“She’s not performing. Get rid of her and get me another.”
That’s what one of the business support managers I work with was recently told, five days after an assistant started. No support. No time. No development plan. Just disposal.
Another business support manager I know, recognised an assistant was struggling and proposed a performance plan, mentorship, and training. The response?
“There’s no point – it’s too expensive.”
Let’s be honest here – this is not about money. It’s about mindset.
Because in most professions, underperformance leads to support – mentoring, coaching, upskilling. In the administrative profession, it too often leads to blame, burnout, or dismissal.
The problem is that many organisations still don’t know what great looks like in this role.
And too many still think assistants are interchangeable.
They don’t onboard properly.
They don’t define success.
They don’t train managers to lead assistants effectively.
And they certainly don’t offer ongoing development.
🛑 So when someone struggles, they assume the person is broken, rather than the system.
According to the 2025 ASAP State of the Profession Report:
• Only 18% of administrative professionals said they’ve had consistent access to professional development in the past year.
• Just 23% report having a clear path to career progression.
• A staggering 64% say their role is misunderstood internally.
Is it any wonder new hires flounder?
You can’t succeed in a role no one has explained, valued, or resourced.
But here’s what’s really at stake.
When you dismiss assistants as “not worth investing in,” you don’t just fail them, you fail the business. You lose the upturn in productivity, insight, and strategic capacity that a great administrative function can bring.
You damage team morale.
You make the role look volatile and expendable.
You create a revolving door that costs far more than training ever would.
Retention is cheaper than replacement.
Development is cheaper than dysfunction.
And assistants are not interchangeable or disposable.
If we want high-performing admin professionals, we need to stop treating them like afterthoughts and start treating them like assets.
Let’s get serious about what excellence looks like in this profession – and let’s build the systems to support it.
