Administrative Professionals Week began in 1952 as an effort to honour administrative staff for their efforts and attract more people to office and administrative careers.
Mary Barrett, president of the National Secretaries Association (now called the International Association of Administrative Professionals) and C. King Woodbridge, president of Dictaphone Corporation, were serving on a council charged with addressing a national shortage of skilled office workers that existed at the time.
Together with Harry Klemfuss, public relations account executive at Young & Rubicam, they originated the idea for a secretaries week campaign.
Their efforts came to fruition when US Secretary of Commerce Charles Sawyer proclaimed the first National Secretaries Week held 1-7 June, 1952.
National Secretaries Week was created with two objectives: to recognise “the secretary, upon whose skills, loyalty, and efficiency the functions of business and government offices depend,” and to call attention “through favourable publicity, to the tremendous potential of the secretarial career.”
In 1955, the National Secretaries Association changed the date of National Secretaries Week to the last full week of April, with Wednesday of that week being designated National Secretaries Day.
The standard gift for Secretary Day is lunch with the boss and flowers.
Other types of gifts can be given.
Professional types of gifts
• Fine writing accessories
• A business related leather portfolio.
• Give your assistant a class or seminar of their choice to in rich their skills on company time.
• Paying the membership for a related professional organisation.
• A magazine subscription to a related professional magazine.
• A hand blown glass paperweight.
Personal gifts
• Scarfs
• Gift basket of gourmet food
• Box or arrangement of gourmet cookies
• A nice costume jewellery pin.
• Perfume or Cologne.
• Spa gift certificate
In Cayman
• A gift basket or flower arrangements from Inspiration. Call 943-5683
• Lunch, dinner or a gift certificate to Casanova’s. Call 999-7633
• A plant or gardening tools from Vigoro. Call 948-4270
• A nice journal or gift certificate from Lee’s Office Products. Call 949-2303
• Lunch, dinner or a gift certificate to Café Med. Call 949-8669
• Balloons, flowers or a gift basket from Party Mart. Call 949-6446
• A nice pen set or gift certificate to Kirk’s. Call 623-5475
• A gourmet baskets, flowers or a gift certificate to Trisha’s Roses. Call 949-2423
• Candles, flowers or a gift certificate to Every Bloomin’ Thing. Call 945-1701
• Skills enhancement training with IMPT. Call 943-4678
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