Navigating the Assistant Corporate Secretary Landscape in Singapore with Step-by-Step Career Guide

A corporate secretary is a person who works alongside a corporate board of directors without actually being part of the board. The assistant corporate secretary assists this person and helps them with their multitude of duties. Generally, the assistant corporate secretary takes the minutes at all board and upper executive meetings; beyond that, however, the corporate secretary has numerous duties, which involve translating board decisions into management actions, and the assistant works alongside to help.

The assistant corporate secretary will help carry out the duties of the corporate secretary, which not only include taking minutes of meetings and distributing copies, but also assisting with the preparation of key meetings with shareholders. These assistants may also help prepare proxy statements for shareholders or prospective shareholders.

The assistant also works alongside the corporate secretary to help set up and execute both internal and external audits within the company. The corporate secretary helps ensure that company business, such as stock or bond transactions, follows all required legal parameters, and the assistant will likely generate records and reports of this work.

Finally, the corporate secretary acts as something of a company-wide governance traffic cop, and the assistant works with the secretary to help ensure that board directives are assigned to the proper managers and departments within the company. They also work with these supervisors to gather any necessary progress or completion reports to present to the board.

An assistant corporate secretary must possess excellent communication skills and be fluent with Microsoft Office software. They must also be discreet, as the assistant will frequently sit in on sensitive upper-lever management meetings with the board. Many corporations prefer their assistant corporate secretaries to have some level of secondary education, and some prefer candidates with college degrees in Communications or a business-related discipline. Assistant corporate secretaries work in executive office environments during regular weekly business hours.