Your Guide to Secretarial Services: Corporate, Remote & More

In today’s fast-paced world, efficiency and productivity are more important than ever.

Your company secretary is the backbone of your business’s success, managing some of the most essential tasks to ensure your day-to-day runs smoothly.

Secretarial services can be a game-changer for businesses that don’t have the time or resources to hire their own company secretarial team, making them perfect for both private companies and public limited companies. 

From managing calendars to handling correspondence and travel arrangements, secretarial services free up the time of your employees while they handle key administrative tasks.

But what exactly do secretarial services offer?

By the end of this article, you will:

• Understand what secretarial services are and the different types
• Learn how your business can outsource secretarial duties
• The benefits of utilising a company secretarial service

What Are Secretarial Services?

Secretarial services is a broad business offering encompassing a wide range of administrative tasks that support individuals and businesses.

Unlike a receptionist, who primarily focuses on business communications, secretarial services typically include:

• Calendar management
• Organising appointments and meetings
• Handling email correspondence
• Preparing documentation and presentations
• Taking meeting and board minutes
• Providing general office support

Third-party secretarial service companies have emerged as a popular alternative to hiring your own company secretaries as businesses look for more cost-efficient secretarial solutions.

There are three types of secretarial services these third-party providers offer: company secretarial services, corporate secretarial services, and personal secretary services.

Types of Secretarial Services

Company Secretarial Services

A company secretarial service typically provides administrative support focused on compliance, corporate governance, and legal duties.  

This includes duties such as keeping board directors, shareholders, and other Persons of Significant Control (PSCs) up to date and preparing and filing tax records, annual returns, and reports.

Company secretaries also play a vital role in ensuring that all UK-registered companies comply with the rules and regulations of the Companies Act, ensuring that all documentation is correctly submitted accordingly.

Corporate Secretarial Services

Corporate secretarial services are essential to ensuring smooth operations, focusing on compliance, and legal matters, and protecting business interests.

Unlike company secretarial services, corporate secretaries offer a more diverse set of administrative support and are usually found in larger corporations.

Their jobs include record keeping, providing assistance to boards and shareholders, managing company registers, risk management, and ensuring statutory obligations are met.

Personal Secretary Services

A personal secretary service is comparable to personal assistant roles, meeting the needs of individuals (like senior management and executives) rather than the business as a whole.

They typically assist in managing personal schedules, email and telephone correspondence, travel arrangements and research tasks as necessary.

Remote and Online Secretarial Services

Remote and online secretarial services have skyrocketed in demand as they offer businesses and individuals flexible and convenient ways to access secretary support.

These supports are typically provided by virtual assistants (usually through third-party contractors) or freelancers, outsourcing your company's secretarial matters.

Some remote secretaries often have additional services as well as the usual offerings, with extras including data entry, social media management, and managing company records.

Outsourcing Secretarial Services

Outsourcing secretary support removes the need for most private companies to have their own dedicated company secretarial team, coming with an array of advantages.

Advantages of outsourced company secretarial services over in-house staff:

• Reduces overall business costs since you don’t need to hire a full-time secretary
• Flexibility to choose the services you need when you need them
• Access to global talent as many remote secretaries work for overseas companies
• Greater efficiency as they are specially trained and certified chartered secretaries

Finding Secretarial Services Near You

The simple steps below can help private limited companies, subsidiary companies and incorporate companies find their ideal secretarial support.

1.   Define Your Company Needs

Before searching for secretarial services, the senior leadership and directors must work together to define the responsibilities your new secretary will take on.

Will they be handling important compliance tasks like filing your annual confirmation statement or maintaining your primary statutory registers? Or will they focus more on assisting your team with maintenance tasks?

It’s also critical to consider the scope and frequency your company will utilise these services, whether you need your secretary full-time or on a part-time basis.

2.   Research and Compare Options

Rather than just Googling ‘hire company secretarial services’ and hoping for the best, businesses should spend time researching the best options for them through either dedicated service providers or on freelance platforms.

Using third-party providers is an advantageous option as it guarantees that your secretary meets the highest standard of services and fits your business needs. However, many third-party providers have an additional fee or set-up costs, so weigh up whether this upfront cost is affordable for you.

Companies should take the time to compare the different pricing models and what supports are included with each option.

3.   Communicate with potential secretaries

Once you’ve chosen a provider or found an ideal freelancer, setting clear expectations and determining communication methods is essential for success.

4.   Test the waters with a trial period

Before making a long-term commitment with your secretary, start with a small project to assess their skills, work ethic, and how well they fit into your team.

5.   Set a contract

Once you’ve determined if they’re the right fit, it’s critical to formalise your arrangement with a contract that outlines the scope of work, rates, payment terms, and confidentiality agreements.

Secure Secretarial Services for Your Business

Secretarial services are an increasingly valuable resource for businesses of all shapes and sizes, ensuring your company runs efficiently and meets compliance needs. 

By delegating administrative tasks to qualified professionals, you can free up your time to focus on high-level work and drive your business forward.

Looking for key business support such as virtual secretarial and receptionist services?

Browse Servcorp’s range of workspace solutions to see if they match your needs and learn more about virtual assistants.