Administrative Professionals Day Done Right

Administrative Professionals Day is celebrated on the Wednesday of the last full week in April each year!
However you celebrate your administrative staff this week — cards, flowers, gifts or lunch — be sure you’re not back to “business as usual” the other 364 days of the year.
Holiday celebrations are important rituals that deserve time and recognition in the workplace, but they don’t let you off the hook the rest of the year!
Ideally, the Administrative Professionals Day celebration in your workplace this week amplifies the daily appreciation you’re already showing employees.
Your admins deserve a celebration that helps them feel valued every day. As you plan for Administrative Professionals Day, take your long-term engagement strategy into account.
Read on for tips on how to celebrate Administrative Professionals Day in a way that builds year-round engagement, gratitude and happiness.

Make Administrative Professionals Day Count All Year Long

The American Society of Administrative Professionals (ASAP) started Administrative Professionals Day back in the 1950s. Recently, they expanded the celebration to a full month:

We know that one day or one week isn’t nearly enough to recognize and honor what administrative professionals do year-round. That’s why ASAP has declared the full month of April to be Admin Appreciation Month! Join us to celebrate and share how you ‘GO for it!’

Here are four specific ideas to ensure that your appreciation is clear, meaningful and lasting — whether you celebrate all month or just on Wednesday:
1. Say “Thank You”
Don’t leave your message at “Happy Administrative Professionals Day!” Explain how much your admins mean to the company and what a difference they make in your company’s daily business. Be specific: “Because of your hard work collecting and organizing survey data, we were able to refine and exceed our sales goals last year.” Then, end your note with a heartfelt “Thank You.” Your extra effort in communicating thanks will not go unnoticed!
2. Ask (and Listen!)
Be sure managers and other top brass make time this week to chat one-on-one with admin staff and ask for feedback. Administrators often assist multiple departments and oversee many projects, so they have a unique perspective on how the company runs. Not only are their goals and ideas valuable, they’ll appreciate the chance to talk! Some good questions to ask:

• How is your job going?
• What could we be doing better?
• What can I do to make your work easier or better?
• What are your career goals?

“By spending some time listening to what your employees want (and then, to the best of your abilities, following through or at least following up to let them know you’re doing your best to help), they’ll understand that you’re not just there to make them do work, you want to help them succeed,” writes The Muse‘s Erin Greenawald in her article, “8 Things To Give Your Employees That Really Show You Care.”
3. Provide Training and Networking
Do your administrators have the resources they need to do their work well? Provide them with opportunities to attend training and networking events with other administrators. You send a powerful message of gratitude when you invest in administrators and their work. It lets them know, in a very concrete and useful way, just how much their work means to the company.
For example, ASAP offers free live webinars this month for administrators. Spread the word to your admin staff!
4. Share Gifts
Gift-giving is the golden standard of showing appreciation, and for good reason! Unless it’s Christmas or the recipient’s birthday, gifts are almost always a surprise — and surprises create lasting memories. Ideally, your gift should be practical and provides an experience, like movie tickets, a grocery store gift certificate or sports season pass. When your recipient is seeing a movie with their family, sitting down to a meal you’ve helped provide, or attending games with friends, they’ll be reminded of you and your gratitude!

Gratitude Is A Year-Round Practice

Want to build a workplace culture where employees feel connection, affirmation, and accomplishment every day?
Then download our free Day-to-Day Celebration Calendar and get expert tips on how to engage, recognize and build a happy and loyal workplace.
This one-of-a-kind eBook will help you to build an everyday culture of appreciation with month-by-month guides, case studies, research highlights, how-to recognition advice and celebration ideas for specific holidays and anytime.