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Administrative Assistant Interview Questions to Ask

In an office, administrative assistants are in charge of clerical work, such as correspondence and communication, record keeping, making appointments, and more. Therefore, they play a significant role in the inner workings of a business.

In the end, it’s vital to ensure you hire a qualified candidate who will be a successful member of your team. To ensure you hire the right person, you have to ask the right interview questions. Below we’ve compiled a list of the best administrative assistant interview questions that are sure to help you identify the right candidate to hire!

Hire the Right Candidate With These Administrative Assistant Interview Questions!

1. Do you have experience using [name a software program used at your company]? Are there any others you are familiar with?

One of the most important things to learn about a potential hire is if they have the experience needed to work for you. Administrative assistants, in particular, will use a variety of different software programs. Specifically, they tend to use Microsoft Office programs, such as Word, PowerPoint, Publisher, and Excel. Your administrative assistant should likewise be familiar with the software programs used in your company.

On the other hand, if a candidate has experience using programs similar to the ones at your company, perhaps you can take the time to train them. It’s thus important to carefully analyze how much training you are willing to impart after making a new hire, as well as the time and resources it would take for you to onboard them. If you don’t want to train someone to use software they are not familiar with, for instance, you will need to identify that a candidate has the necessary experience to work for you.

2. How do you prioritize tasks with deadlines that fall around the same time?

Administrative assistants tend to have busy jobs that involve a lot of multitasking. Therefore, it’s essential to make sure the person you hire can stay organized even at their most hectic moments. You wouldn’t want to hire someone who has a difficult time working in a busy or sometimes-stressful environment. Instead, you will want an employee who can handle the workload you give them. In addition, learning a candidate’s organization and work style will also help you determine if s/he will be a good fit in your company culture.

3. In what environment do you work best? What kind of supervisor helps you perform at your best?

This question will help reveal if the candidate will be a good fit for your company. In other words, evaluate whether the environment they describe meshes with the environment of your business.

Moreover, not all personalities get along all the time. Because your administrative assistant will be working under a supervisor often, it would be advantageous to make sure the two will get along. Ask yourself: Would the two employees work well together? Does the management style of the supervisor suit the needs of the administrative assistant?

In the end, the new hire doesn’t need to be perfect, but you wouldn’t want to onboard someone that creates problems in the way your company operates. Above all else, efficiency is important. To encourage efficiency, it’s advantageous to ensure your current employees, as well as your future ones, are content in their positions.

4. Name a time a supervisor gave you constructive feedback. What changes did you make to improve?

Is this person willing to accept feedback, even if it’s negative? Again, no one is going to be perfect at their job, especially if they are a new hire. New employees will need training and instruction to understand their role within your business entirely. Therefore, learning about a time a candidate received constructive criticism and how that person reacted will ultimately give you a good idea of what kind of employee will be working for you. Moreover, it may also reveal aspects of a candidate’s work ethic as well as their growth within past positions.

Hire an Administrative Assistant Without the Hassle

In addition to asking the administrative assistant interview questions, you also need to spend money and time hiring, onboarding, and integrating a new hire into your company. In the end, the hiring process will be lengthy and costly. Each candidate you hire will be an investment. But is there an easier way to get the talent you need?

Partner with a staffing agency! The process is simple. You tell the agency precisely what kind of talent you are looking for, and the agency finds you a candidate who will be a good fit in your business. Staffing agencies have a large talent pool, meaning they can choose from a variety of candidates to ensure you receive the right administrative assistant. You can even select from direct-hire, temporary, or temp-to-hire placement!

Corporate Job Bank is the largest locally owned staffing agency in Arizona, providing quality customer service to companies in need of talent. Corporate Job Bank is passionate about providing you timely, professional service so you can reach your goals as a company. Providing services in virtually every industry, Corporate Job Bank has the talent you need! Contact them today to learn more about how you can recruit an administrative assistant today!

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