2025 Canada Administrative and Customer Support Job Trends

2.9%* February 2025 unemployment rate (Administration)

4.9%* February 2025 unemployment rate (Customer Support)

Administrative and customer support leaders face challenges, including outdated systems, cross-functional collaboration barriers, and obstacles with employee adoption and engagement. Hiring skilled professionals remains difficult amid low unemployment, and companies are struggling to attract candidates with the required abilities — from traditional administrative know-how to project management expertise.

Complicating these challenges is the rapid advance of technology, which requires digital fluency and regular upskilling of existing staff. Many administrative and customer support teams find themselves caught between the immediate need to maintain service levels and the long-term imperative to modernize their processes. They need agile teams capable of both managing routine operations and driving innovation.

Strategic priorities for 2025

Administrative and customer support leaders shared what they’re focusing on this year:

Customer satisfaction

Cybersecurity and data privacy

Technology upgrades or integration

Quality assurance

Data analytics for performance management

Customer and stakeholder engagement

Technical debt Cross-
functional
alignment and
collaboration Employee
engagement Skills gaps
on the team Budget
constraints
for headcount Technical debt Cross-
functional
alignment and
collaboration Employee
engagement Skills gaps
on the team Budget
constraints
for headcount

Support roles are expanding

Administrative and customer support roles are transforming into hybrid positions with broader responsibilities. For administrative staff, these duties include project management, budgeting, HR functions and driving employee engagement, while customer support leaders seek the ability to confidently navigate customer data.

58% of administrative and customer support leaders reported skills gaps within their department, and 56% said the impact of those gaps has increased in the past year.

Administrative
duties Customer
service and
call centre Office services Management Administrative
duties Customer
service and
call centre Office services Management

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Almost all administrative and customer support leaders need to add new staff or at least maintain current headcounts to deliver on top business priorities. Yet 93% of those hiring said it’s challenging to find skilled talent in the current market.

of leaders are hiring for new permanent positions. of leaders are hiring for new permanent positions.

are hiring only for vacated permanent positions. are hiring only for vacated permanent positions.

Hiring plans for 2025 — contract professionals

49% of administrative and customer support leaders said they’re increasing their use of contract talent. They also shared the difficulties they’re having finding these professionals.

Finding candidates who align with corporate culture

Lack of skilled candidates

Meeting salary expectations

Difficulty assessing skills and experience

Administrative and customer support professionals in highest demand

The following positions are in the top 25% of administrative and customer support roles in demand, according to an analysis of thousands of job postings and Robert Half placements.

Administrative assistant

Call centre specialist

Customer service manager

Customer service specialist

Executive assistant

Logistics specialist

Receptionist/Front desk coordinator

Senior executive assistant

Learn more about the top roles in demand

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*Statistics Canada, seasonally adjusted, March 2025.

The surveys cited were developed by Robert Half and conducted by an independent research firm. Results may not total 100% due to rounding or allowing for multiple responses. Respondents included executives, hiring managers and workers from small (10-99 employees), midsize (100-999 employees) and large (1,000-plus employees) businesses in private, publicly listed and public sector organizations across Canada.

Over 200,000 new positions from more than 5,400 unique job boards and company websites provided by TextKernel are represented in our analysis of in-demand roles, including 6,000-plus placements from Robert Half. This dataset includes roles across the finance and accounting, technology, marketing and creative, legal, administrative and customer support, and human resources professions. 