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Featured Administrative Professional Job Description:  Pharmaceutical

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Current job title:  Senior Administrative Assistant

 

Industry:  Pharmaceutical

 

Department:  Managed Markets

 

Years worked in this industry:  less than 2

 

Years worked in this department:  less than 2

 

Special training or attributes needed or helpful to get job in this industry (or specific department):  BS was helpful, general admin skills, organizational skills, etc.

 

Number of managers and/or staff supported:  2 directors, 40 field managers

 

Typical work hours:  8:30 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.

 

Weekends or overtime hours:  Some OT - time and a half

 

General salary range (Note: This is a general figure or range provided by survey respondent and may NOT be an exact salary in order to give survey respondent some privacy. Also you must take into account that the number of years worked in industry/department may contribute to this salary as well as criteria such as level of position and person reports to, required hours and geographical location.):  approx. $50,000

 

Benefits (direct or indirect):  Tuition reimbursement, summer hours, 10 paid sick days, 3 personal days, 15 vacation days, 10 holidays

 

Lingo you might hear in this industry: 

Prior authorization (PA, Prior Auth), PBM (Pharmacy Benefits Manager), 2nd tier, 3rd tier

 

A typical day on the job:  Very varied. Lots of emails & phone calls, lots of calendar management of two directors. Usually have at least two or three major projects in the works (usually planning staff meetings with 5-40 field staff flying in for a meeting, either to our office or another state). Lots of interruptions and added tasks. Important to take notes and use Outlook reminders.

 

Positive things about being an administrative professional in this industry:  Great benefits, worthwhile (support people bringing helpful medications to those who need them), opportunities for growth and new experiences within the company

 

Negative things about being an administrative professional in this industry:  Learning curve, government compliance and scrutiny, admins are considered "the help" (don't generate sales/dollars)

 

Type of workspace/office:  Cubicle

 

Primary responsibilities as an administrative professional in this position:  Calendar maintenance, meeting planning, screening phone calls, collecting and collating reports (data) from the field, creating and editing PowerPoint presentations

 

Top thing(s) incumbent admin would require of job applicants seeking to be her/his position replacement:  Organizational skills, MS Office proficient (expert in Excel - formulas, charts/graphs, formatting), BS degree

 

Office machines or equipment operated regularly:  copier/printer, fax, scanner, shredder, 3 hole punch

 

Technology (hard) skills used regularly:  Excel, Excel, Excel. Power Point (templates, graphics, exporting/importing from/to Excel)

 

Critical soft skills:  Negotiating pricing from vendors, diplomacy (have to get 40 headstrong sales field folks to turn in reports on time and in the correct format), professionalism, organizational skills (juggle lots of balls), proactive and think ahead (anticipate needs of participants in meetings, etc.), self motivated

 

Pace of this position:  Very very fast

 

Geographical region:  Midwest U.S.