I spent about 10 hours analyzing which Administrative job titles work best. In this mini-report (the latest chapter in Ongig’s Job Titles: The Definitive Guide, you’ll find guidance on:
What is an administrative position? It can be nebulous but serves critical functions. A few definitions of administrative roles:
“The [Administrative] functions…can be as mundane as ordering paper towels or as critical as budget talks. When outside departments need to forge a relationship with a given department, an administrator is the person who facilitates the meetings.” — How to Organize an Administrative Department by Danielle Smyth.
“An effective administrator is…the link between an organization’s various departments and ensures the smooth flow of information from one part to the other.” — Effective Role Of Administration In An Organization by Pankaj Mishra.
“An office administrator provides structure to other employees throughout the organization. These activities can range from being responsible for the management of human resources, budgets and records, to undertaking the role of supervising other employees.” — Office Administration definition via Wikipedia
Most large companies have an Administration department and it’s usually called Administrative or General & Administrative (G&A) That’s the approach taken at leading companies such as:
However, some companies also have Administrative positions overlapping Operations and other departments.
Administrative jobs are often interwoven with Operations (most common), Finance, HR and Legal. We perused 40 top career pages to see how top-performing public companies list Administrative jobs versus Operations jobs,.
Let’s have a look at a few:
You can see that Admin is most often combined with Operations (another nebulous but critical department!). The difference
Administrative is considered the “what” of an organization. What tasks need to be done? (i.e., Scheduling meetings, answering phones, sending emails, preparing documents, creating presentations, directing visitors, etc.).
Operations is considered the “how” of an organization. How will the organization run effectively? (i.e., Creating processes, Managing Projects, Tracking Product Development, Remaining Legally Compliant, Tracking Efficiency, etc.)
You’ll notice that some of the companies above lump Administrative into FInance, HR and Legal too. This is all just the style of a company’s leadership.
But today, we’ll focus on Administrative job titles alone.
Note: If you’re interested in other departments’ job title analysis, check out The Top 20 Finance Job Titles (includes Accounting) and The Top 40 Job Titles in Human Resources.
Ok, let’s now dive into administrative positions!
Here’s a typical org chart of Administrative position titles.
Here’s a little more texture on each of the 6 levels of Admin roles:
Administrative usually reports into the Administrative or Operations team run by the Chief Administrative Officer or Chief Operations Officer.
Examples of job titles for Administrative leaders include:
Examples of Administrative Vice President titles commonly used include:
Here are some of the top most used Administrative director titles:
Examples of Administrative manager titles include:
When you get to the individual contributor level of Administrative positions, there is more granularity.
Examples of entry-level Administrative titles include:
Below is a list of the top 20 Administrative job titles based on Google queries we found on ahrefs.
“Virtual Assistant” is #1 and if you’re looking to hire an Assistant, unless it’s a must-have to have them in your office, you’ll get a lot more interest in the job if you use the title “Virtual Assistant”.
Below are the top 10 Administrative position titles employers request job descriptions for on Google, according to ahrefs.
I’ve included a brief description for each as well as the # of job title searches per month.
An Administrative Assistant works with an executive or team of executives to carry out the day to day tasks within an organization. An Administrative Assistant may answer phones or greet guests, as a Secretary would, but also performs more complex tasks like creating meeting agendas and managing multiple calendars. Other tasks of an Administrative Assistant include:
# of job title searches per month: 14,000; Office Assistant: 3,900; Assistant:450
Note: Check out other titles for administrative assistant below in the “Creative Job Titles for Administrative Assistant” section towards the bottom of this article.
An Office Manager, also known as an Office Administrator, or just Administrator, acts as a liaison between management and employees in and organization. Office managers are responsible for a variety of tasks including monitoring deliveries, organizing workspaces, and providing assistance to executives where needed. Depending on the size of the organization, an Office Manager may also assist with the hiring process by scheduling interviews, or with financial tasks like managing invoices.
# of job title searches per month: 10,000; Office Administrator: 3,600; Administrator: 800
An Executive Assistant is highly qualified and usually has years of experience in the Administrative field. An Executive Assistant provides high-level support to management in a company. Common tasks of an Executive Assistant include:
# of job title searches per month: 6,600; Executive Administrative Assistant: 600
A Receptionist, also commonly called a Secretary or Front Desk Agent is the first point of contact for clients and employees when entering an office environment. A Receptionist is usually seated at the front desk or lobby entrance and helps greet and direct visitors when they arrive. A Receptionist also answers the main phone line for a company and transfers calls accordingly. Other tasks of a Receptionist include receiving mail or shipments, scheduling appointments for clients, cleaning reception areas, and assisting with other administrative tasks as needed.
# of job title searches per month: 6,200;Secretary: 2,000; Front Desk Agent: 500
A Personal Assistant, similar to an Executive Assistant, helps manage daily schedules and other administrative tasks. A Personal Assistant works side-by-side with one senior-level executive to ensure their calendar is up to date and their organizational goals are met. A Personal Assistant may also be responsible for assisting with personal tasks like scheduling doctor’s appointments, or handling other family-related matters on top of coordinating administrative tasks for the organization.
# of job title searches per month: 2,800
A Chief of Staff, a title heard frequently in politics, is also a somewhat new title for a top administrative position within businesses. A Chief of Staff serves as a liaison between clients, staff, and executives. Some duties of the Chief of Staff include:
# of job title searches per month: 2,000; Administrative Coordinator: 600
A Program Coordinator is an administrative professional tasked with helping manage various programs within an organization. A Program Coordinator helps manage program-related budgets, keeps team members up-to-date, creates meeting agendas, and schedules meetings. Other tasks of a Program Coordinator include supporting program growth, creating presentations, and sharing program summaries across an organization.
# of job title searches per month: 1,500
A File Clerk is a front-office position that is responsible for file management for a business. Common duties of a File Clerk, also known as a Data Entry Clerk, are:
# of job title searches per month: 1,200; Data Entry Clerk: 800
A Virtual Assistant provides a variety of services to businesses or business leaders from a remote location. A Virtual Assistant performs many of the tasks performed by an Executive Assistant, but may also act as a Personal Assistant and perform personal errands. Common tasks of a Virtual Assistant include:
# of job title searches per month: 500
A Contract Administrator is responsible for developing and reviewing contracts on behalf of an organization. A Contract Administrator ensures all parties follows the terms of each contract and also may be tasked with analyzing contracts to make sure they comply with regulations, developing contract proposal to support organizational goals, and writing contract letters or notices.
# of job title searches per month: 450
We found these other funny/creative Administrative job titles :
There’s more examples of funny admin titles (including for Office Manager) here: 100+ Creative & Funny Job Titles [by Department & Position]
Thank you, Administrative Title Experts!
In addition to the sources cited above, special thanks to these experts on administrative titles:
Why I wrote this?
My Ongig team and I share this research on Administrative job titles to help you optimize your own titles. This supports our mission to transform job descriptions. Check out Ongig.com to learn more.
