Secretarial Practice
Secretarial practice tests the secretary's meaning, types, duties, qualities and role in meetings and business correspondence. Treat the secretary as a confidential assistant who manages information and follow-up, not as a typist only.
Core rules
- A secretary is a person employed to handle correspondence, records, appointments, meetings and confidential matters for an executive or organisation.
- Types include private or personal secretary, company secretary, departmental secretary and confidential secretary. The company secretary is a statutory officer concerned with compliance and board support; a private secretary serves one executive.
- Duties: drafting and checking correspondence, filing, receiving callers, managing appointments and travel, arranging meetings, preparing notices, agendas and minutes, following up decisions and maintaining confidentiality.
- Qualities: discretion, loyalty, accuracy, punctuality, courtesy, initiative, adaptability, good communication and organisational ability.
- In meetings: before, confirm date, issue notice and agenda, circulate papers and book venue; during, record attendance, quorum and minutes; after, draft and circulate minutes, communicate decisions and follow up.
- Business correspondence should be clear, concise, courteous, correct and prompt.
Worked example
A manager calls a departmental meeting. The secretary confirms the date, sends the notice and agenda, books the room, checks attendance and quorum, takes notes of decisions, drafts minutes for approval, and reminds members of action dates. Reasoning: the role links preparation, accurate recording and follow-up; without the final step the meeting produces no action.
Traps
- Do not reduce the secretary to a typist.
- Do not record minutes as a verbatim transcript; record decisions and action points.
- Do not disclose confidential information.
- Do not confuse a private secretary with a company secretary's statutory duties.