Administrative compensation is rising — but not evenly, and not for the reasons most people assume.

Drawing on salary data from 3,196 administrative professionals, this whitepaper pulls key findings from the 2026 State of the Profession Report to examine what’s actually driving higher pay across the profession. The data points to a clear pattern: compensation reflects the scope and structure of the role, not just the skills or tenure of the person in it.

Use it to:

• Understand which factors most strongly predict higher compensation across the profession
• See how career stage, executive partnership, industry, and geography shape earning potential
• Identify the responsibilities that consistently appear in higher-paying roles
• Benchmark where you stand and what the path to higher earnings looks like from here