By Michael Watkins

Randy Gardner is quick to correct anyone who refers to his administrative assistant as a "secretary." Instead, the senior director of C Avenue Manufacturing Operations at Rockwell Collins in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, more appropriately describes his colleague, Peg Erusha, as an "office manager."

With an easy-going personality, a great sense of humor, and the ability to juggle multiple tasks at once, Erusha is the person Gardner looks to for assistance with keeping his work priorities in line.

"Many people don't realize the benefit of having a good administrative assistant," said Gardner. "Sometimes I truly believe she has more influence over getting things done than I do."

While answering telephones, managing calendars, and ordering office supplies have long been part of an administrative assistant's role, the evolution of technology has sparked tremendous change.

Taking shorthand, transcribing letters and using a Dictaphone have been replaced with tasks more directly associated to business processes such as overseeing new hire orientation and helping management maintain positive, productive relationships with our customers.

"An administrative assistant is like the oil on a wheel – we keep things running smoothly so the wheel can keep the car going in the appropriate direction," said Erusha, senior administrative assistant in C Avenue Manufacturing Operations. "I interact with a wide variety of departments within our company, and if someone asks me a question or wants to know who they can talk to about a certain issue, I need to be able to help them."

Wearing many hats

Photo by Paul Marlow, Cedar Rapids, Iowa
Managing the workload  —Rockwell Collins Administrative Assistant Peg Erusha is a master at managing multiple tasks. A 24-year employee, Erusha has seen her role change as our company has continued to grow.

Often the conduit of information and the individuals charged with keeping department morale high, Erusha and her colleagues across our company also find themselves handling a variety of personnel issues. But these taskmasters and efficiency experts welcome the challenge.

"I do whatever I can to help our team," said Executive Assistant Rosa Salazar, who joined our company in September 2006 via our acquisition of the former Anzus, Inc. "I coordinate customer meetings, schedule meeting space, and coordinate food and beverage."

But Salazar, who supports Air Force Advanced Programs Manager Greg Nelson and his team in Poway, Calif., also attends trade shows and recruiting events.

"I see myself as someone who provides more than day-to-day support for Greg and our department," said Salazar. "I also support our entire organization, and if that means assisting our Marketing department at trade shows or helping to recruit engineers, then that's what I'll do.

"It's very important for me to be available for my boss, and I'm able to use my multi-tasking experience and prioritize what needs to be done accordingly," continued Salazar. "Greg does a good job of keeping me involved in all aspects of our business, and I feel that affords me the knowledge to be able to assist and be a valued resource."

For Nelson, whose position requires him to be involved with many meetings and decisions, it is imperative for him to be organized and on top of the numerous ongoing issues with the business. Although important, this can be time-consuming, so he relies heavily on Salazar to keep him on task.

"Rosa makes work less stressful because of her abilities and professionalism," said Nelson, who has been with our company since 1975. "I probably rely too much on Rosa, but we both try to honor the workload of the other. Having this type of relationship helps prevent miscommunication and making inaccurate assumptions. She's a valuable asset to our team and to our company."

Setting standards

While most administrative assistants across our company are female, this also is an area in which change is beginning to take place. Scott Schofield, for instance, accepted his administrative role at Rockwell Collins Simulation & Training Solutions in Huntsville, Ala., with the notion that it will help prepare him for the future.

Schofield, who already holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Economics from Auburn University, is pursuing a second bachelor's degree in mechanical engineering. The work experience he is gaining as an administrative assistant is something he considers priceless as he hopes to grow within the company in the years to come.

"My purpose, on an administrative level, is to ensure that our customers' needs are met, and to provide the necessary services my managers and department members need to do their jobs," said Schofield, who joined our company one year ago and reports to Program Manager Trey Dyer. "In addition to my administrative work, I'm able to work alongside our engineers and learn from them."

Although Dyer recently assumed his new responsibilities and has only worked with Schofield for a few weeks as his supervisor, the positive working relationship between the two is already clear.

"I can already tell that he values my opinion and the contributions I bring to our team," said Schofield. "The work that we do as administrative assistants is important to our departments and our company because we cover all of the administrative aspects of our services. This allows management to focus on the quality of the product and service we provide to our customers."