NEW!!!

April 14, 2004

BY FRANCINE KNOWLES Business Reporter

Barbara Laakso was out of work in early 2003 when the bottom fell out of the information technology market, and revenues dried up at the consulting business she established with her husband.

But she recently landed work as a secretary at North Chicago-based Abbott Laboratories providing administrative assistance to a department director and a department staff of 20 people.

Executive secretaries and administrative assistants are in a job category with "favorable to very favorable" opportunities for landing work in the Chicago area, according to the Illinois Department of Employment Security. Other occupations requiring moderate on-the-job training included in that category are customer-service representatives, truck drivers, and construction laborers; the state agency reports.

HOT JOB TIP SHEET

These occupations requiring moderate-term on-the-job training offer "favorable to very favorable" prospects for employment throughout the Chicago area, according to the Illinois Department of Employment Security:

EXECUTIVE SECRETARIES AND ADMINISTRATIVE ASSISTANTS
Hourly entry pay: $11.38
Median: $15.93
Experienced: $20.20

CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVES
Entry pay: $9.54
Median: $13.60
Experienced: $17.60

TRUCK DRIVERS, HEAVY AND TRACTOR-TRAILER
Entry pay: $14.52
Median: $18.60
Experienced: $22.16

CONSTRUCTION LABORERS
Entry pay: $9.03
Median: $22.65
Experienced: $24.85

SOURCE: Illinois Department of Employment Security

Demand for construction laborers has been fueled by low interest rates, which have kept the building industry strong, said Mitch Daniels, IDES work force analysis manager.

As for customer service representatives, demand has spread throughout a variety of industries. "This occupation 20 years ago used to be concentrated in just one-third of industries, but now customer service representatives are a measurable part of over three-fourths of the industries," Daniels said.

But growth alone isn't fueling demand. There's also a need for replacement workers.

"People earn their stripes and then move on to other occupations," Daniels said. "It's almost become a training ground. A good, front-line customer-service representative can move into lower management or middle management positions."

Changes in technology are helping propel demand for executive secretary and administrative assistant jobs, Daniels said. Executives and managers are requiring individuals with more advanced skills due to the evolution of more advanced word-processing and data-presentation software, he said.

Today we spotlight Laakso, who was hired as a secretary by Abbott about eight months ago to work in its Global Pharmaceutical Research and Development Department.

The Path: She previously worked as a travel department manager, travel sales manager, office manager in an urgent care and holistic clinic and executive assistant at a non-profit organization.

Prior to being hired at Abbott, she and her husband ran their IT consulting business for more than five years. The company, which focused on data warehousing, in its heyday generated about $500,000 in annual revenues, she said. But when a consulting job ended in Europe in November 2002, they weren't able to land new contracts.

So she and her husband took some time off and lived on savings before she started looking for work in April 2003. She landed an assignment at Abbott through Manpower Inc., the temporary help agency, in April, and was hired by Abbott in August.

Snapshot: Her day begins at 8:15 a.m. and ends around 5 p.m. Responsibilities include word processing duties, handling scheduling for the department director and managers, making travel arrangements, maintaining inventory and ordering office supplies, making power point presentations, managing the phone and mail, and troubleshooting equipment problems.

Skills needed: "You can't be effective if you don't know what's going on in your department. An administrative support person is the hub. My department members always say 'Ask Barbara, she's the one that knows.' I think that will spell out true for a lot of administrative assistants. [You have to] get a grip and understand how the entire process works."

Challenges: "When I'm yanked from both sides. To be able to handle that situation, I try to prioritize based on whose needs come first. I usually assist the person with the tight time line."

But there is a hierarchy.

"The first person I have to make sure I support is the director," she said.

So when necessary, she drops everything for her.

Rewards: "There's always the opportunity to grow, and [the job] allows for someone to really be a jack of all trades."