Executive secretaries provide secretarial and administrative support to high-level executives. They may also train lower level secretaries, provide project research and management, create PowerPoint presentations, generate reports, and perform some office management duties.
Essential Information
An executive secretary performs many high-level clerical and administrative tasks, including managing information technology, creating presentations or proposals and taking responsibility for confidential company documents. There are jobs for executive secretaries in almost any type of organization or business. Several years of administrative support experience is a must, and most executive secretaries hold bachelor's degrees related to the industry in which they work.
| Required Education | Bachelor's degree in related industry is common |
| Other Requirements | Administrative support experience |
| Projected Job Decline (2019-2029)* | 20% for executive secretaries and executive administrative assistants |
| Median Salary (May 2019)* | $60,890 for executive secretaries and executive administrative assistants |
Source: * U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS).
Executive Secretary Career Information
Executive secretary positions are very rarely entry-level positions, because an executive secretary interacts with top executives and their counterparts. Therefore, most employers require that applicants demonstrate several years of experience as administrative support staff. A college education is usually preferred, especially in an industry-related discipline. Excellent communication, organizational, interpersonal and administrative skills are also needed.
Executive secretaries are generally full-time employees. They often work in such places as legal offices, medical offices, corporate offices, small businesses, schools, hospitals and government offices.
Career Statistics
According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (www.bls.gov), the secretarial job market is expected to grow at an average rate over the next few years. However, employment for executive secretaries and administrative assistants is expected to decline by about 20% from 2019 to 2029, due to employers replacing these jobs with lower-level personnel. The BLS also reported that the median salary for executive secretaries, as of May 2019, was $60,890.
Job Description
Executive secretaries are not just a pleasant voice answering the phone, making coffee or typing memos. The main responsibility of an executive secretary is to provide administrative support to high-level officials in an organization. Executive secretaries are responsible for handling highly confidential documents, protecting an organization's confidential information, communication and information management, managing office supplies, making travel arrangements, scheduling meetings and events and negotiating with vendors.
The executive secretary should have great familiarity with office software and machines. She or he may even train new lower-level secretaries. In some professions, like law and medicine, the executive secretary is expected to be familiar with the technical vocabulary of the industry.
Changing Job Duties
The evolution of technology makes individuals more productive, and tough economic factors force companies to downsize. As a result, executive secretaries today don't just do traditional staff support work. They also take on increasingly more responsibilities, which individuals in higher management positions previously were responsible. These tasks may include project research and management, PowerPoint presentations and report generation.
An executive secretary is usually expected to have many years of experience and is often required to hold a bachelor's degree, especially in an industry related discipline. Executive secretary jobs are on the decline as companies replace these positions with lower-level personnel.
