures to assure efficient operation of the SharePoint system is managed properly for CFWB and BOS.
Use EMR software to manage patient records and files; reinforce and uphold patient confidentiality as required by HIPAA and clinic.
Pull patients charts for doctors using EMR system as well as pulled chart from medical records room.
Create and update all departmental ISO documents.
Collect all outgoing FedEx overnight packages and ship with accurate tracking and conformation information.

Personnel assistant vs office administrator skills

Common personnel assistant skills

Human Resources, 16%
Data Entry, 13%
Office Equipment, 7%
CAC, 5%
Personnel Actions, 4%
Background Checks, 4%

Common office administrator skills

Customer Service, 18%
Patients, 11%
Data Entry, 8%
Office Equipment, 5%
Front Desk, 4%
PowerPoint, 3%

Personnel Assistant vs. similar jobs

Personnel Assistant related careers

Personnel Assistant related jobs

What similar roles do

Zippia Careers
Office and Administrative Industry
Personnel Assistant
Personnel Assistant vs Office Administrator

Updated January 8, 2025

Browse office and administrative jobs