I know you don't mean to!

[ShadesOfGrey]

No sweat - After re-reading, it seems you were suggesting that the fact that he is the owner's friend shouldnt discourage her from involving him if necessary.  Either way, the more people that post, the more avenues the OP has for dealing with the situation! I just enjoy the opportunity for different people to express different opinions.  I myself have strong opinions on various issues, but I look forward to considering another perspective, especially if he/she suggests something I hadnt previously thought of.  And, Chocolate Cake, not only do I enjoy your screen name, but I often enjoy reading your postings!

[Tabris]

I've thought about this a bit more from last night, and if this guy is a businessman, surely he knows exactly what he's doing, and moreover, he knows it's wrong to do it.

I advocate the "oops, I forgot" strategy someone else mentioned. "I'm sorry, but I didn't address your envelope yesterday. I was very busy cutting checks and filing tax information for Owner. Sometimes I wonder why I became a CPA in the first place! Maybe I'll get to it today."

What's he going to do? Complain about you? To whom? Fire you? He has no authority over you.

The interrupting you while you're on the phone has to stop. Hand up, palm out as if you're talking to a small child. "Excuse me, but I'm on the phone." Then physically turn your body away from him and back toward your computer. Even if you don't need to be looking at any documentation while you're on the phone, find something and put it up in front of your face.

It may be this guy got where he is by being both charming and pushy. You too can be charming and assertive. And frankly, it wouldn't be out of line to say, "Mr. Sleazehound, I'm afraid you think I'm your secretary. In fact, I'm a CPA, and my work is very important to Mr. Owner. If you want someone to lick your stamps, you'll have to ask Ms. Secretary or Ms. Receptionist."

Does he normally work for people for free? No? Then neither should he ask you to do it for him.

[Clara Bow]

What was wrong with that? Just politely tell him that you're really busy. There's no reason you should have to do his stuff for him. I don't think that saying no is rude at all, it's all in the delivery.

[Buffy2424]

I think you're handling it well thus far.

Act as though you don't realize he thinks (or wishes) you're a secretary.  Instead of saying "Name of Secretary can help you," you can be more specific with something like: "The administrative assistants usually do that stuff here, so check with Name of Secretary ."  Be busy but friendly about it.

[MadMadge43]

I would spell it out to him, because he is under the wrong assumption. If you just keep saying I can't right now, he'll jut think you're a bad secretary.

Next time he comes in say: You know I realized you don't know my position here. But I am the accounting manager in charge of all the finances of this company. While I would love to help you out, the things you ask me to do are not apart of my day to day tasks so they really slow me down. If you could just go directly to "Sally" the admin, she'll be able to help you out and she's the one I usually pass this down to anyway, so you'll just be removing the middle man.  But if you ever need help finding missing money or with your taxes come on over.

[girlmusic]

Insert Quote
I would spell it out to him, because he is under the wrong assumption. If you just keep saying I can't right now, he'll jut think you're a bad secretary.

Next time he comes in say: You know I realized you don't know my position here. But I am the accounting manager in charge of all the finances of this company. While I would love to help you out, the things you ask me to do are not apart of my day to day tasks so they really slow me down. If you could just go directly to "Sally" the admin, she'll be able to help you out and she's the one I usually pass this down to anyway, so you'll just be removing the middle man.  But if you ever need help finding missing money or with your taxes come on over.

PODDITY POD! This is fantastic advice. It will hopefully accomplish most of your goals - to get him to stop asking you to do these things, and to make him realize that he is not only addressing the wrong person, but negatively affecting his friend's company by taking up your time when you should be handling other things.

[minnaloushe]

You've received a ton of great advice on this, and I agree with the majority wholeheartedly.  The thing you must remember is that he is taking advantage of you.  He's treating you as an inferior because you are a) young and b) female, and he expects (and has received) your obedience.  If you were a man, you would have told him NO a long time ago, except if you were a man he would never have asked you in the first place. 

You must own your position and the authority you have in your company. Next time he asks you for anything, repeat as mentioned above that HE seems to be unclear about your position, but as much as you have enjoyed "helping him out" you really need to concentrate on your position and he should henceforth take his requests elsewhere. And then don't do it. Trust me, your boss is not paying you the big bucks to be a gopher for his buddy.

And see about getting a lock on your door.

[truefarmgirl]

You are absolutely right that he should not be asking you to do his secretarial work. Maybe he feels closer to you than the secretaries because of the proximity of your offices? Maybe he feels like you are "friends"? I know, a long shot, but...
Also, because he doesn't work for the company, are your secretaries supposed to be doing work for him? I know in one situation there is an elderly gentleman who, like your guy, used to be a pretty big deal. Now he uses his buddy's secretary to get things done for him and take calls while he's "busy". Unfortunately, she's not supposed to be doing outside work for him. Sticky situation. You might have to just "chat" with him. Surely if he used to be in big business he'll understand. You might have to point out your degrees and accomplishments to get him to take you seriously. Good luck.

[Twik]

I'm not sure why it's a sticky situation. Sit down with your boss and clarify what, if any, assistance your staff is expected to give this person based on his "friendship" with the boss. The boss may not feel so friendly after he realizes he's paying people to work for someone else - he may not even be aware of this. if he says he wants this gentleman to be helped on demand, then the work should be assigned as it would be normally - clerical jobs done by clerical staff, and taken into consideration as part of their normal workload (i.e. no "you must spend hours helping old Frank here, but still do all the other work we expect for us").

I think when it comes down to dollars and cents, the boss will stand up for you. And if he doesn't, well, it's the company's money, not yours, as long as your staff isn't doing old Frank's work as unpaid overtime.

[Hawkwatcher]

You are absolutely right that he should not be asking you to do his secretarial work. Maybe he feels closer to you than the secretaries because of the proximity of your offices? Maybe he feels like you are "friends"? I know, a long shot, but...
Also, because he doesn't work for the company, are your secretaries supposed to be doing work for him? I know in one situation there is an elderly gentleman who, like your guy, used to be a pretty big deal. Now he uses his buddy's secretary to get things done for him and take calls while he's "busy". Unfortunately, she's not supposed to be doing outside work for him. Sticky situation. You might have to just "chat" with him. Surely if he used to be in big business he'll understand. You might have to point out your degrees and accomplishments to get him to take you seriously. Good luck.

When I read both the OP's post and your post, I was really surprised that at least two businesses are willing to allow outsiders to use their resources and staff because I know a lot of places won't even allow employees to make personal photocopies.  Personally, I think that it is a bad business decision.  One reason it is a bad business decision is because it may open up the company to lawsuits.  For example, what if one of these individuals forgot that it was 2006 and sexually harassed a secretary?  The smart thing for these managers to do is to arrange to spend time with their friends during their free time instead of allowing them use company staff and resources.