Recruiters try to woo home secretaries to meet demand

By ROSALEEN MacBRAYNE

Secretaries are so scarce in New Zealand's main cities they are being enticed back from overseas and can almost name their price.

The people who keep the office running, answer the phones and do it all for salaries a fraction of their bosses' have suddenly found themselves being courted by recruitment agencies.

Wellington firm Robert Walters will try to entice back home secretaries now based overseas in a bid to meet a shortage in the capital.

Other consultants say the skills supplied by "executive assistants" can earn them about $60,000 a year.

"The demand on them is much higher than it ever was. It is no longer just taking notes and making the odd cup of tea," said Todd August, recruitment manager for major consultancy Lampenalectus.

"There will always be lots of options for good secretaries."

He said senior managers these days needed the one-on-one support of a capable and trustworthy assistant if they were to be effective.

Recruiters spoken to yesterday said there was a widening market for office support staff at various levels of responsibility.

"It's easier to find a general manager than a secretary these days," said one recruiter.

"They are a very valuable resource. Demand exceeds supply."

Good receptionists were also harder to find.

Mr August said the receptionist shortage was a direct consequence of how far the call-centre market had stretched.

Instead of a person sitting at the front desk greeting people and answering the telephone, many firms had moved to customer service staff taking calls in a centralised area.

But there was still a niche for personable "professional" receptionists who were "a leap ahead of the rest" and made a very important contribution to their company's image.

In some modern businesses they were given the title Director of First Impressions, Mr August said.

A few men work as secretaries but the role is predominantly held by women.

Robert Walters spokesman Brent Ede said the role of secretaries or personal assistants had evolved in the past 15 years and salaries had risen to an average of $40,000 a year to reflect the extra skills needed.

A number of secretaries now held tertiary qualifications but experience was still a big factor in gaining a job, he said.

Applicants needed to possess strong computer knowledge, resilience and adaptability to change.

Mr Ede and Mr August both emphasised the importance of a warm, friendly personality and good communication skills.

The secretarial shortage in Christchurch seems to be confined to legal and medical positions.

In Hamilton, salespeople are more in demand.

"But it is so fickle," said consultant Wybo Veldman.

"There is no pattern to employment."

Waikato University trained students in business management, he said, but the market was in Auckland and Wellington.

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