As the reliance on technology continues to expand in offices, the role of the office professional has greatly changed. Office automation and organizational restructuring have led administrative professionals to assume responsibilities once reserved for managerial and professional staff. Under the umbrella of administrative professional, the titles range from admin assist to executive admin. The roles of administrative professionals are very important to the culture of the company. In these roles, the administrative professionals take on many responsibilities: 

• Administrative professionals frequently inform their managers about different changes in the industry, including finding articles that will assist with different adaptations to culture changes. 

• Administrative professional are a professional agent of the company, building rapport internally and externally to support business objectives.  

• Administrative professionals focus on creating, developing, and tweaking systems.  

• Administrative professionals coordinate office activities by storing, retrieving, and integrating information for dissemination to staff. 

At University Health System (UHS) we have capitalize on the skills of the administrative professional by empowering and embracing the administrative professionals with programs developed in house. One program that we have developed is the Administrative Professional Academy. The program helps admin professionals leverage the skill of critical thinking when managing payroll or budget. It comprises nine topics, including the following:  

Partnering With Your Boss: Administrative professionals learn the amount of influence they have in the relationship with their boss and the benefits of partnering with their boss.  

Communication Is the Foundation: Administrative professionals examine the significance and benefits of communication skills in the workplace to identify the roles and skills required as a professional.  

Decision Making and Problem Solving: Administrative professionals learn to use tools that aid in making good decisions related to the department and the organization. 

Once the program is completed, there is a graduation and a celebration for the participants. We also go a step further with a program called the Administrative Professionals Committee and Council, which allows administrative professionals to use their new skills and talents. Once a year, the committee plans an event to invite local and nonlocal administrative professionals to attend our conference, which includes breakout sessions on soft skills and how to network with fellow administrative professionals. 

Lastly, the executive staff funds an appreciation breakfast every April to give out awards and provide testimonials of all the achievements that have been made in empowering and developing our administrative professional staff. It is one thing to appreciate and another thing to value the importance of administrative professionals. We at UHS demonstrate both. 

Want to learn more? Join me February 6, 3017, for the ATD webcast Unsung Heroes in Healthcare.