Sara Beattie Group

What is your company’s history?  What are they likely to be doing in 5, 10 or 15 years?  For those companies that have been around 50 or 100 years, what is their vision in the next 50 to 100 years?  How will it help you to grow by identifying with the bigger picture?

Read books on the role and function of business and the role of managers so that you can appreciate and understand your boss. Your role is to support the business outcomes and those of your boss’s output.  Do not get overly emotional about this bad habit.

Early in your employment discuss with the Personal Officer, Department Head or Manager, what your role is and what your values are to the Organization.  Whatever the role is, it is important.  Play it well. Ask for authority and the limits of your authority.

Filing is the spine and skeleton of any organization. Managing the filing system will result in better organization and less work for you. Complete filing daily so papers can be filed correctly and retrieved instantly. Always pass in related previous correspondence with incoming mail.

Always ask yourself first if there is something that you do not know.  “If I had no one else to ask, what could I do?”  Use your initiative to follow up and make decisions.  Take every step that is necessary to complete assignments. This will give you much job satisfaction and independence.

Good timekeeping is one of the most valuable assets of a top office professional.  You should always arrive 15 minutes early and take care of “opening the office/shop”.  If you are prepared and ready, you provide a calm and welcoming front to your boss, staff and clients. 

Every boss has a different set of requirements.  The rules you have learned may be different from those of your new company.  Observe or ask questions and adjust to new systems and formats.  Where no systems exist, supplement your own but with sensitivity to the other staff.