Admins are Taking on More Work, Survey Says

In response to staff decreases, admins take on more responsibility

KANSAS CITY, Mo., April 20 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Administrative
Professionals Day (Wednesday, April 22) recognizes the office professional's
contribution to today's workplace. During the current economic downturn
administrative professionals are increasing their workload and expanding their
roles when office staff is downsized.

The International Association of Administrative Professionals recently
surveyed 3,117 professional members and found that 40 percent have seen
support staff in their companies decrease over the last three years. At the
same time, nearly half of those surveyed (48 percent) said that their workload
has increased. According to IAAP, the office professional's role continues to
expand during the economic downturn. Not only are admins the ones in the
office taking on more work, but also shouldering more complex duties and
responsibilities.

"There's a tendency not to cut job duties when companies are downsizing, but
rather to transfer these functions over to workers who are multi-talented,"
said Susan Fenner, Ph.D, education manager at IAAP. "Those people are
administrative professionals."

Growing Roles of Admins
Administrative professionals and secretaries are adaptable in today's changing
office environment and are able to take on higher-level projects. Over the
last decade admin job responsibilities have increased to include many of the
duties traditionally done by mid-level managers. Companies fill the gaps in
staffing with administrative professionals, who are able to juggle multiple
roles in the office.

"Administrative professionals are no longer simply answering phones and
handling correspondence," said IAAP President Barb Horton CAP. "Admins of
today are buying software, learning how to use it and training the management.
In addition, our latest survey shows that admins are branching out into
non-traditional roles including budget analysis, research, project management
and internal communications."

Thank your admin this week on Administrative Professionals Day, Wednesday,
April 22.

About IAAP
IAAP is the world's leading association for administrative professionals, with
600 chapters and more than 40,000 members and affiliates worldwide. IAAP is
the sole sponsor of Administrative Professionals Week(R) April 19-25, 2009 and
Administrative Professionals Day(R) on Wednesday, April 22 (formerly called
Professional Secretaries Week(R) and Professional Secretaries Day(R)). Further
information, including history and a facts sheet on APW, is available from the
IAAP Web site at: http://www.iaap-hq.org/newsroom/apw

SOURCE International Association of Administrative Professionals

Emily Allen of the International Association of Administrative Professionals,
+1-816-891-6600 x2239, eallen@iaap-hq.org