We surveyed 14,263 office managers to better understand the work environment and required skills of a typical office manager. Here are the results.

How much intelligence is required as an office manager?

Low

High

Working as an office manager typically doesn’t require the use of high levels of intelligence in daily tasks.

Can I learn to become an office manager?

Intrinsic Talent

Acquired Talent

A career as an office manager typically depends predominantly on qualities you can gain through experience, with a small aspect of skills you are born with.

Is it easy to get a job as an office manager?

Easy

Hard

It’s typically difficult to find a job as an office manager. If you’re curious about the numbers, check out the job market for office managers.

Info

Do office managers work full-time or part-time?

84% of office managers work in full-time roles while 16% work part-time.

Is being an office manager stressful?

Low

High

Stress is not uncommon amongst office managers, with daily work sometimes being quite demanding.

Is being organized important as an office manager?

Low

High

Organization is considered a very important trait for office managers, and is critical to success in the field.

How competitive is the workplace for office managers?

Low

High

Competition at work is not common for office managers.

Does being an office manager require frequent time pressure to complete tasks?

Low

High

Office managers will have to sometimes face time pressure on the job.

Are office managers allowed to express themselves creatively?

Low

High

Office managers rarely get a chance to express themselves creatively.

Do office managers have control over the direction of their work?

Low

High

While sometimes the direction is set, occasionally office managers will have some flexibility over the direction of their work.

Is being an office manager physically demanding?

Low

High

Work as an office managers is not the most physically demanding of careers, falling in the bottom half of all careers.

Are office managers exposed to a wide variety of work?

Low

High

The workload of an office manager changes frequently, with their day-to-day rarely being the same.

Does being an office manager require attention to detail?

Low

High

Attention to detail is a vital skill for office managers, as small mistakes can make or break one's ability to succeed in the career.

Does being a good office manager require compassion and empathy?

Low

High

Being compassionate and empathetic is considered helpful to those looking to pursue careers as office managers.