I have spoken in the past about how a good administrative assistant can help a business owner get more of their time back, allowing them to focus on growing their business. So today I wanted to share three quick and easy tips that I always recommend when posting a job posting for a new assistant.
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1. The ad matters
“Of course it does David …” But it’s not what you think. You want to spend a fair amount of time crafting your job listing copy, that’s a given. But what you include and how long the ad actually is makes the biggest difference when it comes to finding an assistant. If you were posting for a marketing position, I would tell you to keep it short and stick to high level topics and bullet points. Because that is what appeals to marketing minded individuals. An administrative person, they want to know all the details. They want to find out as much information as they can about the position, your company and what they would be expected to do on a day to day basis. So when it comes to crafting a job posting for these individuals you want to be as detailed as possible. You want them to read your listing and feel like it was written just for them, so that they can go into the interview feeling prepared and educated.
2. A little test
Another tip that I suggest when you post a job listing for an administrative type position, is to give them a little test to apply. This doesn’t have to be anything complex or take up a lot of time. I always ask them to send their cover letter and resume as a single PDF. Most people have them as two separate documents, so asking this in the listing will not only test the candidates to see if they read the listing in its entirety but if they are capable of doing a simple technological task. Most everyone can create a PDF, and if they weren’t sure how to complete the task, they should be able to research how to do so. All skills that are needed as an administrative assistant.
3. Make an error
My third tip to finding the perfect personal assistant is to make a mistake or a typo somewhere in the job listing. See if they’ll notice it. I will often put a word twice, like “and and.” It’s interesting to see how many people actually point that out. Which then allows you to see how they handle the situation. Are they obnoxious, or are they just, “Hey, I wanted to let you know?” So if they notice it, bonus points. If they notice it and share that, it takes a little bit of courage. Bonus points. If they notice it, share it in an appropriate way, triple bonus points in my opinion.
These three tips will help you find the perfect assistant and make the decision process hopefully a little bit easier. Good luck.