From reception and clerical work to coordinating inter-office communications, the office administrator can be vital to the success of your company.

Knowing the importance of bringing in a quality candidate to perform the job, how as a small business owner can you ensure that the individual you hire can provide the greatest benefit to your business?

Experience is clearly the most important consideration when interviewing office administrators. This position is required to perform a wide variety of tasks and it is important that the person you choose to bring on board with your company is able to multitask and provide a wide array of services.

Highly experienced office administrators can be in very high demand and may have much steeper salary requirements than those with a lesser degree of experience. It is important to weigh the skill level of the candidate with the amount of on-the-job know-how that they bring to the table.

Your time is certain to be in short supply as the owner of a small business, and hiring someone who has no experience who will need to be trained extensively may not be something that you have the flexibility to do. Depending on the current situation of your business, you may need to bring in someone who can immediately adapt to your company and will be an asset from day one rather than a training burden, but this luxury certainly comes with a higher price tag.

In addition to experience, knowledge of your specific industry can prove to be very beneficial when hiring an office administrator. One of the roles of the position is to be able to act as an interface between your company and the outside world, including other businesses.

If you are in the auto parts industry, bringing in an administrator who has worked in the business before will likely be much more familiar with the nuances of the business than someone who has worked in a wholly unrelated industry. An administrator with experience in the pet supply industry will probably not be able to address concerns about mufflers as well as someone who worked for General Motors for 5 years. Know-how like this can save you time and by taking on a certain degree of responsibility regarding product concerns.

These factors, as well as others such as interpersonal ability and computer skills can be significant considerations when brining a new office administrator on board. By hiring an individual with the right skill set and background, you can decrease your own personal workload and improve the efficiency with quantifiable results.