Office manager - who is it? The duties of the office manager

"Plankton", "managers" - all these impartial definitions relate to the work of office workers. But is such a job so useless? Office manager - who is it? What is his responsibilities?

Office manager - who is it?

The profession of office manager is often confused with the profession of secretary. But there is still a difference between these specialties. So, office manager - who is it?

The manager of this area is an office manager or administrator. It regulates office work, being an important informative link between employees and superiors, clients and employees, etc.

The more active the activity of an organization, the more problems it has with daily small organizational matters and documentation. Their implementation and provides an office manager.

He makes sure that all current documents, as well as orders from his superiors, are duly executed. At the same time, executive orders should be communicated to the employees of the company on time, all complaints from visitors should be taken into account, and the proposals of employees should be communicated to the authorities.

Thus, office work, as well as communication in the company partially fall on the shoulders of office managers.

Place of work and salary

An office manager is needed in any company that has an office, a manager and at least a few employees. In small organizations, the list of responsibilities of such a specialist is much smaller than, for example, in a huge corporation. In a large company there may be several office managers, and each of them is assigned to his own department.

It turns out that the demand for such specialists is quite high and, possibly, will continue to grow. But there are practically no career prospects. Especially if, in addition to office management, a person no longer owns any profession.

Due to the fact that the duties are not too complicated, competition for one job, at least in Russia, is quite high - 6 people for a vacancy. At the same time, salary is low by capital standards - 27 thousand rubles.

In the cultural capital - St. Petersburg - the salary of such workers is lower by about 5-7 thousand, and competition is many times higher. The farther to the periphery of the country, the lower the salary and the more applicants for the position.

Necessary personal qualities

The orders received by the office manager, as a rule, need urgent and prompt execution. Therefore, the applicant is required, first of all, diligence, quickness and punctuality. Good memory and concentration are also important.

The person holding this position should be friendly and sociable, because in some situations he acts as a representative of the company in front of clients.

The office manager must have a competent and logically structured speech, as well as master business ethics, as he is often involved in organizing business negotiations and corporate meetings.

Useful knowledge, such as the telephone number of a good electrician or a lunch delivery service, will also not hurt. Indeed, in many companies the order in the office, as well as the satiety of employees are also controlled by the manager.

Essential Office Manager Skills

1. The first requirement for such an employee is a good knowledge of the PC and the Internet. If, in addition to Word and Excel, the applicant will own Photoshop or the Office Picker Manager, this is another reason to hire him, and not someone else.
2. High print speed. The ability to quickly type texts is one of the most important for an office manager.
3. Skills in administrative management obtained in previous jobs are required if a person gets a job in a large company.
4. Paperwork skills. Documentation is one of the main responsibilities of this type of specialists, so basic knowledge is indispensable.
5. Confident use of office equipment. Faxes, printers, scanners - all this should be in the competence of the office manager.
6. Skills of competent and diplomatic communication. The office manager must not only communicate competently, he must be able to resolve conflict situations, if necessary.
7. Proficiency in a foreign language. In large international companies, the office manager must be fluent in at least basic English.

General provisions of the job description

The position of the office manager is approved by the CEO of the company. In different companies, it may differ in some respects, but in general its main provisions do not change. It is necessary to familiarize yourself with the work instruction before signing the employment contract, so as not to later complain that fulfilling certain duties was not part of your plans.

General provisions may indicate:

• who is responsible for hiring the office manager;
• who has the right to relieve him of his post;
• to whom the employee reports;
• who reports to the office manager;
• who performs the duties of an office manager in his absence, etc.

Typically, office managers report to the CEO. The administrators of the office report couriers, drivers, cleaners, etc.

Also in the general provisions it can be specified which employee with what level of qualification can be accepted for the described position.

Direct duties

The next paragraph in the instructions sets out the duties of an office manager.

For resumes for job vacancies, often applicants write out in a separate column what responsibilities they performed at a previous office job. So the employer gets more information about the skills of the applicant.

What items may be the direct responsibilities of an office manager?

1. Supervising phone calls. The employee must answer incoming calls, to the best of his ability, answer questions from opponents, and also inform his superiors about the information that they asked to transmit.
2. Curation of documentation. Storage and accounting of documents, control of correspondence, execution of orders, etc. - These are the direct responsibilities of the office manager.
3. Reproduction of documents. On special instructions from the boss, the employee performs copying and duplication of work.
4. Making letters, requests - i.e. Correspondence with partners, customers or suppliers at the request of the immediate supervisor.

The duties of an office manager may include at least six other types of work. But in each company, the load on specialists in this category is determined individually.

Office Manager Rights

Any instruction of an office manager includes not only duties, but also rights.

1. To provide complete information. To perform certain tasks, the office manager has the right to demand the provision of that amount of information, including confidential, which he needs.
2. Sound rationalization proposals. If for the organization of office work, innovations or additional orders of the general director are necessary, then the manager has the right to offer to introduce them.
3. Require proper working conditions. If the official duties cannot be performed due to the lack of necessary conditions, the office manager may require them to be created.
4. Act within the competence. Having studied the job description, the employee has the right to make decisions and give orders, but only within the framework of his competence.

This is a rough guide to the rights an office manager has. They may be supplemented or reduced depending on the specifics of the institution.

A responsibility

Office manager is a profession that also involves some responsibility. Its scope and punishment for violation of the rules is determined by each employer individually. The most common points on which responsibility is held in job descriptions look something like this.

1. For negligent attitude to their duties. Untimely execution of orders and any other negligence is the fault of the employee, for which it is necessary to answer.
2. For the disclosure of confidential information. In employment contracts and job descriptions, you must carefully read the clauses on the confidentiality of information. For her disclosure, most often you can lose your job.
3. For violation of competence. Actions beyond the scope of competence of the employee are not allowed.
4. For violation of the work schedule, etc. Violation of the work schedule, fire safety rules or safety precautions is also the responsibility of the employee.

Pros and cons of the profession

This profession has, like many others, a number of advantages and disadvantages. So, what are the advantages of working on the office manager?

The responses of workers who work on this front relate, first of all, to the high demand for this profession: after gaining some experience in this field, finding a better paid place is not difficult. Those administrative skills that are acquired in the process of work are relevant in everyday life. In addition, working as an office manager allows you to develop your communication skills.

Among the minuses is the increased psychological burden experienced by employees, because in one working day you have to solve a lot of diverse issues. In addition, managers, in addition to direct duties, often load office managers with personal requests and additional instructions.

Where to study the profession?

The office manager who this is is clear from the above. However, where can one learn this profession?

There is no special faculty that would prepare office managers in any university. But often the manager wants a person with higher education to hold this position. What kind of education this will be is not always important - the main thing is that the applicant is a graduate of the university. In provincial cities, this position can be taken even after 9 classes of education. Each company individually decides which office manager it requires.

Most of all, the employer will be interested in other characteristics of the candidate:

• whether he has worked in this field before;
• How well versed in the computer;
• Does paperwork know;
• Does he speak languages, etc.

You can not discount the communicative skills of a person. If everything is in order according to these indicators, the chances of getting a job increase.