Interpersonal Skills of a Secretary

What Are the Different Interpersonal Skills a Secretary Must Have?

Secretaries – executive or not – are being entrusted with a lot of responsibilities. From managerial to administrative, you have to be able to do all of these. Not only that. You have to communicate with a lot of important people – clients, stakeholders, and members of the board to name a few. Of course, there are schools that offer to train students to become a secretary. But did you know that interpersonal skills are those learned in the job?

What are those skills that a secretary must-have?

 

Presenting a Good Image

This is the first of the many interpersonal skills of a secretary. Being the first point of contact by everyone, you represent the very company you are working for. That is why the manner you present yourself in public or in private can have an impact on how people view the company you work for.

 

Able to Build Rapport With People

Rapport is defined as establishing trust, understanding, and unity among members. With this definition, it is clear that you as the secretary should be able to build rapport first to your boss than to the members of the board. This would then build up to other members of the company, even perhaps the clients. The more you are able to build on this, the more you can smooth out potential issues or perhaps conflicts in the long run.

 

Clear, Effective Communication

This is also one of the many interpersonal skills of a secretary. When dealing with clients, shareholders, members of the board, or your boss, can you make your point across clearly? Or, do you listen more carefully? Whether by phone or face to face, can you speak as clearly and as formally as possible? There may be cultural or communication barriers, but you as a secretary are expected to overcome those.

You also have good, active listening skills that enable you to pass along correct information to employees and management.

In writing, do you avoid colloquial language? Yes, even if you are communicating through email or fax, you need to make sure what goes through the other line is accurate and error-free. That is how great your eye for detail is.

 

Courtesy and Cooperation

Even in a high-stress environment or even when dealing with disgruntled clients or demanding bosses, you can keep everything calm. Yes, you can work even under intense pressure. You show courtesy and friendly disposition and greet clients every time. In fact, you look for opportunities to be of help for example assisting in a project or fixing a problem perhaps. This is just one of the many interpersonal skills of a secretary.

 

Professionalism and Integrity

A secretary is expected to work with numbers as well as other sensitive information. As a professional, you ought to share sensitive information only to the right parties. You must be able to keep sensitive information from reaching those people who are not authorized to have it.

 

Dependability and Flexibility

When it comes to scheduling, your schedule looks different per day. This is because you have the freedom to control the structure of your workday’s schedule to accommodate your boss, board members, as well as shareholders and clients. You must know how to make leeways so that changes and problems that come up do not destroy your important to-dos.

 

Conclusion

At 3E Accounting, you can be sure that the secretaries we have on our roster have all of the above qualities. As licensed professionals, our Hong Kong Company Secretary Services have already developed the above administrative and interpersonal skills. You can be sure that if you avail of our services, you get the best quality Hong Kong Company Secretary Services. Give us a try. Call now.