What does a senior secretary do?
A Senior Secretary is responsible for maintaining office records, receiving and directing telephone calls, and writing various reports for managers. They also schedule appointments and meetings for supervisors and assist in the process of new hires.
Senior secretary responsibilities
Here are examples of responsibilities from real senior secretary resumes:
- Manage high volume of requests and correspondence from executives and colleagues, pharmaceutical representatives, patients and outside physicians.
- Prepare PowerPoint presentations, complete statistical reports, and convert reports to various formats.
- Maintain confidentiality of all payroll documents and office files.
- Compile and distribute customer updates for payroll software programs and telecommunications networks.
- Maintain databases, prepare PowerPoint presentations, maintain inventory and requisition supplies for the department.
- Demonstrate professional integrity and tactful handling of confidential and protect health information according to HIPAA and administrative policy guidelines.
- Demonstrate professional integrity and tactful handling of confidential and protect health information according to HIPAA and administrative policy guidelines.
Senior secretary skills and personality traits
We calculated that 12% of Senior Secretaries are proficient in Patients, Routine Correspondence, and Data Entry. They’re also known for soft skills such as Interpersonal skills, Organizational skills, and Writing skills.
We break down the percentage of Senior Secretaries that have these skills listed on their resume here:
- Patients, 12%
Coordinated interdepartmental scheduling, communication, and medical information exchange among patients, the Physician Line nurses and insurance companies.
- Routine Correspondence, 11%
Responded to routine inquiries for information and composed routine correspondence for supervisor's signature.
- Data Entry, 8%
Reformatted supplemental materials, updated client files, and assisted with data entry/analysis.
- Telephone Calls, 6%
Managed daily telephone calls and visitors ascertaining the purpose and referred to the proper staff member or personally furnished desired information.
- Office Equipment, 6%
Maintained inventory of office supplies and marketing materials for department and scheduled maintenance of office equipment.
- Payroll, 5%
Constructed inter-office memorandums, generated payroll for the engineering department 45 people.
Common skills that a senior secretary uses to do their job include "patients," "routine correspondence," and "data entry." You can find details on the most important senior secretary responsibilities below.
Interpersonal skills. To carry out their duties, the most important skill for a senior secretary to have is interpersonal skills. Their role and responsibilities require that "secretaries and administrative assistants interact with clients, customers, or staff." Senior secretaries often use interpersonal skills in their day-to-day job, as shown by this real resume: "general office duties as assigned skills used microsoft office suite 2010 customer service interpersonal skills"
Organizational skills. Another soft skill that's essential for fulfilling senior secretary duties is organizational skills. The role rewards competence in this skill because "secretaries and administrative assistants keep files, folders, and schedules in order so that an office runs efficiently." According to a senior secretary resume, here's how senior secretaries can utilize organizational skills in their job responsibilities: "generated meeting minutes for faculty and staff organizational meetings. "
Writing skills. senior secretaries are also known for writing skills, which are critical to their duties. You can see how this skill relates to senior secretary responsibilities, because "secretaries and administrative assistants write memos and emails when communicating with managers, employees, and customers." A senior secretary resume example shows how writing skills is used in the workplace: "provided general and some specialized administrative support for a department or area such as word processing, reporting writing, etc. "
The three companies that hire the most senior secretarys are:
- Emory Healthcare5 senior secretaries jobs
- Albuquerque Academy5 senior secretaries jobs
- State Of South Dakota5 senior secretaries jobs
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Compare different senior secretaries
Senior secretary vs. Assistant to vice president
An assistant to the vice president (VP) is an individual who acts as executive-level administrative support to an organization's vice president to oversee projects. Assistants to the vice president must help organize and manage managers' activities and clarify the strategies and business plans of the organization to them. They review the business activity and sales report from the organization's different departments and summarize the executives' information. Employers would also prefer their assistants to the vice president to hold a bachelor's or master's degree.
There are some key differences in the responsibilities of each position. For example, senior secretary responsibilities require skills like "patients," "routine correspondence," "data entry," and "secretarial support." Meanwhile a typical assistant to vice president has skills in areas such as "financial statements," "travel arrangements," "avp," and "human resources." This difference in skills reveals the differences in what each career does.
Assistants to vice president really shine in the media industry with an average salary of $128,662. Comparatively, senior secretaries tend to make the most money in the pharmaceutical industry with an average salary of $39,400.assistants to vice president tend to reach similar levels of education than senior secretaries. In fact, assistants to vice president are 4.6% more likely to graduate with a Master's Degree and 0.7% more likely to have a Doctoral Degree.Senior secretary vs. Administrative associate
An administrative associate is responsible for performing various tasks such as handling and processing paperwork, attending meetings and preparing minutes, responding to inquiries and other forms of correspondence, keeping accurate records, updating databases, and monitoring the company's financial activities. They also communicate with various department personnel, ensuring coordination should any important matter would arise. Furthermore, as an administrative associate, they are in charge of procuring supplies, implementing company policies, and supporting any staff members if needed.
In addition to the difference in salary, there are some other key differences worth noting. For example, senior secretary responsibilities are more likely to require skills like "routine correspondence," "secretarial support," "office procedures," and "hotel reservations." Meanwhile, an administrative associate has duties that require skills in areas such as "customer service," "travel arrangements," "medical terminology," and "patient care." These differences highlight just how different the day-to-day in each role looks.
Administrative associates may earn a higher salary than senior secretaries, but administrative associates earn the most pay in the finance industry with an average salary of $41,923. On the other hand, senior secretaries receive higher pay in the pharmaceutical industry, where they earn an average salary of $39,400.administrative associates earn similar levels of education than senior secretaries in general. They're 3.9% more likely to graduate with a Master's Degree and 0.7% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Senior secretary vs. Administrative coordinator
An Administrative Coordinator oversees the line of communication and schedules within a company, ensuring that every necessary information is delivered and conveyed. An administrative coordinator's responsibilities include responding to inquiries and requests from workforce personnel or client, managing calls and correspondence, maintaining and rotating various forms of documentation, and designing or improving systems that would help the company's operating procedures. Furthermore, it is also essential for an Administrative Coordinator to evaluate the methods and progress, continuity of workflow, and resolve issues as needed within 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 senior secretary resumes include skills like "routine correspondence," "secretarial support," "hotel reservations," and "patient appointments," whereas an administrative coordinator is more likely to list skills in "customer service," "travel arrangements," "excellent organizational," and "excellent interpersonal. "
Administrative coordinators earn the highest salary when working in the government industry, where they receive an average salary of $43,324. Comparatively, senior secretaries have the highest earning potential in the pharmaceutical industry, with an average salary of $39,400.Most administrative coordinators achieve a similar degree level compared to senior secretaries. For example, they're 3.3% more likely to graduate with a Master's Degree, and 0.1% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Senior secretary vs. Executive administrator
An executive administrator is responsible for assisting the senior management staff in planning strategies and analyzing business decisions to achieve the company's goals and objectives. Executive administrators schedule meetings and handle appointments, as well as helping with the implementation of training and programs for the employees to reach their maximum operational potential and increase productivity to meet projects' demands and ensure the highest customer satisfaction. They must have exceptional time-management and organizational skills, especially on performing administrative and clerical duties as needed, as well as excellent communication skills to respond to clients' inquiries, concerns, and requests.
Even though a few skill sets overlap between senior secretaries and executive administrators, there are some differences that are important to note. For one, a senior secretary might have more use for skills like "patients," "routine correspondence," "secretarial support," and "clerical support." Meanwhile, some responsibilities of executive administrators require skills like "customer service," "financial statements," "calendar management," and "human resources. "
The technology industry tends to pay the highest salaries for executive administrators, with average annual pay of $58,323. Comparatively, the highest senior secretary annual salary comes from the pharmaceutical industry.The average resume of executive administrators showed that they earn similar levels of education compared to senior secretaries. So much so that theyacirc;euro;trade;re 5.0% more likely to earn a Master's Degree and more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree by 0.6%.Updated January 8, 2025
