I like to know what skills are needed for entry level administrative support or general office job.?

Question

Only people that know for sure. Either working in the adminstrative field or empIoyer, career counselor. been long time since I done office work as a file clerk. I need to know what skills are needed. I'm getting different anwers what computer skills are needed is the Microsoft XP, 2003, or the newest version. Does explorer prefer you go to school or the computer experience are good enough with other customer service skills I already have. Any other skills/ associations I should join that make my resume look good please let me know.

Answer 1

Tasha,

These are all general, so keep that in mind. Every office has unique needs.

Receptionist: Should be someone who is dressed to meet the public, can learn to operate a complex phone system, type approx. 35wpm, can learn to operate a postage machine. This person should be tidy too. Computer skills should be either working on a basic level with either MS Word or WordPerfect and MS Excel. Copy, paste, labels, envelops, format paste, document storage all should be part of the knowledge base. Many offices have servers where no information is stored on the desk computer. Knowing how and where to store documents on the computer is essential.

Administrative Assistant / Secretary -- there are all sorts of versions for this position. However, very generally: Should be able do all that the Receptionist can do plus....
Type 50 wpm, have VERY GOOD Word document skills such as understanding how to format letters according either to industry or company standards, prepare reports for presentation, VERY Strong Excel spreadsheet skills, including placing basic formulas, working with budgets, filling out timesheets that are task oriented, knowledge of basic accounting, keeping inventory of office supplies and staying within budget, keeping calendars, a strong awareness of company policies and protocols, able to self initiate to correct small problems, able to transcribe from recordings, take notes for others, understand a variety of filing systems, keep and maintain contacts for the executive/company, schedule meetings where others are attending, mail merging for large mailings.

There are some courses you can take either at a community college or on-line.

Administrative people keep information available for the decision makers of a company. Administrative support also makes sure that the decision makers of the company have the tools that they need, like office supplies, phone messages, functioning office equipment, outgoing mail, incoming mail, accessible files and so forth.

Good Luck on your path.

XP is a system, but not a program for computers.

Answer 2

Where you have seeking employment information. You need to list the exact position that you are applying for. You are too generic in what you want. You also cannot use the same resume for every job. You need two or even three and create them to match up with the job you are applying for. Sometimes you may NOT use ALL of your employers. Also, shorten your wording of each job description. Say a lot using very few words. You want to make it appear that you had more responsibilities as you attained your employment. You don't need to list the same duties you performed for every job!!! Your resume should be one page. The cover letter should be one page and you should NEVER send your resume without a cover letter attached. If you have Microsoft works. Go to the Tasks Launcher section under create documents and look for the samples of cover letters and resumes. You can actually use these formats and put your information on them and then print them out for your use.

Answer 3

Microsoft Office - all programs. The operating systems you mention (XP, 2003) shouldn't matter. You need to know how to use the software - Word, Excel, PowerPoint.

QuickBooks is another program that is popular.

Good luck.