Administrative Assistant's Update

Credit: iQoncept/Shutterstock UPDATE PM #40065782 P R O F E S S I O N A L D E V E L O P M E N T F O R C A N A D A ' S O F F I C E S U P P O R T S T A F F Administrative Assistant's UPDATE INSIDE Where typing can take you � � � � 2 Reflections of a longtime secretary Opportunities on LinkedIn � � � � �3 Are you making a strong first impression? Open doors with language � � � � 5 Second language makes you more than equal to other candidates Customize your MOS � � � � � � � � 6 How to streamline the work you do each day in Microsoft Office Continued on page 4 By Jennifer Lewington The help-wanted listings for administrative assistants tell a story in more than one language. A Toronto-based food manufacturer seeks an administrative assistant who speaks English and Spanish because the corporate headquarters are in Mexico City. In Toronto, a human resources company is recruiting for a bilingual administrative assistant who can give back-up support to the president. Though needed in only a minority of jobs, second-language skills help administrative assistants stand out in a competitive job market. "With globalization, the ability to speak another language is going to be increasingly important, including in North America," says Suzanne Hague, owner of Anne Whitten Bilingual Recruitment, a Toronto- based boutique employment agency specializing in placing those able to communicate in English and French. She estimates there is a salary pre - mium of between two per cent and five per cent for bilingual hires. "You can't have too many skills," says Hague, with bilingual administrative professionals most often sought by C-suite managers. Whether companies are looking to do business in Quebec and the Maritimes – significant French- speaking regions of Canada – or exporting to overseas markets, language skills are seen as an important tool of business. "In Canada and Quebec, it is seen as a big asset to speak in more than one language," says Bernard Labelle, senior vice-president of global human resources for CGI, a global information technology and consulting firm based in Montreal. "It's now perceived as enriching your competencies and skill." Still, finding qualified candidates with second-language skills is not easy, according to some job placement firms. "For the recruitment professionals we work with on the commercial side of the business, they really struggle to find quality candidates who have bilingual capabilities," says Jodi Kastner, general manager and vice-president of sales for Canada at Indeed.com, a global jobs website. She estimates about 10 per cent of job postings for administrative assistants on Indeed.com call for candidates with bilingual capabili - ties, a one-in-10 ratio that held steady through 2015. Typically, employers are looking for candidates who are bilingual in Referring a friend can boost workforce diversity Employee referrals in the hiring process can result in greater work- force diversity. This is what a study from the Desautels Faculty of Management at McGill University has found. Groups who recruit more actively tend to increase their numbers in their companies, even groups start- ing out in the minority. Companies that track the refer- ral behaviour of their employees can discover whether word-of- mouth recruitment is furthering integration or segregation, says De- sautels professor Brian Rubineau, and encourage their employees "to reach out to minorities within their contact networks." MARCH 2016 Language lessons Bilingual skills enhance admin careers

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