Should You Hire Your Own Assistant?

So you’re in the market for your very own assistant. You want someone who can really get stuff done, hit the ground running, and mesh well with your existing team. You have a list of wants and needs, and are ready to run to America’s favorite job boards and post the vacancy and start collecting the resumes of perfect candidates.

Don’t do it to yourself. Unless you have extensive administrative experience, or experience hiring administrative professionals, you shouldn’t hire your own assistant.

More than likely, you’re a very busy person, which is probably why you want to hire an assistant in the first place. Hiring administrative staff is a daunting, time consuming task. With all of the drama the bad ones can bring—from theft to fraud—hiring an administrative assistant is a task better left to the professionals.

First, you don’t always know what you need. Administrative personnel keep your life in order. As the boss, that’s often all you care about. The truth is, there is a limitless number of duties that can be assigned to an assistant. A good recruiting firm will understand the intricacies of the job order better than the client themselves, and they have experience hiring for similar positions which enables them to make good decisions about what you really need in an admin.

Second, by going through the hiring process alone, the chances of getting exactly what you want in an assistant are slim, and you will spend countless hours sifting through resumes that aren’t a good fit. A good staffing firm already has a strong candidate pipeline since they are always interviewing to keep a good pool of candidates to choose from. Sometimes you can’t wait to hire someone—you need the help now. That’s when a staffing agency comes in handy. Everyone in their pipeline is pre-screened. Most often they have already conducted an in person interview to screen for appearance, poise and communication skills and they have already tested their skills. So, no more hoping someone is telling the truth about their Microsoft Office skills. You will not waste time interviewing candidates who don’t display the right image or who later test poorly on office skills. Staffing agencies keep candidates honest.

Third, it’s not easy to be an honest judge of self-character. You may think you’re really nice, or really easy to work with, or “super chill,” and you may be in social settings, but there’s a little something we like to call “professional chemistry” that’s really important when it comes to fostering a positive work environment. Most people are different at work—where they may be under a tremendous amount of pressure—versus in social settings. You know you in both situations. Staffing agencies know you only professionally, giving them a better idea of personality fit in an assistant. A good staffing agency understands how personalities mix—a vital piece of employee retention (and, in case you didn’t know, replacing employees can be more expensive than having hired them in the first place ).

Finding a great administrative assistant for your staff can be challenging, but it doesn’t have to be. C-Suite Assistants understand the ins and outs of hiring administrative staff. With skills-tested, pre-screened candidates and a knack for finding that needle in a haystack, we specialize in high-caliber administrative professionals for small and big businesses alike.

Call us today with your hiring needs! 212-867-4678