Kalamazoo Gazette, Kalamazoo MI

More students pursuing careers as administrative professionals
Saturday, April 17, 2004
By Jane C. Parikh

Tamra Stafford is one manager who said she will never take her support staff for granted.

Stafford, human resource manager and volunteer coordinator for the Kalamazoo Air Zoo, said she remembers what it was like to be an administrative assistant -- much like the ones who will be recognized during Administrative Professionals Week, which begins Sunday. Wednesday has been designated Administrative Professionals Day.

"There's the old cliche that 'Oh, they're just a secretary,' " Stafford said. "We did all the work and had to know all the answers, and we didn't get recognized for it."

But it strengthened her resolve to continue taking classes at Spring Arbor College that earned her a bachelor's degree in business management in 2002. She said she never worried that being an administrative assistant would limit her in any way from someday getting into a management position.
"I always felt this isn't where I'd end up," Stafford said of her time as an administrative assistant.

Rick Stroud, communications manager for the International Association of Administrative Professionals, said some people who begin their careers as administrative assistants do so with an eye toward climbing the corporate ladder. But, he said, there are just as many who prefer to be part of a support staff.

Stroud said corporate America's front line is still made up of a predominantly female work force whose duties have gone way beyond getting the boss' coffee and taking dictation.

Stroud said there are an estimated 4.1 million people employed in the United States as administrative assistants and secretaries.
"The career paths are more rewarding, and they're doing more management-level work and working with computers," Stroud said.

And it is not at all unusual for administrative assistants to know more about the technology than their supervisors. Stroud said that a lot of managers used to be "technophobic." While this has changed somewhat, Stroud said he thinks administrative professionals are still the "troubleshooters" and "go-to" people.
"They were one of the first worker groups to embrace the technology," Stroud said.

Sheila D. Brownfield, international president of the International Association of Administrative Professionals, said she thinks administrative professionals bring a strong mix of professional, technical and interpersonal skills to the office workplace.

But an enhanced skill set has done little to change the perception of what these front-line workers do. "The perception has lagged behind the evolution in the workplace," Stroud said.

Michael Collins, vice president of college relations at Kalamazoo Valley Community College, said the college offers degree programs and certificate-of-achievement programs in areas like administrative support, office support and information processing. Collins said these courses and programs are offered as part of KVCC's business curriculum.

"The programs themselves are very well attended," Collins said. "We have seen growth in those areas in the last several years."
About 50 students are enrolled in the legal office assistant program; 100 are enrolled in the medical office assistant program; and another 100 are taking classes in related areas, Collins said.

"There's a market available and opportunities for these students after they've graduated," Collins said of the popularity of these courses.
Jodi Tompkins, a spokeswoman for Davenport University, said the "demand in the (administrative assistant) field has been steady."
Davenport offers associate's degrees in administrative office technology and a bachelor's degree in administrative management.

Stroud said that during the 1980s and 1990s great strides were made in the administrative assistant field. Then, he said, salaries started to level out.
The average salary range for mid to upper-level administrative assistants is between $35,000 and $50,000, Stroud said.
"Companies need to pay competitive salaries," he said. "For more than half of our members this is a lifelong profession."

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