Executive Secretaries and Executive Administrative Assistants
In short: today's best AI models could do about 64% of this job's working time (projected from METR's April 2026 measurement and Epoch's November 2026 index) if the work were set up for them, and about 71% by the end of 2028 if progress keeps its long-run pace. The conversations, in-person and hands-on work, about 29% of the time, stays with people.
Provide high-level administrative support by conducting research, preparing statistical reports, and handling information requests, as well as performing routine administrative functions such as preparing correspondence, receiving visitors, arranging conference calls, and scheduling meetings. May also train and supervise lower-level clerical staff.
459,910 people do this job in the US. $76,590 a year.
Reviewed on September 30, 2026: what each task is made of, and what handing it over would ask.
A typical 40-hour week
- AI could take on10 h
- A person checks AI's work15 h
- Desk work AI can't do yet3 h
- Stays with people12 h
Executive Secretaries and Executive Administrative Assistants, now: of a 40-hour week, AI could take on 10 hours, 15 hours become checking its work, 3 hours are desk work it can't do yet, and 12 hours stay with people.
The largest pieces: Prepare documents and reports (about 4 h, a person checks); Research and prepare board papers (about 3 h, a person checks); Handle supplies, records and bookkeeping (about 3 h).
Estimates for a typical week of this job, if progress keeps its long-run pace, counting work the best models finish four times in five. Every task is below.
of the working time. Now is projected from METR's April 2026 measurement and Epoch's November 2026 index.
- 47%
- 24%
- 25%
- 2%
- 2%
of the work: Anthropic's measure of what people already bring to Claude at work (2025). It counts help with part of a task, so it can be higher than the share within reach.
On the chosen pace and reliability. Estimate.
Share of the working time within reach, now to 2030
Change assumptionsHide assumptionsLong-run pace, four in five
What each choice means: , , , , . Every pace starts from .
At this date and pace, models finish tasks up to 2.4 work days long four times in five.
What handing it over would take, now
The 64% within reach splits by what a model would need. The dates, pace and reliability follow the controls above. Estimates.
of the working time. The material can be handed to a model and the result handed back.
of the working time. The model has to be connected to the system the work lives in.
is conversation short enough by length. This site leaves conversation with people, so it is not in the total.
How far this has come
With GPT-4, measured in March 2023, 0% of this job's working time was within reach at . With Claude 3.7 Sonnet, measured in February 2025, 1%. With Claude Mythos Preview (early), measured in April 2026, 37%. Today's estimate: 64%.
A backcast: today's task data with the best model METR had measured by each date. It shows how fast the models have moved, not what anyone forecast at the time.
Measured use over time
Of the Claude.ai conversations Anthropic sampled and tied to a work task, 0.32% went to this job's tasks in May 2026, the 80th largest of the 447 jobs that showed up at all; 6 of its 22 tasks showed up. Within each of Anthropic's methods, never across a change: 0.2% to 0.19% (released February and March 2025); 0.23% to 0.35% (August 2025 to February 2026); 0.32% to 0.32% (April to May 2026).
Each release
| Conversations | Share | Rank | Tasks seen |
|---|---|---|---|
| Released February 2025 | 0.2% | 93 of 708 | 8 of 22 |
| Released March 2025 | 0.19% | 91 of 703 | 6 of 22 |
| The week of Aug 4, 2025 (released September 2025) | 0.23% | 80 of 655 | 7 of 22 |
| The week of Nov 13, 2025 (released January 2026) | 0.3% | 60 of 672 | 8 of 22 |
| The week of Feb 5, 2026 (released March 2026) | 0.35% | 62 of 677 | 10 of 22 |
| April 2026 (released June 2026) | 0.32% | 77 of 434 | 6 of 22 |
| May 2026 (released June 2026) | 0.32% | 80 of 447 | 6 of 22 |
Measured, not estimated: Anthropic's samples of Claude.ai conversations, each tied by a model to an O*NET task, from the Anthropic Economic Index. It says where Claude's use goes, not how much of this job's working time it covers, so it is not on the same scale as the reach above. The releases differ in their sample, their classifier and the smallest share they report (the June 2026 file rounds each task to a hundredth of a percent, so a smaller task reads as none), which is why a change of method starts a new line. At least 96% of each older release's task-tied use matched this site's tasks, and all of the newest. Claude.ai only, so use through other tools and other companies' models is not in it. Every job ranked.
Robots and the physical work
Anthropic rates 5% of this job's working time as physical work. For 5% of the working time, a robot has been shown doing most of the task somewhere: 5% in a purpose-built cell. 0.05 of 3, the 581st highest of the 923 jobs.
- Not physical 95%
- In a purpose-built cell 5%
Anthropic's rating, not this site's estimate: Claude Opus 5, searching the web, rated each physical O*NET task by the kind of setting in which a robot it could cite (deployed, sold or demonstrated) does most of the task, weighted by its own estimate of each task's share of the time (What work can robots do?, September 30, 2026, data CC BY 4.0; every job ranked). A robot shown somewhere is not a robot in your building: cost, setup and safety decide that. The share within reach on this page still counts no body work. The robot behind each rated task is under the task below.
What changes for the people in this job
From the task-by-task review, by the end of 2028 on the long-run pace at four in five. It says which parts of the work stay with people and which change, not whether anyone keeps a job: that depends on decisions no data set can see.
What stays with people
28% of the working time: the conversation, in-person and hands-on parts of the tasks.
- Coordinate office services, the conversation, 10%
- Set office policies and procedures, the conversation, 4%
- Answer and direct calls, the conversation, 4%
- Keep the executive's calendar, the conversation, 2%
- Arrange executive travel, the conversation, 2%
- Sort and distribute incoming mail, the hands-on work, 2%
What becomes checking the machine
45% of the working time: desk work a model could do by then, in tasks where a mistake costs something or a licensed person signs. A person checks it. Another 26% is desk work that is small if wrong, which can be handed over with lighter checks.
- Prepare documents and reports, costly if wrong, 11%
- Research and prepare board papers, costly if wrong, 9%
- Coordinate office services, costly if wrong, 6%
- Set office policies and procedures, costly if wrong, 6%
- Review office procedures for improvements, costly if wrong, 5%
- Arrange executive travel, costly if wrong, 4%
What to learn
- Reviewing work you did not do yourself. The tasks under What becomes checking the machine, where a mistake costs something, stay a person's to check: spotting what a draft gets wrong is a skill of its own.
- Briefing a model and checking its drafts. About 47% of the time is documents and data, the part models reach first: writing a clear brief, giving the right material, and checking what comes back.
- The conversations. About 27% of the time is conversation and in-person work, which this site leaves with people: listening, explaining, persuading, calming.
- Running AI inside the business systems. About 24% of the time is work inside business systems, which a model can do only once it is connected: knowing the systems well enough to set that up and watch it.
- Dealing with people outside the organization. Customers, patients, suppliers or the public: trust with them is built by a person.
Your own version of this job: read it against your job description. The headline is free; the full personal report, every task with its timeline and what to learn, is $19 (a sample).
The tasks
Sorted by . 22 tasks from .
| Task | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Coordinate and direct office services, such as records, departmental finances, budget preparation, personnel issues, and housekeeping, to aid executives.Running the office's records, budgets, staffing and housekeeping, mostly in conversation with the people doing them.Done daily by most who do it. | 16% | 2.5 h50 min to 6.7 h | Conversation 60%, documents 40% | 38%Desk part half by now |
| Prepare invoices, reports, memos, letters, financial statements, and other documents, using word processing, spreadsheet, database, or presentation software.Producing letters, memos, reports and statements in the office software.Done daily by most who do it. AI observed on this task. | 11% | 1.3 h25 min to 3.3 h | Documents 100% | 99%Half by now |
| Set up and oversee administrative policies and procedures for offices or organizations.Writing the procedures and seeing them followed, in documents and conversation.Done more than monthly by most who do it. | 10% | 6.7 h1.7 h to 2.5 work days | Documents 60%, conversation 40% | 33%Desk part half by now |
| Conduct research, compile data, and prepare papers for consideration and presentation by executives, committees, and boards of directors.Gathering data and writing up papers for executives and boards.Done more than monthly by most who do it. AI observed on this task. | 9% | 5 h1.7 h to 2.1 work days | Documents 100% | 73%Half by now |
| Manage and maintain executives' schedules.Booking and moving meetings in the calendar, with calls and emails to fix times.Done daily by most who do it. | 7% | 38 min13 min to 1.7 h | Systems 70%, conversation 30% | 70%Desk part half by now |
| Perform general office duties, such as ordering supplies, maintaining records management database systems, and performing basic bookkeeping work.Orders, database upkeep and simple bookkeeping entries in the office systems.Done daily by most who do it. | 6% | 38 min17 min to 1.7 h | Systems 100% | 100%Half by now |
| Make travel arrangements for executives.Booking flights, hotels and cars, with calls to sort out changes.Done more than yearly by most who do it. AI observed on this task. | 6% | 1.3 h25 min to 3.3 h | Systems 70%, conversation 30% | 70%Desk part half by now |
| Review operating practices and procedures to determine whether improvements can be made in areas such as workflow, reporting procedures, or expenditures.Reading how the office works now and writing up what could change.Done more than yearly by most who do it. AI observed on this task. | 5% | 5 h1.7 h to 2.1 work days | Documents 100% | 73%Half by now |
| Provide clerical support to other departments.Typing, filing and entries for other departments as needed.Done daily by most who do it. | 5% | 50 min13 min to 2.5 h | Documents 50%, systems 50% | 99%Half by now |
| Open, sort, and distribute incoming correspondence, including faxes and email.Opening and routing the mail and faxes, and forwarding the emails.Done daily by most who do it. Robots: in a purpose-built cell, Microsoft 365 Copilot in Outlook (Prioritize My Inbox) (sold). Anthropic's rating. | 4% | 25 min8 min to 50 min | Systems 60%, hands-on 40% | 60%Desk part half by now |
| Answer phone calls and direct calls to appropriate parties or take messages.Live calls, passed on or noted as messages.Done hourly or more by most who do it. | 4% | 13 min4 min to 25 min | Conversation 100% | Stays with people |
| Prepare agendas and make arrangements, such as coordinating catering for luncheons, for committee, board, and other meetings.Writing the agenda, booking the room and the catering.Done more than monthly by most who do it. | 3% | 1.7 h25 min to 5 h | Documents 40%, systems 30%, conversation 30% | 66%Desk part half by now |
Within reach, per task: the share of the task's time whose instances are short enough for a model to finish at the chosen date, pace and reliability. Half by: the date half of that time comes within reach. Made of: how the task's time splits among five kinds of doing. Only the documents and systems parts can count as within reach, so a task that is 30% documents can be at most 30% within reach.
Jobs that share skills with this one
From O*NET's related occupations. Within reach now and by the end of 2028, long-run pace, four in five.
- Secretaries and Administrative Assistants, Except Legal, Medical, and Executive59% now, 68% by 2028
- Administrative Services Managers52% now, 70% by 2028
- Legal Secretaries and Administrative Assistants59% now, 60% by 2028
- Office Clerks, General56% now, 56% by 2028
- First-Line Supervisors of Office and Administrative Support Workers54% now, 58% by 2028
- Human Resources Assistants, Except Payroll and Timekeeping70% now, 70% by 2028
Where this job works
The industry groups that employ the most of it (BLS, May 2025).
- Local Government, excluding Schools and Hospitals37,530 people
- Securities, Commodity Contracts, and Other Financial Investments and Related Activities32,770 people
- Colleges, Universities, and Professional Schools31,440 people
- Management of Companies and Enterprises29,140 people
- State Government, excluding Schools and Hospitals28,240 people
Where the most of these jobs are
The metro areas with the most people in it (BLS, May 2025).
Questions about this job
- How much of the work of Executive Secretaries and Executive Administrative Assistants is within reach of AI now?
- An estimated 64% of the working time is within reach of AI models now and 71% by the end of 2028, on METR's long-run pace at four in five. Within reach means a model could finish work that long at that reliability. It is not a forecast of jobs lost or of savings.
- Which tasks of Executive Secretaries and Executive Administrative Assistants come within reach first?
- Weighted by the time each takes, the tasks with the most within reach now (projected from METR's April 2026 measurement and Epoch's November 2026 index) are: Prepare documents and reports (99% of the task's time now); Research and prepare board papers (73% of the task's time now, 100% by the end of 2028); and Handle supplies, records and bookkeeping (100% of the task's time now).
- Which tasks of Executive Secretaries and Executive Administrative Assistants stay with people?
- Tasks that are people work or body work are not counted as within reach at any date. The largest: Answer and direct calls; Greet and screen visitors; and Meet outside parties for executives. Together such tasks are about 6% of the working time, and the people and body parts of the other tasks stay with people too.
- What should Executive Secretaries and Executive Administrative Assistants learn as AI takes on more of the work?
- By the job's own task-by-task review, the first things to learn are reviewing work you did not do yourself; briefing a model and checking its drafts; and the conversations. By the end of 2028 on the long-run pace at four in five, about 28% of the working time stays with people, 45% becomes checking a model's work and 26% could be handed over with lighter checks. It says which parts of the work change, never whether anyone keeps a job.
- Do people already use AI for the work of Executive Secretaries and Executive Administrative Assistants?
- In the Claude.ai conversations Anthropic sampled for May 2026 and tied to a work task, 0.32% went to this job's tasks, the 80th largest share of the 447 jobs that showed up; 6 of its 22 tasks appeared. Anthropic's labor market measure puts the share of the job's tasks seen in real Claude use at work at 23%. These are measures of use, not of how much of the work AI could finish, and they cover Claude only.
- Can robots do the physical work of Executive Secretaries and Executive Administrative Assistants?
- Anthropic's robot exposure rating (September 2026) finds 5% of the working time is physical work, and that a robot has been shown doing most of the task, somewhere, for 5% of the working time. Its index is 0.05 of 3. One example: Microsoft 365 Copilot in Outlook (Prioritize My Inbox) for "sort and distribute incoming mail". A robot shown somewhere is not one in every workplace; this site's own estimates still count no physical work as within reach.
- How is this estimated?
- From the 22 tasks O*NET lists for the occupation, each with an estimated length checked against GDPval and a share of the working time, reviewed one task at a time on September 30, 2026 for what each is made of (documents, business systems, conversation, in person, hands-on), and METR's measurements of how long a task the best AI models can finish, carried forward to the date from the latest, Claude Mythos Preview (early) in April 2026. Data checked November 10, 2026.
This job in your state or metro area
Embed these figures on your site
A small card with the share of working time within reach now and at the end of 2027, 2028 and 2030, the date and a link back. Free under CC BY 4.0; the card carries the credit.
Your own version of this job
The page above is the occupation. Your job is your title and what you actually do: give both, and they are read against these tasks in your browser, nothing sent anywhere. The headline is free: how much of your working time is within reach now and by the end of 2028, and how many of the tasks your description names.
The full personal report is $19, to print or save as a PDF: every task with when it comes within reach, which ones your description names, the parts of your description the task list does not cover, what stays with you, what becomes checking the machine and what to learn.