An executive secretary of an organization has got crucial duties and responsibilities inside the organization. Executive secretaries assist or work as an assistant who provides clerical support. He /she is also responsible for conducting administrative support.
Several requirements need to be fulfilled if you are interested in working as an executive secretary. Knowledge and educational degrees are a must and along with those one has to have basic skills.
Just like any other job the job of executive secretaries also has to go through a selection process. If you are curious to know about the types of questions asked during the interview round then read below some commonly asked questions.
Executive Secretary Interview Questions with answers
- Describe a situation when you had a conflict with a colleague of yours.
Ans: There can be so many situations when you might have faced a similar kind of situation if you have had past work experiences. Well, this is the time to speak them out to the interviewer. Try to answer carefully and speak the truth because the interviewer can contact the previous boss about your behavior.
If you did not face any such situation in your past then you can just simply let your interviewer know about it. If you are talking about a situation when you had a conflict then try to keep your answer short and also explain how you handled the situation.
- What are your strengths and your weaknesses?
Ans: It would be embarrassing if you do not answer this question because nobody is perfect in this world. Similarly, you might have your set of strengths and weaknesses too. Well, this is the perfect time to let them out to your interviewer.
While describing your strengths you can mention that you are motivated to work and how you can handle difficult situations. You can also say that you are good at adapting things. Your strengths should be valuable for the company.
While describing your weaknesses you can tell that you are lazy sometimes or you cannot handle too much pressure at work. There can be so many things that you can say. But, do not say things that are not true.
- Why do you want to work for this company?
Ans: While answering this question you have to let your interviewer know how the work interests you and you are motivated to work. You can also say that you always dreamt of working at the company that you have applied to.
Just keep your answer short and simple because the interviewer would not like those things because he has to interview other candidates too. If you want to impress the interviewer then you must keep your answer short yet effective.
This is a question that most interviewers ask the candidates and candidates get confused while answering. The candidates think of answers that become fake and not true. So, you need to be careful while answering, trying not to make any mistakes.
- Tell us about your past work experience(s).
Ans: Until and unless you are a fresh candidate then you cannot answer this question. But, if you are an experienced worker then you can easily answer the question. While answering this question you need to mention the things that you learned while working for your previous company.
Experiences that you want to explain to the interviewer should be work-related experiences and not other unnecessary things. Do not go complain about your previous colleagues or your boss because that would be unnecessary and the interviewer would not want to hear such kinds of things.
- What are the things that you will do to ensure confidentiality?
Ans: This is an operational question that the interviewer might ask so that he can judge your thinking skills. You just have to simply answer the question with the best possible answer that you can think of.
Just think of a situation where you have been given a task that needs to be handled with care. What are the things that you are going to do to protect the confidentiality documents? You can keep the task a secret from others and such other types of things can be included in your answer.
Make sure you give an effective solution to these types of questions and not give answers that are too common. The interviewer is looking for something or someone new with potential and you should be the one.
- How fast can you type on a computer?
Ans: Now, everything is done with the help of technology and you must be familiar with computers too. This is a practical question and your answer should be something like this. I can type 40-50 words per minute.
If you can type more than that then you are most welcome to mention that in your answer. You might have to work in computers and this is why questions like these can be asked to you during the interview round.
- Have you ever managed finances for a company?
Ans: Until and unless you are a fresh candidate applying for the job you will not have anything to say as an answer. But, you can say about how you manage your finances for your house and personal things. This should give the interviewer a brief idea of your managing finance skills.
If you have managed finances for your previous company then you can mention that now. Your interviewer wants to know how you have managed finances for your previous company and what challenges you had to face. Keep your answer short and brief while answering this question.
- Tell me about a time when you had to make a difficult decision in the absence of your superior.
Ans: There can be a lot of times when you have to make a difficult decision not only at work but even at your house. Well, this answer should be work-related and not anything related to your personal matters. So, be careful to answer such situational questions that are asked to you during the interview round.
Your superior might not have been around and therefore you had to take the decision. What decision did you take and how did you manage things during that point in time? What was the outcome of the decision that you had taken? All the answers to the questions should be mentioned in your answer.
- Have you ever worked on multiple projects and were unable to meet the deadline? What did you do at that moment?
Ans: One of the most common questions asked during interview rounds is how you managed things when the situation was difficult at your previous organization. Whichever work that you have done previously might have demanded a lot from you. What did you do to make sure that the work was done within the time limit?
This is the right time to answer them because the interviewer will judge your management skills based on your answer. Do not lie because your interviewer can contact your previous boss and ask everything about it. So, be careful and answer carefully to such questions.
Conclusion
In the end, you want the job and want to start working as soon as possible. But, before anything else you have to get selected first, and then when the selectors of the company decide that you are fit for the job you will get selected.
Even if you do not get selected for the job then you should try for other companies that are there in the market. Prepare yourself properly for the job that you have applied for. There are plenty of opportunities related to similar jobs to the executive secretary that you can try out.
Frequently Asked Questions
- What are the top three basic skills that you need to become an executive secretary?
Ans: The top three skills that you need to become an executive secretary are as the following:
- Adaptability
- Handling people
- Organizational skills
- What is the job description of an executive secretary?
Ans: The job description of an executive salary would include the following things:
- The candidate must be responsible for handling and organizing all activities of a top executive.
- Must be able to organize necessary meetings
- Plan necessary events
- Must be able to develop long-term schedules
- Managing phone calls of the top executive member.
- What qualities must an executive secretary have to work in an organization?
Ans: The following are the qualities that an executive secretary should have while working in an organization:
- Communication skills (Excellent)
- Organizing skills (Excellent)
- Professionalism (Good)
- Collaborative skills (Excellent)
- Willingness to learn something new every day.
- Are executive secretary jobs for higher posts?
Ans: Executive secretary jobs require an extreme level of professionalism while working in an organization. Their job is to support executives and assist in managing in an administrative capacity.
- What are the things that I should follow to become a good executive secretary?
Ans: One has to have all the required skills to become a good executive secretary. He should be able to declare other’s views, engage in other people’s ideas and analyze data of insights.
- How many types of secretary jobs are there?
Ans: There are several types of secretary jobs in the market. Following are some of them:
- Legal Secretary
- Administrative Secretary
- Office Secretary
- Executive Secretary
- School Secretary
- Litigation Secretary
- Medical Secretary
- Real Estate Secretary
- How much does an executive secretary make in the United States of America?
Ans: Top earners make around $64,000 annually while a 25th percentile can earn around $31,500 per year in the United States of America.
