Sandra Ross an executive assistant at Fremont Medical Centers, says assistants must be flexible in the roles they're willing to assume. Photo by John Locher.

Let's hear it for administrative assistants.

They're the professionals who keep a company's various parts well-oiled, who handle the countless daily minutiae that would trip up the most talented managers. A skilled administrative assistant enables executives to focus laserlike on expanding a business; an ineffective assistant can hurt a company's bottom line.

"The wrong assistant can filter too much information, and then you get out of touch with your customers and your staff," said Ernest Barela, president of Fremont Medical Centers, which has 11 health clinics around the Las Vegas Valley. "If you have an assistant who's not prioritizing time well, that can really affect the operations of a company and slow a company down. A company could lose money or not make money."

To encourage recognition of the important role that support staffs play in corporate success, the International Association of Administrative Professionals has named Wednesday Administrative Professionals Day.

It's an occasion the association's officials say provides the ideal opportunity to reflect on the evolving nature of administrative work.

The roster of traits necessary to succeed as an administrative professional hasn't changed in the last few decades: Secretaries still need superior organizational and communication skills, as well as the ability to keep confidential information private. But the tasks executive assistants handle today go well beyond the traditional dictation-taking and letter-typing.

A recent survey by placement agency OfficeTeam showed that 86 percent of administrative assistants and managers said support staffs' duties have grown more complex in the past two years, and now include client-relationship management, budget tracking, event planning, database management and desktop publishing.

Rebecca Koshnick, an executive assistant at Community One Federal Credit Union in Las Vegas, said she "lives, eats and breathes" monthly board meetings at the company, where she coordinates the collection of financial statements and other corporate information from several departments and assembles packets that run 120 pages or more. Koshnick is also coordinating the credit union's efforts to recruit corporate partners who can assist with a May fundraiser for the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation.

Sometimes, she's the office manager, ordering supplies for all departments.

And every now and then, Koshnick takes over as facilities-operations chief, changing light bulbs and even plunging clogged toilets.

"Whatever it takes -- that's what an administrative professional does," said Koshnick, who's assistant to Community One's president and chief executive officer, J. Alan Pughes, and several other executives.

Sandra Ross of Fremont Medical Centers is an executive assistant to both Ernest Barela and Fremont's chief executive officer, Greg Griffin. Ross agreed that today's assistants must be flexible in the roles they're willing to assume.

Computers have improved assistants' productivity and made extra time for additional tasks since she entered the administrative field in the early 1970s, Ross said. Plus, companies are making do with fewer staffers, a trend that has shunted new responsibilities toward secretaries.

Today, Ross coordinates philanthropic fundraisers and sits in on project meetings. She's ordered trinkets to hand out to children attending parades that Fremont Medical Centers has participated in, and she's donned an apron and served as a caterer at company parties.

"As an executive assistant, I think you see yourself doing a lot of things," Ross said. "I almost never say, 'No, I can't do that,' because I think you need to be a team player in this day and age. I really think a person needs to be ready to step in wherever they need to be to help their company."

Perhaps because of the all-encompassing nature of their jobs, administrative assistants' compensation is rising.

Sonia Petkewich, division director of OfficeTeam, said the company's 2006 Salary Guide forecasts a 6 percent increase in the average salary among administrative professionals nationwide. Assistants are also earning more fringe benefits, including flexible schedules and bonuses based on performance and project completion.

Barela said a good executive assistant is well worth the price. Life would be tougher without his assistant, Barela said, leaving him with less time to do his job as president of Fremont Medical Centers.

"Sandy is absolutely important to our success, and she's very important to my success," Barela said. "We're two very different people, but she handles me well. She's very astute at picking up my urgencies, and she helps me be more efficient. When I'm more efficient, my company is more efficient. I've gotten feedback from vendors saying that Sandy has a knack for getting urgent issues solved."

Administrative assistants might, like Ross and Koshnick, have wide-ranging duties. Yet, for many support staff, those functions aren't enough: The OfficeTeam poll found that 82 percent of administrative employees would like more responsibilities, and 70 percent of managers feel they could better use their assistants' skills and abilities.

Petkewich, who is president of the local chapter of the International Association of Administrative Professionals, said deploying an assistant's skills to the fullest requires communication.

Managers should meet with their support staff at least once a month to discuss job goals, she said, and assistants who don't feel challenged enough should speak up and request more duties.

But Koshnick said executives don't need to wait for a cue to dole out greater responsibilities.

"Don't be afraid to ask an administrative or executive assistant to do something you don't think they can do, because chances are, they can do it," Koshnick said. "I don't think assistants always get enough credit. We're here to help."