# The secratary of the boss acts like she is the boss



## breathing... (Nov 21, 2012)

Hello girls,

Any advice is welcome.

In everyday work I have to do with a lot of people and a lot of things. And the most of things I do,my boss want to know about them.Sometimes he calls me,sometimes we talk in the office but when he is not in work his secretary calls me to report to him.
This is a new one (the old secretary was very quiet and polite)
but I dont like the way she asks me.For example :
`tell me who has came for x thing
who had say x thing...
dont forget to make xxx thing...`

And I reply to her: Say to Mr. Boss that today has hapen xxx things and xxx agreements

But she again acts like she is the boss for me...this is stupid 

I dont know what to sy to her to make her clear that she has to learn how things works here...

Thanks girls


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## WorkingOnMe (Mar 17, 2012)

She thinks of herself as the boss's agent or right hand. The only one who can correct this is the boss, unless it is within your power to order her to do some task.


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## breathing... (Nov 21, 2012)

Yes I know but it is difficult to accept orders from the wrong person


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## I got this (Feb 25, 2013)

If you have a good relationship with your boss tell him you feel a bit awkward with the new approach and would like his feedback on how to proceed in a more comfortable way. 

Maybe he will realize she is harsh, rude, etc and coach her to be more whatever


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## Coffee Amore (Dec 15, 2011)

You have to pick your battles at work. Decide if this is really worth talking to your boss about. You could end up creating more problems for yourself. At work you have to get along with a variety of personalities. The new secretary doesn't have to be like the older, quieter secretary. This woman could frame things in a way to make you look bad so if it were me, I would respond to her requests right away without being too submissive about it. 

I KNOW what you mean though. The secretaries in my department are wonderful, but there are secretaries to the highest managers who seem to derive some reflected power from their bosses. They act like they're top managers too. It's the way they frame their requests, the demands they make, the insistence that whatever they want take priority over whatever anyone else has asked of you. I get it. I really do. But I've been in several places and I've seen it just about every place I've worked. They know they can report back to their boss that you're the obstacle and then you end up in the dog house. It's not really fair, but it's also for me not worth getting upset about either.


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## RandomDude (Dec 18, 2010)

For me I found new employees especially supervisors are always like that until they get put in their place. I don't blame them as they have to establish authority and command respect within their new workplace. Luckily though for my workers I run my business on a flat management structure, where everyone has shared responsibilities and everyone works as a team.

It's not easy for some to change though, some supervisors are simply too autocratic others are just too weak. Never needed a sexetary though. If you have worked with your boss for quite some time there's no reason why you shouldn't be able to bring the case up to him.


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## norajane (Feb 7, 2012)

Consider that your boss might have hired her specifically to take on a larger assistant role than his old assistant. He might want to get some things off his plate and have his assistant take care of it so he can focus on other things. Delegating like that happens when companies can't afford to hire as many people as they need but still all the work needs to be done.


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## Wiltshireman (Jan 23, 2013)

The boss used to have Secretaries, then they got Personal Assistants now our MD has and Executive Assistant. The job title has changed to reflect the level of responsibility the possition has. 
I am lucky that I get on well with the EA's to our board members (I make a point of it) and this allows me access to the Board when I need it.


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## Openminded (Feb 21, 2013)

There are some administrative people who like to take on the authority of their boss. It makes them feel more important and less "pink collar".


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## Emerald (Aug 2, 2012)

breathing... said:


> Hello girls,
> 
> Any advice is welcome.
> 
> ...


Uggg...I feel for you.

Your boss likes her or he wouldn't have hired her. If you want to stay in this job, your going to have to suck it up & change your attitude. I KNOW it sucks for you but it always best to remain polite & professional to co-workers no matter how much we can't stand them.


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## ScarletBegonias (Jun 26, 2012)

norajane said:


> Consider that your boss might have hired her specifically to take on a larger assistant role than his old assistant. He might want to get some things off his plate and have his assistant take care of it so he can focus on other things. Delegating like that happens when companies can't afford to hire as many people as they need but still all the work needs to be done.


:iagree:


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## NextTimeAround (Dec 15, 2011)

You may not know what authority the boss has given this new secretary. Not to mention, he may prefer having a secretary that is more proactive and knows the answer to everything around the office which would explain her need to make regular requests to you. 

I would try to work with her,in subtle ways try to get her to soften her language towards you and gain agreement on how information can be reported regularly to her so that she is not asking / bothering you and you have reasonable expectations of your deadlines. 

One thing my exH did fairly regularly at work was go to lunch from time to time with the secretaries (inappropriate behavior around them was never a problem). I think he has made partner and surely some of that effort probably helped him.

Unless you're chummy with the boss, you also get a shot at writing her evaluations, she's asking you to do things completely out of your description or she has done something patently wrong, I don't see how telling your boss that you simply don't like will help your case.


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## VFW (Oct 24, 2012)

This may be a perception and not a fact. It seems that her tone is what is setting you off more than the actual questions she is asking. Her manners may need some adjusting, but running to the boss would not be my first approach. I think I would offer the carrot first, instead of the stick. I would recommend taking her to lunch or out for a drink after work, with no agenda in mind. Don't bring up that she irritates the daylights out of you, just get to know her a little. If you can find out something about her, you can use that to your advantage. Try to win her over, then you can be allies.


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