Profession Executive secretary

Executive secretary
Credits: Shutterstock.com

Executive secretaries provide high-level administrative support to executives by handling information requests and performing clerical functions, such as preparing correspondence, receiving visitors, arranging meetings and managing schedules. May also supervise lower-level clerical staff.

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Personality Type

Tasks executive secretary

  • Answer, screen and direct telephone calls, take messages and handle enquiries and requests.
  • Greet visitors and direct them to the appropriate persons.
  • Open, sort and distribute incoming correspondence, including faxes and email, and prepare responses to correspondence containing routine enquiries.
  • Read and analyze incoming memos, submissions and reports to determine their significance and plan their distribution.
  • Produce correspondence, memos, reports, presentations and other documents from drafts, handwritten copies, machine dictation, etc., e.g. using computers with a variety of software packages.
  • File and retrieve documents, correspondence, records and reports, and set up filing systems.
  • Manage and maintain executives' schedules.
  • Organize travel arrangements, business itineraries, conferences and social functions for executives.
  • Prepare agendas and make arrangements for meetings (e.g. committee and board meetings), attend meetings and take minutes.
  • Make information searches and compile information for executives.
  • Perform general office duties such as ordering supplies, serving refreshments and reporting about non-functioning office equipment.
  • Supervise other office workers and delegate work to them.

Related professions secretary

  • Administrative secretary
  • Legal secretary
  • Medical secretary or receptionist
  • Minutes secretary
  • Office manager
  • Personal assistant
  • Project secretary
  • Secretary
  • Secretary, all other
  • Team or department secretary

Source: Sisyphus ODB