Administrative Professional Week/Day® was orginally organized in 1952 as "National
Secretaries Week/Day" by the National Secretaries Association (now known as the International
Association of Administrative Professionals) in conjunction with public relations executive
Harry Klemfuss and a consortium of office product manufacturers. It was established as an effort
to recognize secretaries for their contributions in the workplace, and to attract people to
secretarial/administrative careers. In the year 2000, IAAP announced a name change for
Professional Secretaries Week and Professional Secretaries Day. The names were changed to
Administrative Professionals Week and Administrative Professionals Day to keep
pace with changing job titles and expanding responsibilities of today's administrative workforce.
In the year 2000, IAAP announced a name change for Professional Secretaries Week and
Professional Secretaries Day. The names were changed to Administrative Professionals Week®
and Administrative Professionals Day to keep pace with changing job titles and
expanding responsibilities of today's administrative workforce.
Over the years, Administrative Professionals Week has become one of the largest workplace
observances. The event is celebrated worldwide, bringing together millions of people for
community events, educational seminars, and individual corporate activities recognizing support
staff with gifts of appreciation. Although the purpose of the celebration is sometimes altered,
and even maligned, by other groups and individuals, a tremendous amount of publicity is
obtained for the profession during this time.
