Top 12 Business Assistant Skills to Put on Your Resume

Standing out as a business assistant isn’t about stuffing buzzwords into a page. It’s about showing a sharp mix of systems savvy, organization, and calm execution. The skills below punch above their weight on a resume and at work—tools and habits that speed decisions, cut noise, and keep teams moving.

Business Assistant Skills

1. Excel
2. QuickBooks
3. Salesforce
4. PowerPoint
5. Slack
6. Trello
7. Asana
8. Zoom
9. Google Workspace
10. Microsoft Teams
11. SharePoint
12. Adobe Photoshop

1. Excel

Excel is the workhorse for tracking, analyzing, and presenting data—budgets, forecasts, task logs, a thousand tiny details. It keeps numbers honest and decisions quicker.

Why It's Important

Because clean data drives smart moves. Excel helps you wrangle information, surface patterns, and turn messy input into crisp reports that leaders can act on.

How to Improve Excel Skills

Dial in skills that save time and reduce errors:

1. Formulas and Functions: Nail lookup functions, IF logic, date math, text cleanup, and error handling.

2. Data Analysis: Build PivotTables and PivotCharts that summarize the signal and bury the noise.

3. Visualization: Use clean charts, sparklines, and clear labels—no chart junk, all clarity.

4. Conditional Formatting: Highlight exceptions, trends, and deadlines at a glance.

5. Macros and VBA: Record and refine simple automations for repetitive steps.

6. Data Validation: Guardrails on inputs prevent downstream cleanup headaches.

7. Shortcuts: Keyboard-first navigation speeds everything.

How to Display Excel Skills on Your Resume

2. QuickBooks

QuickBooks tracks the money—expenses, invoicing, payroll, reconciliation, and reports—so the business knows where it stands, not where it guesses.

Why It's Important

Timely, accurate books cut surprises. You support leaders with real numbers, clean audit trails, and dependable cash snapshots.

How to Improve QuickBooks Skills

1. Automate: Set recurring invoices, rules for bank feeds, and scheduled reports.

2. Integrate: Connect calendars, payment processors, and expense tools to reduce double entry.

3. Cloud Access: Use QuickBooks Online for real-time collaboration and faster approvals.

4. Customize Reports: Build memorized reports tailored to leadership’s recurring questions.

5. Reconcile Relentlessly: Monthly bank and credit card reconciliations keep books tight.

6. Data Hygiene: Use consistent chart-of-accounts naming and close periods after month-end.

7. Security: Strong passwords, 2FA, role-based access, and regular backups.

How to Display QuickBooks Skills on Your Resume

3. Salesforce

Salesforce is the system of record for customers—sales, service, and marketing working from one source of truth.

Why It's Important

It aligns teams around the pipeline, service levels, and revenue health, while automating the grunt work that slows momentum.

How to Improve Salesforce Skills

1. Dashboards that matter: Surface a handful of metrics that leaders check daily; hide the rest.

2. Automation with Flow: Replace legacy Process Builder logic; use Flow for assignments, alerts, and data updates.

3. Integrations: Connect email, calendar, and support tools so activities log themselves.

4. Data Quality: Set duplicate and matching rules, validation rules, and scheduled data cleanups.

5. Permissions and Layouts: Profiles, roles, and page layouts tailored to how teams actually work.

6. Continuous Learning: Keep pace with seasonal releases and retire old features when better ones land.

How to Display Salesforce Skills on Your Resume

4. PowerPoint

PowerPoint turns analysis into a story. Clean slides, clear flow, confident delivery.

Why It's Important

When the room gets one shot to decide, visuals and structure carry the message. Good decks reduce dithering.

How to Improve PowerPoint Skills

1. Consistent Design: One template, disciplined fonts and colors, generous white space.

2. Cut the clutter: Short bullets, one idea per slide, strong headings. The 10/20/30 mindset helps rein in excess.

3. Useful visuals: High-quality images and charts that clarify, not decorate.

4. Motion with intent: Light animations and transitions only when they serve meaning.

5. Data done right: Choose the right chart type, label cleanly, avoid 3D gimmicks.

6. Smart links: Internal links and slide navigation for live demos or Q&A paths.

7. Practice: Rehearse timing, trim words, test on the display you’ll use.

How to Display PowerPoint Skills on Your Resume

5. Slack

Slack centralizes team chatter, files, and quick decisions. Channels beat email threads. Search beats digging.

Why It's Important

Fast alignment, fewer meetings, clearer ownership. Work moves where work happens.

How to Improve Slack Skills

1. Integrate core tools: Connect task managers, calendars, and CRM updates so work shows up where people already are.

2. Automate the routine: Use Workflow Builder for reminders, intake forms, and status nudges.

3. Notification hygiene: Tune alerts, star key channels, and use mentions with intent.

4. Bots with purpose: Polls, standup check-ins, and onboarding helpers keep teams in sync.

5. Security and governance: Enforce SSO, 2FA, data retention, and sensible channel naming.

How to Display Slack Skills on Your Resume

6. Trello

Trello’s boards, lists, and cards create a visual pipeline. You see the work, who owns it, and what’s stuck.

Why It's Important

It simplifies coordination, especially for cross-functional tasks that would otherwise vanish into inboxes.

How to Improve Trello Skills

1. Power-Ups that matter: Calendar, Custom Fields, and Card Repeater keep due dates and details tight.

2. Automation with Butler: Move cards, add checklists, and post updates without manual clicks.

3. Centralize updates: Link chat tools so status changes notify the right people instantly.

4. Connect the stack: Hook into file storage and automation platforms to cut copy-paste work.

5. Right-size the plan: For growing teams, use Trello Premium or Enterprise for security, permissions, and admin control.

How to Display Trello Skills on Your Resume

7. Asana

Asana turns projects into trackable work—owners, deadlines, dependencies—all visible, all accountable.

Why It's Important

It prevents slippage, clarifies priorities, and gives leaders a live view of progress without another status meeting.

How to Improve Asana Skills

1. Integrate the essentials: Email, calendar, docs, and messaging tied directly to tasks.

2. Start with templates: Standardize repeatable processes so nothing gets missed.

3. Custom fields: Track priorities, stage gates, budgets—whatever drives decisions.

4. Keyboard fluency: Shortcuts keep you in flow when updating dozens of tasks.

5. Rules and automation: Auto-assign work, set statuses, and route requests.

6. Upskill: Use training modules and office hours to sharpen team habits.

7. Work with guests: Collaborate with vendors and clients without oversharing.

8. Cadence: Weekly reviews to prune, prioritize, and reset expectations.

How to Display Asana Skills on Your Resume

8. Zoom

Zoom keeps meetings moving when rooms disappear. Voice, video, chat, screens, recordings—remote doesn’t have to feel distant.

Why It's Important

Clients, candidates, teammates—anywhere, anytime. Clear communication and quick decisions without travel drag.

How to Improve Zoom Skills

1. Scheduling flow: Use calendar add-ons, templated agendas, and automatic reminders.

2. Security first: Require passcodes, enable waiting rooms, and turn on 2FA.

3. Speed with shortcuts: Mute, share, switch views, and manage participants instantly.

4. Breakout rooms: Split groups for focused work, then reconvene with crisp summaries.

5. Whiteboards and co-annotation: Sketch ideas together instead of talking past each other.

6. Record and recap: Record key meetings, share highlights, attach notes and action items.

7. Engage: Use polls and reactions to keep the room awake and involved.

How to Display Zoom Skills on Your Resume

9. Google Workspace

Google Workspace stitches together email, docs, storage, calendars, and meetings. Collaboration without friction.

Why It's Important

Shared documents, shared calendars, shared context. Work speeds up when everyone’s looking at the same page—literally.

How to Improve Google Workspace Skills

1. Add-ons that help: Bring in marketplace tools that solve your team’s specific bottlenecks.

2. Apps Script: Automate repetitive steps across Gmail, Sheets, Docs, and Drive.

3. Drive discipline: Clear naming, shared drives, tight permissions, archival rules.

4. Shared calendars: Layer team calendars, color-code events, and respect focus time.

5. Inbox systems: Filters, labels, snooze, and send scheduling keep email sane.

6. Meet features: Recording, live captions, noise canceling, and co-editing during calls.

7. Train the team: Short learning sessions and tips roundups so the whole org levels up.

How to Display Google Workspace Skills on Your Resume

10. Microsoft Teams

Teams brings chat, meetings, files, and apps into one hub across Microsoft 365.

Why It's Important

It reduces context-switching, anchors projects in channels, and keeps files tied to conversations.

How to Improve Microsoft Teams Skills

1. App integrations: Pin task tools, dashboards, and forms as tabs within channels.

2. Automate with Power Automate: Route approvals, post updates, and hand off routine tasks to flows.

3. Notification tuning: Follow priority channels, mute noise, and set custom alerts.

4. Bots and AI: Use the Who bot and built-in help; explore Copilot features where available for meeting recaps and drafting.

5. Teams and channels: Mirror org structure, archive stale channels, and add channel descriptions.

6. Meeting features: Recordings, transcripts, live captions, and collaborative notes boost clarity.

7. Shortcuts: Keyboard commands for calls, navigation, and messaging shave minutes daily.

How to Display Microsoft Teams Skills on Your Resume

11. SharePoint

SharePoint is your intranet backbone—document hubs, pages, lists, and workflows that connect people to information.

Why It's Important

It formalizes knowledge sharing, tightens document control, and builds repeatable processes that don’t live in someone’s head.

How to Improve SharePoint Skills

1. Clear navigation: Logical site structure, hub sites, and plain-language labels.

2. Automate workflows: Use Power Automate for approvals, notifications, and document lifecycles.

3. Search that finds: Tune metadata and content types so results are relevant.

4. Secure sharing: Sensible permissions, external sharing policies, and expiration on guest access.

5. Modern pages: Role-based landing pages with web parts that surface what matters.

6. Apps and connectors: Integrate lists, forms, and dashboards for end-to-end workflows.

7. Iterate with feedback: Survey users, track adoption, and refine continuously.

How to Display SharePoint Skills on Your Resume

12. Adobe Photoshop

Photoshop sharpens your visual communication—quick edits, brand consistency, and assets that look polished without waiting on a designer.

Why It's Important

First impressions often arrive as images. Crisp graphics elevate proposals, social posts, and internal comms.

How to Improve Adobe Photoshop Skills

1. Core tools first: Layers, masks, selections, adjustment layers—master the foundations.

2. Practice small projects: Thumbnails, social crops, quick retouches. Repetition builds speed.

3. Shortcuts: Tool switches, zoom, layer navigation—muscle memory matters.

4. Non-destructive editing: Smart objects and masks keep edits flexible.

5. Brand kits: Save color swatches, character styles, and templates for consistency.

6. Plugins and actions: Prebuilt actions and extensions can collapse multi-step tasks.

7. Stay current: New features drop often—set aside time to experiment.

How to Display Adobe Photoshop Skills on Your Resume