Free template
Administrative assistant job description template you can copy, with the duties your office actually needs
Copy it, fill the brackets with your own numbers and post it. Below it there's a filled-in example, the four lines to change for a remote hire and a question that screens applicants, all free and with no sign-up.
Most administrative assistant posts read the same: answer phones, greet visitors, order supplies, other duties as assigned. They bring in hundreds of applications and say nothing about the job. This template asks for your office's real week instead, with the number of emails, bookings and invoices, the tools you use and the hours, so the right people can recognise the job when they read it.
Copy the administrative assistant job description
Job title: Administrative assistant
Location: [office address / hybrid, [__] days in the office / remote, working [__] to [__] [time zone]]
Hours: [full-time / part-time, __ hours a week], [days]
Pay: [currency][low] to [currency][high] a [year / month / hour], plus [benefits]
Reports to: [name and title]
Start date: [date]
About us
[Two or three sentences: what the business does, how many people work there and who the customers are.]
About the role
You'll keep the office running so [the team / name] can spend their time on [the work only they can do]. In a typical week that means about [__] emails to sort, [__] appointments to book, [__] invoices to send and [__] orders or enquiries to log.
What you'll do
- Sort the shared inbox each morning, answer routine emails and pass on the rest
- Book, move and confirm appointments and meetings in [calendar tool]
- Answer and return calls, and take clear messages [keep only if the role takes calls]
- Enter [orders / timesheets / client records] into [system] the same day they arrive
- Raise invoices in [accounting tool] and send reminders for overdue ones
- Keep files and shared folders in order, so anyone can find the latest version
- Order supplies and keep track of [deliveries / subscriptions / renewals]
- Prepare letters, documents and spreadsheets from our templates
- Greet visitors and handle the post [office roles only]
- [Any other task that comes back every week]
Tools you'll use
- [Google Workspace / Microsoft 365], [Slack / Teams / WhatsApp], [accounting tool], [CRM or booking system]
What you'll need
- [__]+ year(s) in an office or administrative role
- Clear, careful written English: you'll write to our customers
- Comfortable with spreadsheets and the tools above
- Organised: you keep track of what's due without being reminded
- Discretion with customer and staff information
Nice to have
- [e.g. bookkeeping basics, a second language, experience in our industry]
What success looks like after 90 days
- Routine emails get a reply within [__] working hours
- Invoices go out every [day of the week] and overdue ones are chased the same week
- [One goal specific to your office, e.g. the filing backlog cleared by the end of month two]
How to apply
Send your CV and a short note to [email] with the subject "[job title]". In your note, answer this: [one question about the work, e.g. "Two people book the same meeting room for 10 am tomorrow and your manager is on leave. What do you do?"]. We'll reply to every application by [date].
How to write an administrative assistant job description: fill in your real numbers
The brackets ask for numbers only you have, and last week's inbox and calendar will fill most of them.
- Count last week's emails, bookings and invoices, and put the real numbers in About the role
- Take out any duty the person won't actually do in their first month
- Keep the calls and front-desk lines only if the job really includes them
- Put the pay range in. It saves you calls with people you can't afford
- Keep the question in How to apply. It's your first filter
A filled-in example: office administrator for a 20-person joinery workshop
Bluegum Joinery is a made-up company, and the pay is left for you to fill in.
Job title: Office administrator
Location: Our workshop office in Geebung, Brisbane, Monday to Friday
Hours: Full-time, 8 am to 4.30 pm
Pay: A$[low] to A$[high] a year, plus super
Reports to: Mia Turner, operations manager
Start date: 3 November
About us
Bluegum Joinery is a 20-person workshop. We build kitchens, wardrobes and shop fit-outs for builders and homeowners across south-east Queensland, and we're busier every year.
About the role
You'll keep the office running so Mia and the installers can stay on the tools and on site. In a typical week that means about 150 emails to sort, 20 site measures and installs to book, 30 invoices to send and 40 supplier orders to log.
What you'll do
- Sort the shared inbox by 9 am, answer routine emails and pass quote requests to Mia
- Book site measures and installs in Google Calendar, and confirm each one with the customer the day before
- Answer and return calls from customers and builders, and take clear messages
- Enter every job and supplier order into our job system the same day
- Raise invoices in Xero when an install is signed off, and send reminders for overdue ones every Friday
- Keep job folders in order, with the latest drawings and quotes on top
- Order timber, hardware and office supplies, and chase late deliveries
- Prepare quotes and letters from our templates
- Greet visitors and handle the post
Tools you'll use
- Google Workspace, WhatsApp, Xero and our job system (we'll train you)
What you'll need
- 2+ years in an office or administrative role
- Clear, careful written English: you'll write to our customers
- Comfortable with spreadsheets and Xero, or a similar accounting tool
- Organised: you keep track of what's due without being reminded
- Discretion with customer and staff information
Nice to have
- Experience in a construction or trades office
- Experience with quoting or job software
What success looks like after 90 days
- Routine emails get a reply the same working day
- Invoices go out every Friday and overdue ones are chased the same week
- Every install is confirmed with the customer the day before
How to apply
Send your CV and a short note to jobs@bluegumjoinery.example with the subject "Office administrator". In your note, answer this: "A builder calls at 3 pm to move tomorrow's 7 am install, and the installer is already on another site. What do you do?". We'll reply to every application by 24 October.
Before you post, check for these five mistakes
Fix these before you post. Each one makes it harder to tell the right applicants from the rest.
- "Other duties as assigned." If you can't name the duty, the applicant can't picture the job.
- A list of office cliches. "Answers phones, greets visitors" brings in receptionists, not someone who'll run your invoicing.
- No pay range. You find out on the second call that you can't agree.
- No hours or time zone. For a remote role, the hours that overlap with yours are part of the job.
- Nothing to answer. Without a question in How to apply, every CV looks the same.
Remote administrative assistant job description: the four lines to change
Swap these into the template above.
- Location: remote, working [__] to [__] [your time zone], Monday to Friday
- What you'll do: drop greeting visitors and the post, and keep the inbox, calendar, data entry, calls and invoicing
- What you'll need: add a computer, a reliable connection and a quiet place to take calls
- Add How we'll work: a check-in at [time] on [Slack or Teams], with logins shared through [a password manager]
Or skip the job post: we recruit, vet and employ the assistant, and you direct the work
The template is free. If you'd rather not run the hire, that's what Catalyst does: we recruit and vet administrative assistants before you meet them, and most clients are onboarded within two weeks.
- We're the employer: we pay the assistant, supply the equipment and hold the employment contract.
- Plans start from around $8.80 an hour, billed monthly per assistant.
Frequently asked questions
What does an administrative assistant do?
They keep an office running: the inbox and calendar, calls and messages, data entry, filing, invoices and supplies, so the rest of the team can get on with their own work.
What should an administrative assistant job description include?
The job title, location and hours, the pay range, who they report to, a short about us, the duties as a real week, the tools, the skills you need, what success looks like after 90 days, and how to apply.
What skills should an administrative assistant have?
Careful writing, organisation, comfort with spreadsheets and your office software, and discretion. Name the tools you use, so applicants can say whether they've used them.
What's the difference between an administrative assistant and an executive assistant?
An administrative assistant supports a team or a whole office. An executive assistant works for one or two senior people, acts on their behalf and makes more decisions alone, which is why the role usually asks for more experience.
Should I put the pay in the job description?
Yes. A range saves you calls with people you can't afford, and some places require it, so check the rules where you're hiring.
Can an administrative assistant work remotely?
Yes, for most of the job, because the inbox, the calendar, data entry, invoices and calls can all be done from a laptop. Front-desk work and the post need someone in the office, so take those lines out for a remote hire.
Is the template free?
Yes. You can copy it or print it without signing up or giving an email address.