So much is talked about qualifications these days that secretaries may feel pressurised into updating or upgrading. But is it necessary? Just how important are secretarial qualifications to employers?

The distinction between qualifications and skills is important. Skills are what you know and can do; qualifications are the official piece of paper which proves it. In its Secretarial & Support Staff Survey 2003, published by leading recruiters Gordon Yates and the Guardian, 35% of employers thought that their support staff held a recognised secretarial qualification, whereas only 11% of support staff surveyed said that they had one. Employers are quick to notice a lack of skills, but simply don't know what type/level of qualifications their staff have. Skills affect the business, qualifications don't. As Richard Grace, Joint MD of Gordon Yates comments: "Employees are very conscious of their qualifications; employers are not."

"Ten years ago people were always looking for good RSA qualifications, but nobody specifies them now," says Jo Stutely of OfficeTeam. Only two or three per cent of employers ask for particular secretarial qualifications by name, but all expect support staff to be keyboard literate, familiar with standard packages particularly MS Office, and have some knowledge of office procedure. MS Office is used in so many ways by students, in offices and in industry, that experience can be gained informally and privately as well as through formal tuition; employers understand this."

Known quality
Secretarial qualifications do however remain a measurement of proficiency and can be vital in making a CV stand out from the crowd. Susannah Fudge, Team Leader at Angela Mortimer says: "For junior candidates secretarial qualifications demonstrate their commitment to their chosen career, particularly if the qualifications include organisational skills such as booking travel, managing events, taking minutes, etc." Such skills are vital to good support staff and qualifications are an easy way of determining whether a candidate has them. The qualifications are therefore still sought after by employers and, as they're becoming rarer, are consequently more valuable to those who do possess them.

Sue Williams of Sue Williams Secretarial Consulting Group explains: "We see far fewer secretarial qualifications on people's CVs, and fewer and fewer people are taking formal secretarial qualifications even though employers ask for them. Employers prefer experience to be backed up with some form of qualification — and older qualifications are still as respected today." Angela Hennessey, Recruitment Consultant at Welsh agency Atebion agrees: "Mid-career secretaries don't need modern qualifications but may be asked about their computer experience."

Not all qualifications are of equal value to employers. The type of qualification, its accreditation, depth and even the training provider can make a difference. "As a college, we try to link in with external exams as far as possible, because it provides some form of global measurement; a benchmark which makes the qualification more portable," says Corinne Bickford, Executive Principal, Queen's Business and Secretarial College. Candidates without formal qualifications, such as those who are self-taught, or those whose qualifications are dated, are often tested by recruiters and provided with an up-to-date assessment of current skills. Richard Grace from Gordon Yates comments: "Employers are often more interested in test scores than qualifications. As a result of testing, recruiters can also arrange supplementary training for good candidates who perhaps have a skills gap."

Dare to be different
Mid-career secretaries who want to gain additional qualifications might be best avoiding typical secretarial courses and going for something broader. Susannah Fudge from Angela Mortimer explains: "Their experience proves that they have the secretarial skills necessary for their job, so a mid-career secretary who wants to take a qualification could add an extra dimension to their portfolio by taking one which focuses on business skills." Corinne Bickford adds: "Over the last year I've noticed that employers ask for formal computer training, although it's very difficult on the IT side to know which exams employers favour; there are a great many of them and because the technology changes fast, so do they."

As the role of PAs has changed and become far more that of a business assistant, so the number of secretaries with degree-level qualifications has risen. Susannah Fudge again: "Degrees are requested when employers know that the PA role is proactive, requiring involvement and initiative." Richard Grace adds: "Degrees are certainly requested more frequently than secretarial qualifications, but that's often because employers feel that graduates fit with the ethos of the company better."

A good match
One of the problems with candidates for any job is that the employer has to look not only at qualifications, but also at the personality of the person who holds them. Corinne Bickford says: "More than anything employers are looking for someone who can fit with an existing team or work with a particular group of managers — and personality can't be taught." Kathryn Gardner, Director of Edinburgh-based Office Personnel agrees: "Competency is important of course, but ultimately employers need a compatible team member."

More than almost anything else, employers value experience and the right attitude. "The way people approach their work, their business awareness, and knowledge of the industry often helps them progress and gain recognition, which stands them in good stead if they want to move on," says Richard Grace from Gordon Yates. Sue Williams adds a word of caution however: "People tend to be unrealistic in their expectations — expecting too high a salary, etc — and occasionally unreliable. It's this wrong sort of attitude which is out biggest problem in recruitment."

As the secretarial role has expanded and diversified, so the qualities needed to do it have changed. The Secretarial & Support Staff Survey 2003 points out that a staggering 81% of employers and the same percentage of employees feel that experience is more valuable than qualifications. As Jo Stutely from OfficeTeam says: "Solid work history, common sense, practical skills and the ability to add value to the team they're working for is what employers mostly value about their secretaries. A secretarial qualification as well is the icing on the cake."