Do Mudalovers know what administration is? Yep, administration is one activity that will definitely always be present in an organization. Even educational institutions in the form of schools also have administration systems that are different from other schools.
However, this time we will not discuss school administration, but rather general administration. Actually, what is general administration? What is the role of general administration for the continuity of an organization?
So, so that Mudalovers can understand it, let’s look at the following review!
Understanding Administration
Administration is a form of business and activity related to setting policies in order to achieve organizational targets and goals. In this case, administration can be divided into two meanings conveyed by experts.
Administration in the Narrow Sense
According to Handayaningrat, administration in the narrow sense comes from the word administratie, which includes note-taking activities, correspondence, light bookkeeping, typing, agendas, and so on which are administrative techniques. Meanwhile, according to Atmosudirjo, administration can be viewed from a narrow scope of work, which only revolves around office administration activities ( office work ) such as writing, typing correspondence, agendas, filing and bookkeeping.
Based on these opinions, it can be concluded that the narrow definition of administration is a form of office administration activity which includes writing and other paper work.
Administration in the Broadest Sense
According to The Liang Gie, administration is broadly a series of activities carried out by a group of people in a work to achieve certain goals. Meanwhile, according to Siagian, administration is a cooperative process between two or more people based on certain rationality in order to achieve predetermined goals.
Thus, administration can be broadly interpreted as a collaborative process between two or more people who have the aim of achieving targets by utilizing facilities and infrastructure in an efficient and effective manner.
An organization or company can stand and develop because of the support of resources and good management. Administration is part of the management of a company or organization which includes data collection and arranging matters related to various aspects of the company or organization so that they can be optimized properly.
In everyday life, administration has many functions, both in the world of work and education. The existence of administration can help facilitate formal and non-formal work. In managing data, administration makes management easier and more precise.
So we can conclude that administration has an important and crucial role in the series of activities of an organization or company.
Important Things from Understanding Administration
According to experts, there are several definitions of administration that we need to know so that they can be put into practice and help smooth activities in an organization or company.
According to George R. Terry, administration is the activity of planning, controlling and organizing office work and driving those who carry it out to achieve predetermined goals. Meanwhile, Arthur Grager stated that administration is the function of administering communications and document services in an organization.
Not much different, Sondang P. Siagian interprets administration as any form of cooperative process between two or more individuals on the basis of selected rationality to achieve predetermined goals.
Ulbert Silalahi also stated that administration is the systematic preparation and recording of data/information both internally and externally as an effort to provide information and make it easier to retrieve it, either in part or in whole.
William Leffingwell and Edwin Robinson explain that administration is a part of management science that is concerned with carrying out office work efficiently, when and where the work must be done.
Based on these various administrative definitions, we can draw 3 important things that can be used to help work processes in organizations or companies.
- Administration is an art as well as a process that is conditional and situational. Because, this will be related to the situation, time, conditions and place.
- There are certain elements, including the presence of two or more people in it, the existence of collaboration between people which has a formal and hierarchical nature, there are tasks, goals, and the availability of facilities and infrastructure.
- Administration will emerge along with the emergence of human civilization, where administration has the aim of achieving final results together.
Read Also : Similarities and differences between Sociology and Anthropology
Administrative Elements that Must Be Fulfilled
According to The Liang Gie, there are 8 elements that must be fulfilled in administration in order to create positive functions and impacts for organizations and companies.
1. Organization
An organization is a place where administrative activities are carried out. People will gather to become a forum for their workers.
2. Management
Management is the main tool for carrying out administration. In this implementation there are several parts such as organizers, drivers, managers and operational personnel. Management is also divided into three groups, namely top management , , and lower management .
3. Communication
Administration also regulates communication between one department and another in an organization. For example, through letters or news. This is very important because it is to know and clarify the information circulating so that there is good communication between management, clients and the administration itself.
4. Staffing
Staffing is related to the use of labor. The interconnected processes are acceptance, placement, utilization and termination of work.
5. Finance
This relates to the financing of cooperation contracts, starting from how to obtain funds to accountability. For example, administration of sales, purchases, contracts or leases, as well as sources of funds.
6. Supplies
There is a relationship related to the procurement of goods, deviations and exclusion. The administration will sort out which items are needed for work activities.
7. Administration
In administration there are activities that include recording, storing and sending documents or data. This element is very important in administration because it is a source of information for organizations to make decisions.
8. Public Relations
Public relations or what is usually called public relations is an effort to establish good relationships with consumers and clients. The administration will create rules about how to relate to the public, especially consumers.
Characteristics of General Administration
Administration has several characteristics or characteristics that we can see as follows.
- Administration has clear goals.
- There are human groups in administration consisting of two or more people.
- Administration is always related to cooperative activities.
- There is a business or work process in administration.
- The existence of a leader, guide and supervision in carrying out activities in the administration.
General Administrative Functions
There are several general administrative functions that we must pay attention to so that they can be implemented correctly.
1. Planning / planning
Planning is an activity that requires administrative activities, starting from data collection, data processing, to the plan preparation process.
2. Organizing / compiling
Preparation is the activity of composing and building work communication between members of the organization, so that it will achieve a unified effort for the organization’s goals.
3. Coordinating
Coordination is a management function that carries out a number of activities or activities so that they run well, so that there is no chaos, void of activity, or clashes which is carried out by connecting, adjusting and unifying the work of subordinates who work together in a planned manner in an effort to achieve a goal. organization goals.
4. Reporting / reports
A report is an activity or activities in the form of conveying the progress or results of an activity by making and providing reports regarding duties and functions to higher officials, both in writing and orally to obtain an overview of the implementation of the duties of members of the organization.
5. Budgeting / budget preparation
Budget preparation is a planning and management activity of finances and budgets in an organization that is carried out on an ongoing basis.
6. Staffing / placement
Placement is an activity related to human resources and other resources in an organization, starting from recruiting workers, development, and equipment within the organization.
7. Directing
Guidance or direction is an activity of interacting with members of an organization in the form of providing support, guidance, suggestions, orders so that tasks are carried out well to achieve predetermined goals.
Read Also : What is Social Anthropology? Definition and Examples
General Administration Objectives
Based on the various definitions, elements, characteristics and functions that we already know, we can also understand several objectives of general administration as follows.
1. To prepare a business program
Every organization needs information and data as a guide in preparing superior work programs. Information and data can be obtained through administrative activities. So administration must be carried out systematically so that the required information and data can be found easily.
2. Evaluate organizational activities
Having a good administration system can help organizations to view various existing information and data. Through this information and data, organizations can evaluate each activity carried out.
3. Monitor administrative activities
Because administrative activities cover many things, their implementation must be carried out regularly and systematically. An organization can monitor how, when, what, where and why an activity is carried out if it has good administration.
4. Ensure the security of business activities
Every organization or company requires security assurance in carrying out its business activities. Therefore, every organization needs good administration to monitor every activity, both from inside and outside the organization.
Apart from what has been mentioned above, administrative goals can also be divided into 2, namely administration with long-term goals and administration with short-term goals.
Long-term goals with an administrative pattern are aimed at achieving targets in an organization on a long-term basis, so they are not made by just anyone in the organization but by the owners of the organization. The objectives of this administration are ideal, general, and the qualifications are unlimited.
For smaller short-term goals, they are usually created by divisions of the organization for division-wide policies. This goal is specific, has a small scope, and the qualifications are also limited.
Examples of Administrative Activities
There are several examples of forms of administration based on type that we need to know.
- Population administration such as making family cards, ID card, birth certificates, death certificates, etc.
- Population administration such as making lesson schedules, managing correspondence, and organizing school activities.
- Office administration such as managing employee attendance, writing incoming and outgoing goods, recording stock of goods, and so on.
- Financial administration such as making financial bookkeeping records, creating invoices, making financial reports, and so on.
- State administration such as regulations on the formation of bodies and commissions in government, rules and procedures for public services, as well as presidential activities that regulate cabinet reshuffles .
Role of General Administration
The administrative role can be said to be the Queen of Peace . Just imagine, commotion will definitely continue to occur within an organization or company when administration is not running properly. The administrator will later become a liaison between various departments, company partners and consumers.
Thus, we can conclude that general administration has several roles, as follows.
- Support the implementation of main tasks to achieve organizational goals.
- Providing information for officials or organizational leaders for decision making.
- Helping the smooth development of the organization as a whole because it is involved in handling documents which are sources of information.
Therefore, there are several areas that can handle several specific matters, such as understanding the meaning of administration, improving the performance of office staff in terms of organization and managing office administration in various fields. There are also those in charge of issuing appropriate filing standards, developing and managing company assets, developing administrative procedures, controlling and planning administrative budgets, as well as making reports on company activities from payroll to other delivery activities.
Although the administrator’s main duties depend on the company, they will act as a bridge between management and employees.
Principles of General Administration
Before carrying out an activity, there are several principles of general administration that can be considered, as follows:
1. Principle of responsibility
All general administration providers must indicate who is responsible.
2. Security principles
All organizational or company writings have a certain level of security.
3. Principles of communication channels
Implementation of general administration should follow established administrative channels, so that the entire process can be completed quickly, paying attention to supervision and control of accountable results.
4. Basic accuracy
This principle is to support all activities and smooth administration quickly and on time.
Scope of General Administration
According to The Liang Gie, the scope of administration consists of information or information about a matter or event obtained mainly through reading or observation, such as collecting or searching for and collecting detailed information or information with the aim that it can be used later if necessary.
General administration also falls within the scope of note-taking or typing. This is a continuation activity of collecting data so that it can be stored, read or sent. Furthermore, general administration is also related to the activity of managing or analyzing existing forms of administrative data to obtain results from the data collected.
General administration is also tasked with storing and securing documents or data in various ways, so that they can be used again if needed. Finally, general administration is within the scope of activities to send or share files or data to other parties from within the organization or outside the organization.
Read Also : 5 Examples of Cultural Forms of Ideas and Activities
How General Administration Works
How administration works will be closely related to the duties of administrative staff in a company. In general, the way administration works is as follows:
- Coordinate with secretaries or administrative staff from other divisions when there are joint meetings or other activities.
- Compile and collect documents.
- Prepare accommodation and tickets for work visits outside the office.
- Ensure supplies of office stationery.
- Prepare and create agenda settings for meetings and other office events.
- Open, organize and distribute correspondence entering the company in the form of letters or emails.
- Prepare bills, reports, notes, letters and other documents using data processing applications, databases, presentations and worksheets.
In a company or organization, administration does not only have a function in correspondence. However, it has many functions, starting from planning, drafting, coordinating, making reports and preparing budgets to providing direction or guidance for members of the company or organization in order to achieve predetermined goals.
So every company or organization should have good administration, including competent administrative staff. Through proper management and administrative arrangements, company goals will be achieved easily. Apart from that, companies or organizations will continue to exist and continue to experience development along with the progress of the times and increasingly fierce competition.
It turns out that there are many roles and benefits of general administration that have been running in organizations or companies. If implemented correctly, general administration can improve personal and team performance in an organization or company.