Administrative Professional Tips

- Do you feel like you support a lot of people, but no one really understands what you do? Do you wonder if there are other people doing what you do? Do you search for new ideas or approaches to improve your efficiency, but don't have any resources to do so? As administrative support professionals, we experience some of the same tasks, challenges, and opportunities, regardless of the company that we work for, yet we normally don't have a place where we can share them. But through this platform, we do now.

My name is April Stallworth, and I have been an administrative support professional for 30 years. I have worked for nonprofit organizations and in the corporate sectors for companies such as AT&T, Verizon Wireless, and Cardinal Health. I currently work as the executive assistant to a high school superintendent in a suburb of Chicago. My administrative support professional program, called Helping Empower Administrative support professionals through Resources and Training, also known as H.E.A.R.T., won the Eureka! Award for the American Society for Administrative Professionals in 2015.

This series on helpful tips and tricks for administrative support professionals is the place to be to get your weekly dose of education, empowerment, and practical information that you can apply right away. I will share some of the best practices that I have acquired throughout my career in areas such as gatekeeping, goal setting, personal branding, and how to handle office politics and gossip. Sharing my experiences and expertise is meant to give you some new ways to approach similar situations and remind you that you are a vital member of whatever team you work on.

I look forward to being your guide in all things administrative. Let's go.