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Managers & Secretaries: Creating a Winning Team

by Elizabeth Jeffries    

The typewriter was a Smith Corona.  The drawer was filled with white-out, erasers, and carbon paper.  No computer, no fax, no scanner, no Post-it’s, no color printer, no ergonomically correct chair.  It was 1962.  The salary was $72 per week.  Ah, yes, I remember it well, as Maurice Chevalier would say!

And I do remember it well because that was the office I worked in my first year out of high school and before I went off to college.  (Now you’re adding up the years to figure out how old I am!  Go ahead! I can take it.)  I was a secretary and except for the cigars, I loved the job and my bosses.  They treated me with respect, taught me about business, and mostly, taught me about how to build a strong manager-secretary relationship.

Much has changed for both the secretary and the manager since those days with Mr. Siskin and Mr. Berg on the west side of Chicago.  Even the title “secretary” has changed for many.  Now it’s often “administrative assistant” or “executive assistant.”

Since April 21 is Professional Secretaries Day, it seems to be a good time to talk about relationship strategies for this very important team!  Both the secretary and the manager play an important role in creating this winning team.  It’s a partnership and both people need to share equal responsibility for it’s success.  While I’ve only had that one position as a secretary, I’ve had many assistants over the years who’ve taught me as much, if not more, than I taught them.   Here’s what many assistants have told me over the years they wish their managers would do more of:

-Treat me as a valued person and vital team member.  Fill me in on things and include me in decisions.  The more I’m involved, the more I can help you.

-Allow me the freedom to improve systems or change priorities.  Encourage my creativity and innovation.

-Keep me informed.  Let me know where you are and how you can be reached if necessary.

-Avoid last‑minute rush assignments.  Plan ahead as best you can.

-Periodically take telephone calls yourself so I can have uninterrupted time to work on priorities.

-Praise me in public.  Coach me in private.

-Take a breath, lighten up, laugh more!

A professional secretary also needs to be aware of the manager’s wish-list.  Here are a few items of importance to managers:

-Manage yourself.  Have a positive, can-do attitude!  Be neat and professional in your appearance.

-Be aware of your telephone image.  Not only do you represent me and our department, but you are our company.  Answer the phone with a smile in your voice and an attitude of service!

-Take responsibility for your actions.  Accept the blame if you are in error and graciously accept praise for work well done.

‑ Never gossip about any one, especially me.

- Protect my privacy.  Never say, "I’m in the restroom," or "I’m at the dentist." Say, "He's away from his desk," or "She's out of the office until 3 p.m.”

- Make my job easier.  Learn to anticipate and initiate.  Take on tasks without always having to be asked, and follow through without having to be reminded or checked on.

- Be a problem solver instead of a complainer.  If you have a problem, come to me with the facts and suggested solutions.

- Broaden your horizons.  Develop a bigger picture of how you and our department fit into the overall workings of our company.  Join professional organizations.  Make yourself and our company visible.

Communication is the most important skill each member of this team can master.  It’s the toughest one.  It’s complex. It takes commitment and working on it constantly.  George Bernard Shaw said, “The problem with communication is the illusion it has been accomplished.”  So true!

Both people need to continuously work on active listening, being sensitive to each other, reading nonverbal signals and asking for what they want.  Remember, people read books, not minds!

Work on forgiveness. Don't carry grudges.  Apologize when you are wrong.

Periodically ask each other “what can I do to help you be more productive?”  Then do it.


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Elizabeth Jeffries, CSP, CPAE, is an award-winning speaker and author on servant-leadership and personal performance. Elizabeth can be reached in Louisville, KY, at 502-339-1600 and on-line at Elizabeth@tweedjeffries.com or at www.tweedjeffries.com.