Operations & Logistics
Will AI replace executive assistants?
BLS places executive secretaries and executive administrative assistants in its “Very high” AI-exposure category (of four, relative to other occupations). BLS projects no change in employment from 2025 to 2035, with about 43,300 openings a year. OEWS May 2025 median pay is $76,590 (10th–90th percentile $50,560–$109,850). Typical entry education: high school diploma or equivalent.
Sources: BLS AI exposure categories and Employment Projections 2025–35 (released 27 August 2026); BLS OEWS May 2025; tasks from O*NET 31.0 (CC BY 4.0).
Figures are for the BLS occupation Executive secretaries and executive administrative assistants (SOC 43-6011).
Executive assistants manage an executive’s time, communications and priorities, and run projects on their behalf.
The figures, with their sources
| AI-exposure category | Very high (of Low, Moderate, High, Very high)BLS AI exposure categories, 2025–35 |
|---|---|
| Employment, 2025 → 2035 | 489,300 → 489,200BLS Employment Projections 2025–35 |
| Projected change, 2025–35 | no change (0.0%)BLS Employment Projections 2025–35 |
| Openings per year (2025–35 average) | 43,300BLS Employment Projections 2025–35 |
| Median annual pay | $76,590BLS OEWS, May 2025 |
| 10th–90th percentile pay | $50,560 – $109,850BLS OEWS, May 2025 |
| Typical entry education | High school diploma or equivalentBLS Employment Projections 2025–35 |
National figures, all industries and all experience levels. Employment and openings are published by BLS in thousands; pay is annual, in US dollars.
What BLS says, in its own words
“Very high” relative AI exposure generally indicates that, compared to other occupations, a larger fraction of an occupation’s tasks can be completed or assisted by AI technology, and that LLMs have been observed performing some of the occupation’s tasks.
“An exposure category is not a forecast of employment growth or decline.” “Exposure does not imply job loss, productivity gains, automation probability, or wage effects.”
“Productivity change - share decreases as firms increase the use of computer software, enhanced with artificial intelligence (AI) technology, to automate routine back-office functions, such as document preparation.”
Our count from the BLS table: 141 of the 206 occupations in the “Very high” category are projected to grow from 2025 to 2035. That is our arithmetic on BLS data, not a BLS statement.
What the work is: O*NET® tasks
The occupation’s core tasks, most important first, as O*NET 31.0 words them.
- 1.Manage and maintain executives' schedules.Accountability
- 2.Make travel arrangements for executives.
- 3.Prepare invoices, reports, memos, letters, financial statements, and other documents, using word processing, spreadsheet, database, or presentation software.
- 4.Coordinate and direct office services, such as records, departmental finances, budget preparation, personnel issues, and housekeeping, to aid executives.Accountability
- 5.Answer phone calls and direct calls to appropriate parties or take messages.Accountability
- 6.Prepare responses to correspondence containing routine inquiries.
- 7.Open, sort, and distribute incoming correspondence, including faxes and email.
- 8.Greet visitors and determine whether they should be given access to specific individuals.Judgment
How we tag: a task is tagged Judgment, Accountability or Relationships when O*NET’s wording uses one of these verbs. Judgment: evaluate, assess, determine, decide, interpret, diagnose, recommend, investigate, approve, prioritize, resolve. Accountability: direct, supervise, manage, oversee, ensure, plan, establish, authorize, comply. Relationships: confer, consult, negotiate, advise, collaborate, liaise, mentor, train, counsel, persuade, interview, present, meet with. This is our reading of the task text, not an O*NET or BLS classification, and it is not a measure of AI exposure.
For new graduates
- Typical entry education
- High school diploma or equivalent
- BLS Employment Projections 2025–35
- Openings per year
- 43,300
- All levels, not entry-level only
The tasks to show proof for: 4 of 8 are about judgment, accountability or relationships
We point you at these because our method treats them as the work that is hardest to hand to AI. That is our judgment, not a BLS or O*NET finding. A capstone, an internship or a part-time job where you made the call, owned the outcome or worked with the people involved is proof. Write what you did, not what you were assigned.
Show the 4 tasks
- Manage and maintain executives' schedules.
- Coordinate and direct office services, such as records, departmental finances, budget preparation, personnel issues, and housekeeping, to aid executives.
- Answer phone calls and direct calls to appropriate parties or take messages.
- Greet visitors and determine whether they should be given access to specific individuals.
What this data does not tell you
- How many openings are entry-level, or how many go to new graduates. BLS counts openings at every level.
- How AI will change hiring for junior roles in this occupation. The exposure category is about the occupation’s tasks, and BLS says it is not a forecast.
- Pay or openings in your city or industry. These are national figures.
- Whether your own tasks match these. O*NET describes the occupation, not your job.
BLS also publishes the work experience and on-the-job training usually needed; see the BLS projections table.
Proof worth finding for a Executive Assistant application
Our editorial starting list, not a survey of postings. The posting you apply to decides what counts.
- Executive-level stakeholder management and communication on behalf of C-suite principals
- Operational program management and cross-functional project coordination with documented outcomes
- Discretion, confidentiality, and sound judgment in high-stakes, sensitive contexts
- Technology fluency across productivity, project management, and AI-assisted workflow tools
- Budget management, vendor coordination, and event logistics ownership at scale
Show your proof for one real posting
- Step 1Job Match · 5 tokensPaste a real posting. For each requirement, we quote the line in your resume that proves it, or say nothing was found.
- Step 2Resume · 15 tokensRewrite toward that posting from your own words. Any number we could not find in them is listed for you to check.
- Step 3Know your tasks · FreeYour own tasks against the executive secretaries and executive administrative assistants data above, labeled task by task.
Related role guides
- Operations ManagerOperations managers run the day-to-day of a business or unit: processes, people, budgets and vendors.
- Supply Chain ManagerSupply chain managers plan how goods are sourced, stored and moved, and manage the suppliers and teams involved.
- Customer Support SpecialistCustomer support specialists answer customer questions, resolve problems and escalate what they cannot fix.
Questions people ask
Will AI replace executive assistants?
The data does not say so. BLS places executive secretaries and executive administrative assistants in its “Very high” relative AI-exposure category and states that “An exposure category is not a forecast of employment growth or decline.” In BLS’s words: “Very high” relative AI exposure generally indicates that, compared to other occupations, a larger fraction of an occupation’s tasks can be completed or assisted by AI technology, and that LLMs have been observed performing some of the occupation’s tasks. BLS projects no change in employment from 2025 to 2035 (BLS Employment Projections 2025–35). By our count from the BLS table, 141 of the 206 occupations in the “Very high” category are projected to grow.
How many executive assistants jobs open each year?
BLS projects about 43,300 openings a year for executive secretaries and executive administrative assistants, averaged over 2025–35. BLS defines openings as net employment change plus workers permanently leaving the occupation, so a declining occupation can still have openings. Employment was 489,300 in 2025.
How much do executive assistants earn?
BLS OEWS (May 2025) puts the national median annual wage for executive secretaries and executive administrative assistants at $76,590. The 10th percentile is $50,560, the 25th $61,390, the 75th $94,390 and the 90th $109,850. These are all industries and all experience levels in the United States; pay in your city and at your level will differ.
What education do executive assistants need?
BLS lists “High school diploma or equivalent” as the typical education needed to enter executive secretaries and executive administrative assistants. It is the typical path, not a rule: postings set their own requirements.
How does AISkillScore check a Executive Assistant application?
We count, we do not guess. Job Match reads the posting’s requirements and, for each one, quotes the line in your resume that proves it, or says nothing was found. The resume rewrite keeps your claims and lists any number it could not find in your own words so you can check it before you send.
Sources
U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics: Artificial Intelligence (AI) exposure categories; Occupational projections, 2025–35, and worker characteristics; Employment Projections definitions; Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025: Executive secretaries and executive administrative assistants. BLS data is in the public domain.
This page includes information from the O*NET 31.0 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA). Used under the CC BY 4.0 license. O*NET® is a trademark of USDOL/ETA. O*NET 31.0 Database · CC BY 4.0 · Executive secretaries and executive administrative assistants on O*NET OnLine. Changes: we show up to eight of the occupation’s core tasks, most important first, merged across the O*NET codes BLS groups into one occupation, and we add our own task tags.
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