Is ‘Mad Men’ Responsible for Increase in Office Secretaries?
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Frank Ockenfels 3/AMC(NEW YORK) — In what may be a case of life imitating art, the popularity of the 1960s-era series Mad Men is being cited as a possible reason for the increase in administrative professionals who have “secretary” in their job titles.
To mark this month’s 60th anniversary of Administrative Professionals Day, the International Association of Administrative Professionals conducted a survey and discovered the number of workers with “secretary” in their titles has nearly doubled in the past two years, going from eight percent to almost 15 percent.
Even though the top two job titles for IAAP members are “executive assistant” at 29 percent, and “administrative assistant” with 25 percent, “administrative secretary” has made it to the top three for the first time in years.
The organization says it’s not totally clear why there are more workers with the title “secretary” but suggests it may be due to a “Mad Men Effect.” The IAAP theorizes the popular AMC series “may stroke nostalgia for the classic image of the American corporate secretary.”
The International Association of Administrative Professionals survey involved more than 3,300 workers.
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