Professional Conduct for Administrators

Introduction to Professional Conduct for Administrators

In today's world of work, secretaries/personal assistants/office managers are expected to contribute significantly to the achievement of the organisation’s goals by providing the necessary information and promoting the image of the organisation to the world. There are high expectations from employers, colleagues, customers, visitors and others, in the haulage of the duties and roles of secretaries/office managers. In most organisations, people expect the secretarial professionals to communicate clearly, have good personal characteristics, especially in terms of appearance, good social interactions, good disposition, towards people, good personal conduct in terms of handling people with tact and respect, have good interpersonal relationship, behave in a way that reflects high moral standards of personal probity, upholding codes of conducts, and behaviour as expected of the profession, as well as technical competence.

The term professionalism means different things to different people. One view is that it may be fruitless to try and pin down one exact meaning, like many words and concepts, which have different dimensions and changes over time. Being a professional, firstly, can be factual and thus associated with holding certain qualifications and or membership of a professional body, and secondly, be descriptive, measuring the characteristics expected of a professional and thus includes ongoing professional development and ever-increasing levels of excellence in services given by a professional.

Another viewpoint is that professionalism relates to well-established or even innate personal qualities and values. It could mean being courteous, conscientious, and generally business like in the workplace. In different workplaces you will find a basic set of guidelines for what is appropriate and what would be unacceptable as a baseline for professionalism.

According to Lisa McQuerry, the principles of professionalism are a standard of personal conduct by a professional in business dealings. Guiding principle for acceptable and expected behaviour vary from industry to industry; that notwithstanding, the following are the general principles of professionalism:

Appearance

One of the critical entreaties to be a professional is building a reputation for professionalism and to meet the basic dress, groom and hygiene standards of your industry. Naturally, those blue-collar workers who deal with dirt and grime on daily bases may not be affected in this regard. But officers such as the likes of secretaries are among professionals who are commonly judged by the way they look. Professional dress, well-groomed hair and a clean-cut image without excessive piercing and visible tattoos are among expectations of professionalism in many white-collar jobs.

Accountability

Being responsible is a common concept of professionalism. This means accepting the duties of your position and the responsibility when they do not work out. Professionals are responsible for their actions and their work. They understand their roles and responsibilities and they are accountable for them. They discharge their duties properly in a timely manner. They are self-starters if, as sometimes happens, professionals make mistakes, fail to do something or do something in error, they accept responsibility for this action and hold themselves accountable. They do not dodge blame, offer excuses or dwell on their errors. They admit their mistakes, learn from them and move on to the next level.

Competence

Professionalism has to do with acquiring skills and work attitude. The core of being a professional is acquiring or showing or possessing the foundation of competence in your job. Professionals strive hard not to be left behind. Professionals understand that they cannot stand still. They know that if they continue to do the same thing the same way they have been doing it, they soon will be overtaken by circumstances. Others will pass them by. They therefore put themselves on a track of continuous learning and growth.

Respectful Communication

Being a professional generally connotes that colleagues and co-workers view and perceive you as someone who is very respectful in both formal and informal conversation. Appropriate use of language, good verbal and non-verbal interaction skills, eye contact, friendly smile and genuine respect for workers as people are common traits of respectful communication.

Integrity

Demonstrating honesty and transparency in the way you conduct yourself in your job are a foundation of professionalism. This includes being straight with people in your conversation, staying out of the company’s gossip mill. Talking behind the backs of co-workers is not a good way to develop a professional reputation.

Regardless of the size or nature of an organisation, every job can be performed in a professional manner. When you do your work using a professional approach, people take notice. People notice because professionals perform what are often regarded as an ordinary job in an extra-ordinary way. Professionals add a little extra to everything.

Click here to view a video on professionalism.