Administrative Assistant Role Expands as Businesses Run Leaner, According to Manpower Survey

MILWAUKEE, April 21, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Manpower, the global leader in contingent and permanent recruitment workforce solutions and part of ManpowerGroup (NYSE: MAN), today released results of a survey and an infographic about the role of the contemporary administrative assistant. Among survey takers, 98 percent say administrative roles have changed, and most agree that replacing a good administrative assistant is no easy task. Manpower advises employers to target Administrative Professionals Week, April 20-26, to develop long-term recruitment and retention strategies to prevent shortages in a role that is more critical than ever to successful teams.

According to a survey of more than 500 employers, Manpower found:

• 98 percent see the best admins differently than five to 10 years ago, citing increased tech-savviness and strategic thinking, among other traits
• 71 percent view administrative assistants as integral team members/leaders
• 85 percent agree that it would not be easy to find a good administrative assistant if they needed to hire one
• Employers say a contemporary administrative assistant's role includes presentation assembly (63 percent), client communication (59 percent), vendor management (49 percent), metrics reporting (40 percent) and team engagement (40 percent)

"Our clients are running their businesses with leaner teams, and they are asking more from their administrative talent," said Jorge Perez, Manpower Senior Vice President, North America. "The evolution of the role is positive and an opportunity for people to grow in their careers, but many employers neglect to evolve their talent strategies along with the job descriptions. Employers need to be more focused than ever on talent strategy because administrative assistants with higher-level skills are more difficult to attract and retain."

Manpower Invites Administrative Professionals to Show their Pride, Win Prizes
To honor the administrative professionals who manage, organize, engage and rock our worlds, Manpower is collecting stories of Admin Pride on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/ManpowerUS. Administrative professionals are encouraged to visit the page and share why they are proud of their role. Among entrants, one randomly selected grand prize winner will receive a $150 Visa gift card and a bouquet. In addition, 10 randomly selected winners will receive a Manpower prize package. Entries will be accepted until Friday, April 25, at 12 p.m. CT.

Employers interested in learning more about hiring administrative talent through Manpower should visit http://www.manpower.us/en/Employers.htm. Job seekers looking for administrative roles can search for opportunities on manpowerjobs.com.  

Administrative Professionals week is observed April 20-26, 2014, and is sponsored by the International Association of Administrative Professionals. For more information, visit http://www.iaap-hq.org/events/apw.

About the Survey
A total of 562 employers participated in the online survey available from March 10 – 18, 2014. Participants were asked to think about their administrative assistant or one they work with closely when responding.

About Manpower
Manpower is the global leader in contingent and permanent recruitment workforce solutions, providing the personal flexibility and agility businesses need with a continuum of staffing solutions. Manpower is part of the ManpowerGroup family of companies, which also includes Experis, ManpowerGroup Solutions and Right Management. More information is available at www.manpower.us.

About ManpowerGroup – United States
ManpowerGroup™ (NYSE: MAN) is an innovative workforce solutions company specializing in temporary and permanent recruitment, career management, outsourcing and HR consulting. Founded in 1948, Milwaukee-based ManpowerGroup is a $20 billion company with offices in more than 80 countries and territories around the world. Each day, ManpowerGroup connects more than 600,000 people to meaningful work through its relationships with 400,000 clients worldwide. In the United States, ManpowerGroup operates more than 500 offices through its family of companies, including Manpower®, Experis™, ManpowerGroup™ Solutions and Right Management®. To learn more, visit www.manpowergroup.us and press.manpower.com.

Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20140421/76767

Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20120607/AQ20399LOGO-b

SOURCE Manpower