Executive secretaries and executive administrative assistants
SOC Code: 43-6011
Executive secretaries and executive administrative assistants carries a 83% AI exposure score (Very High automation risk), with a median annual wage of $74,260 and -1.6% projected employment growth from 2024 to 2034 (BLS), affecting approximately 502,800 workers. Full task breakdown, skills, and employer data are below.
Proportion of tasks susceptible to AI automation (O*NET analysis)
At 83% AI exposure, Executive secretaries and executive administrative assistants sits 46 points above the 37.2% average across 832 U.S. occupations - among the most AI-exposed occupations tracked. It is one of just 21 occupations above the 70% high-exposure line.
Career outlook score
33/100
Executive secretaries and executive administrative assistants, weighted across 3 of 3 tracked dimensions
A weighted composite of median wage, projected growth, and AI-automation security (inverted exposure), each benchmarked against every other tracked occupation. It describes this occupation's standing across those three dimensions, not a guarantee of future outcomes.
- Median wage B $74,260
Annual median wage, percentile rank vs all tracked occupations
- Projected growth F -1.6%
Projected employment change, 2024-2034, BLS Employment Projections
- AI exposure (inverted) F 83% exposure
Lower O*NET task-automability scores lower risk; this dimension scores security, not exposure
Home health and personal care aides is #1 of 832 occupations by employment (4.3M, AI exposure rank #392 at 35%) vs. Bookkeeping, accounting, and auditing clerks #1 by AI task exposure (95%, employment rank #17 at 1.6M).
Automation-risk inventory
Exclusive cut of 832 occupations by PlainWorkforce automation-risk band. Orthogonal to the continuous AI-exposure distribution chart below and to this occupation's single risk badge, this is the corpus band mix, with Executive secretaries and executive administrative assistants in the Very High band.
Credential × growth standing
Open entry with non-declining BLS pace
Executive secretaries and executive administrative assistants keeps an HS / some college bar (333 of 832) and sits in Slow growth (245 of 832). Lower formal gates with a non-shrinking employment line - skill and AI desks matter more than credentials here.
Where Executive secretaries and executive administrative assistants sits among all occupations
AI-exposure score distribution across 832 U.S. occupations (O*NET task analysis). This occupation is marked in rose.
Where Executive secretaries and executive administrative assistants sits by AI exposure
AI-exposure score distribution across U.S. occupations (O*NET task analysis)
83% Higher than most higher than 99%+ of 832 occupations
Occupations, banded by AI-exposure score
Each bar is a band; taller bars hold more occupations. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count and share, and where it sits relative to this entry.
Source O*NET task data (U.S. Department of Labor) · BLS 2024–2034
Source: O*NET task data (U.S. Department of Labor); AI-exposure scores are PlainWorkforce's analysis. As of BLS 2024–2034.
Executive secretaries and executive administrative assistants vs. its occupational neighbors
AI exposure (horizontal) vs projected 2024–2034 growth (vertical) for occupations in the same SOC group. Executive secretaries and executive administrative assistants is marked in rose; the top-left corner is the most future-proof.
Source: BLS Employment Projections 2024–2034 (growth) and O*NET (AI-exposure analysis by PlainWorkforce).
Employment Projections
Where This Score Comes From
Executive secretaries and executive administrative assistants's Very High automation-risk tier is computed from O*NET Database 30.0 task-level analysis, where each documented task the occupation performs is evaluated against current generative AI, robotic process automation, and machine-learning capabilities. A score above 70% signals that the majority of core duties are already technically automatable, workers in these roles face the steepest near-term displacement pressure.
The employment, wage, and education figures above come from a second, separate federal source: BLS Employment Projections 2024–2034, matched to the O*NET task data by Standard Occupational Classification (SOC 43-6011) code, with the wage figure cross-validated against the BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) May 2024 survey. BLS figures are presented exactly as published, with no adjustment on our part; the SOC-code match is what lets Executive secretaries and executive administrative assistants be compared directly against every other tracked occupation on the same basis, not just roles that happen to share a job title.
For career planners, this profile should be read alongside the task, skill, and knowledge breakdowns below and the list of employers whose workforce composition includes Executive secretaries and executive administrative assistants. Adjacent occupations shown further down offer lateral moves that preserve industry knowledge while potentially reducing exposure.
Education & Entry Requirements
Top Tasks (O*NET)
- 1. Manage and maintain executives' schedules.
- 2. Process payroll information.
- 3. Make travel arrangements for executives.
- 4. Prepare invoices, reports, memos, letters, financial statements, and other documents, using word processing, spreadsheet, database, or presentation software.
- 5. Coordinate and direct office services, such as records, departmental finances, budget preparation, personnel issues, and housekeeping, to aid executives.
- 6. Answer phone calls and direct calls to appropriate parties or take messages.
- 7. Prepare responses to correspondence containing routine inquiries.
- 8. Open, sort, and distribute incoming correspondence, including faxes and email.
- 9. Greet visitors and determine whether they should be given access to specific individuals.
- 10. Prepare agendas and make arrangements, such as coordinating catering for luncheons, for committee, board, and other meetings.
Key Skills Required
- Reading Comprehension
- Active Listening
- Speaking
- Writing
- Service Orientation
- Coordination
- Critical Thinking
- Social Perceptiveness
- Time Management
- Active Learning
Knowledge Areas
- Administrative
- English Language
- Customer and Personal Service
- Computers and Electronics
- Administration and Management
- Personnel and Human Resources
- Communications and Media
- Mathematics
- Public Safety and Security
- Telecommunications
Frequently Asked Questions
Will AI replace Executive secretaries and executive administrative assistants?
Executive secretaries and executive administrative assistants has an AI exposure score of 83%, indicating a very high level of automation risk. Many tasks in this role involve routine data processing and pattern recognition that current AI systems can perform.
What is the job outlook for Executive secretaries and executive administrative assistants?
According to BLS Employment Projections 2024-2034, Executive secretaries and executive administrative assistants is projected to decline by 1.6% over the decade. Current employment stands at approximately 502,800 workers.
What skills are needed for Executive secretaries and executive administrative assistants?
Key skills for Executive secretaries and executive administrative assistants include Reading Comprehension, Active Listening, Speaking, and others. Typical entry-level education is High school diploma or equivalent.
How much do Executive secretaries and executive administrative assistants earn?
The median annual wage for Executive secretaries and executive administrative assistants is $74,260, according to BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (May 2024). Actual earnings vary by location, experience, industry, and employer. The BLS publishes detailed wage percentiles by region in its Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics program.
What education is required for Executive secretaries and executive administrative assistants?
The typical entry-level education for Executive secretaries and executive administrative assistants is High school diploma or equivalent. Employers generally expect Less than 5 years of related work experience. On-the-job training typically involves None. Requirements can vary by employer and specialization.
Which companies employ Executive secretaries and executive administrative assistants?
Executive secretaries and executive administrative assistants roles exist across many industries and employers. Workforce composition is estimated from BLS industry-occupation employment distributions matched to SEC-registered public companies.
AI Exposure Rating
Very High automation risk based on 10 analyzed tasks. A majority of tasks in this occupation are susceptible to AI automation.
Nationwide occupations with similar workforce profiles
Two data-derived peer sets for Executive secretaries and executive administrative assistants: AI-exposure neighbors and BLS 2034 growth neighbors (distinct comparison neighborhoods, cross-occupation).
Similar AI exposure score
Nearest O*NET task-automability scores nationwide (83% here).
- Office clerks, general · AI exposure 84%
- Financial managers · AI exposure 81%
- Library assistants, clerical · AI exposure 80%
- Medical secretaries and administrative assistants · AI exposure 80%
Similar projected growth (2024–2034)
Nearest BLS employment change rates nationwide (-1.6% here).
- Baggage porters and bellhops · growth -1.6%
- Cabinetmakers and bench carpenters · growth -1.6%
- Kindergarten teachers, except special education · growth -1.6%
- Secondary school teachers, except special and career/technical education · growth -1.6%
Peers are nearest-neighbor matches on published BLS + O*NET metrics among occupations with ≥10,000 workers in 2024; corpus ranks above sort the full tracked set.
Related Occupations
Showing 6 of 24 occupations with a comparable automation-risk profile.
What to do with this
Use Executive secretaries and executive administrative assistants' numbers above to compare, not just read in isolation.
- Compare Executive secretaries and executive administrative assistants side by side against another occupation on wage, growth, and AI exposure. Workforce comparison tool
- Understand how the AI exposure score above is actually calculated before treating it as a verdict. Reading AI exposure scores
- See the full ranked list of occupations with the lowest automation exposure nationwide. Safest occupations from AI
AI exposure scores estimate task automatability from O*NET data; they are not a certainty of job loss, and BLS growth projections are estimates, not guarantees.
Data sources: Bureau of Labor Statistics Employment Projections 2024–2034 and O*NET Database 30.0. Employment figures are rounded. Wage data from BLS Occupational Employment Statistics (OES).