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Office Administrator

Office administrators and staff with administrative coordination tasks help a workplace’s daily office work run smoothly. The work involves handling information, written communication, coordinating meetings, managing documents and using digital systems.

Office administrationDraft – pending professional validationVersion 0.1 · last reviewed 2026-10-09
ReadingWritingNumeracyOral communicationDigital skillsCritical thinking

The occupation and work tasks

Tasks vary between workplaces. Some work with customer contact and service, others are responsible for documentation, planning and administrative routines. Digitalisation and AI-supported tools may change how information is handled, checked and communicated. The profile concerns administrative coordination – it is not a management or leadership qualification.

Typical work tasks

  • Handle email, documents and other information.
  • Coordinate meetings, appointments and administrative activities.
  • Communicate with colleagues, customers and partners.
  • Update overviews, registers and documentation.
  • Use spreadsheets and digital work tools.
  • Find, assess and pass on information.
  • Follow internal procedures for information security and privacy.

Developments affecting the occupation

  • Digitalisation of administrative routines
  • AI-supported tools for text and information
  • Greater attention to information security and fraud

Basic skills in the workplace

Norway officially defines five basic skills. Critical thinking is an additional competence area adopted by Prios. Tasks are typical examples, not mandatory requirements or fixed frequencies.

Understand, find and assess information in administrative documents and digital channels.

About the skill

Daily tasks

  • Read and understand emails and work instructions.
  • Find relevant information in digital documents.
  • Interpret appointments, calendar information and task lists.

Regular tasks

  • Read meeting minutes and reports.
  • Navigate internal procedures.
  • Compare information from different documents.

Occasional tasks

  • Read longer administrative reports.
  • Familiarise yourself with new routines.
  • Assess information from external parties.

AI and new technology

Supplementary topic linked to digital skills and critical thinking – not an official basic skill.

AI and digital assistants can support text production, information handling and administrative tasks. At the same time, it is important to be able to quality-check the content and handle information responsibly.

Quality-checking text

An AI-generated text must be checked for accuracy and adapted to the recipient.

Protecting internal information

Internal and personal information must not be shared with unauthorised services.

Recognising fraud

Professionally written messages can still be fake.

1. AI-supported text writing

Exercise: Improve an AI draft email so it suits the recipient.

2. Summarising and structuring information

Compare an automatic summary with the original text.

3. Digital collaboration and automated workflows

Discuss which tasks can be automated and what still needs checking.

4. Source criticism, data security and checking AI-generated content

Assess whether a message is reliable before acting on it.

Suggested learning outcomes

  • Be able to assess whether an AI-generated text is correct and relevant.
  • Be able to improve and adapt a text to the recipient.
  • Understand the risks of sharing internal information.
  • Distinguish between reliable and suspicious digital messages.

Teaching cases

Writing a clear professional email

Learners reply to a fictional customer enquiry, practising structure, polite language and checking dates and times.

WritingReadingDigital skills
Open case

Understanding a simple data overview

Learners read a fictional overview of enquiries, calculate the total and average and present the result.

NumeracyReadingDigital skills
Open case

Is this email genuine?

Learners assess a fictional email requesting changed payment details and look for signs of possible fraud.

Critical thinkingReadingDigital skills
Open case

Related resources

External link

External resources

Utdanning.no – Office and administrative worker

Occupational description from utdanning.no. Provides occupational context for teaching.

Reading
Utdanning.noNO
Open resource
External link

External resources

Occupational basic skills profiles

Explore how basic skills are used in different occupations.

HK-dirNO
Open resource
Guide

Digital learning resources

Using digital forms safely

Practise forms, checking and privacy without real personal data.

Digital skillsWriting
Teaching example from PriosNO / EN
Open resource
Exercise

Teaching activities

Check the source before sharing

Source criticism online: check sender, date and purpose before using or sharing information.

Digital skillsCritical thinkingReading
#Source criticism and information evaluation#Media literacy
Teaching example from PriosNO / EN
Open resource
Exercise

Digital learning resources

Check the AI answer

Evaluate whether AI-generated information is correct and relevant before using it at work.

Critical thinkingDigital skillsReading
#Digital judgement#Source criticism and information evaluation
Teaching example from PriosNO / EN
Open resource

How to use this profile when planning teaching

The occupational profile supports the planning of basic skills training. It is not a vocational training course.

  1. 1

    Identify relevant workplace tasks

    Choose tasks from the profile that participants recognise from their own working day.

  2. 2

    Discuss participants' previous experience

    What do participants already know and do? Many are experienced in their occupation.

  3. 3

    Identify basic skill needs

    Clarify where participants find reading, writing, numeracy, oral, digital or critical thinking challenging.

  4. 4

    Select relevant learning objectives

    Describe what the participant should be able to do better – in basic skills, not in the occupation itself.

  5. 5

    Choose practical teaching cases and resources

    Use the cases and resources in the profile as a starting point for practical exercises.

  6. 6

    Adapt activities to participants' levels

    Make tasks simpler or more demanding depending on participants’ skills.

  7. 7

    Reflect on learning outcomes

    Talk with participants about what they now handle better at work.

Questions for planning

  • Which tasks in the profile do participants recognise?
  • Which skill would be most useful in their working day?
  • How can the cases be adapted to participants’ levels?
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