The Qualities of a Company Secretary are Important
The company secretary has an important position in the company because they have to be educated, knowledgeable, effective, and skilled. In addition, the secretary does a number of complex and statutory activities. Hence, the person must have the qualities that make them perfect for the role. That is why you cannot just hire anyone for that position.
If you own a company, your secretary will organize the work of the directors and take down the minutes of the meeting. They must also communicate with the management and send messages to shareholders. Multitasking is important for them and excellent communication skills.
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Their Responsibilities
Aside from organizing board meetings, company secretaries have other responsibilities that are important for your offshore company. Here are the following:
Complying With the Guidelines
Company secretaries must complete the statutory requirements of the offshore company. They should file the documents before the deadline. This is to make sure that the company operations are legal.
Managing Company Records
A lot of offshore companies maintain records and information about business activities. The corporate secretary’s duty is to take down records and keep them safe. The stakeholders must go through the secretary if they want to access company information if they need to.
Assist Governing the Corporation
Company secretaries are also helpful with the company’s corporate governance aspect. The truth is, they talk with the entrepreneurs, shareholders, and employees of the company. This is to make sure that issues can be resolved at the right time.
The Skills Company Secretaries Must Have
Multi-tasking Skills
Company secretaries should know how to multitask like preparing meetings as they make sure that the corporate governance compliance is updated; bridging communications between management and the directors, etc. it is very important that the company secretary can juggle tasks because they can vary. They will have a couple of tasks given to them all once, which is why they must be able to cope and keep up. In addition, they should also know how to communicate well so everyone can understand them.
Organizational Knowledge
Organizational knowledge means the secretary should have an exact understanding of what the business is about and its goals. A lot of requirements and employees depend on the secretary to finish their tasks, and this could also be the case for the owner. With different people to assist and a lot of assignments, a secretary is responsible for helping business growth, which is why they must have information about the organization.
Skills in Planning and Time Management
There are a lot of things to plan and schedule. The office secretary should be the one to plan and organize different routines in the office, like annual general meetings, board meetings, visiting hours with clients, and more. Therefore, they need excellent planning skills. Together with this, they must schedule these things and manage the timing of the office executives to get their stuff done. So, planning and time management skills are important qualifications of a corporate secretary.
Detail-oriented
They must know how to ask for all the details and know what they all are. A company secretary should know the work of the board, and make sure they execute it correctly. They should have no mistakes or everything must be there. For instance, they are the first point of contact for shareholders with the company. Circulating announcements, registering share ownership, correspondence to dividends, transfers, and areas related to shareholders should have proper management.
Transparency
This is an important trait even if it is not technically a skill because it is something to consider when you are looking for a company secretary. They should be honest and transparent. Needs to have close relationships with people in the heart of the office, and can see where things could go wrong or right. You do not want a secretary who only does tasks they are given; they should know when to say no based on the situation and what it really needs.
Excellent Communication Skills
Company secretaries must know how to work with seniors like the directors, board members, senior executives, CEOs, and all the senior stakeholders. They should know to be discreet, tactful, diplomatic, good negotiators, and emotionally intelligent. The company secretary should be a good listener, so they can communicate effectively.
In addition, they need to be able to build strong working relationships with the board members, offer advice, and act according to what is best for the company. They must assist the chairman in the entire process of development, which includes board evaluation, training and induction. This involves the implementation of the yearly board, individual director assessment, committee, and making sure that actions from the reviews are done.
3E Accounting’s Commitment
The secretary cannot accomplish anything if they are not committed, and this is what makes them successful. It is not easy to be a company secretary because the job demands a lot. They can be a secretary until they can give everything that is needed. This is only possible if they are passionate about their work.
Therefore, it is important to choose someone who is genuinely interested to be your company secretary. Otherwise, they will not be 100% in their job and you might regret hiring them. You are a committed company owner, and you need your employees to be the same.
These are the qualities you need to look for when you are hiring a company secretary. It is not an easy job, which is why you need to be sure about them. If you need help with company secretarial services, you can contact 3E Accounting to assist you.
