[Basic Functions of Public

Administration]
[Name: Jameel] [Course Title: Public
Administration] | [Class: BS 7th Semester] [Submitted
To: Dr. Asma]
What is Administration?
When two men cooperate to roll a stone that neither one could have moved
alone, the elements of administration have occurred. This simple act has
the two essential characteristics of what is called administration. There is a
purpose moving the stone and there is cooperative action several persons
using combined strength to accomplish something that could not have
been done without such a combination.

In its broadest sense, Administration can be defined as the activities of groups

cooperating to accomplish common goals.

 Frederick Lane defined administration as “organizing and maintaining

human and fiscal resources to fulfil a group’s goals.”
 Leonard D. White defined as: “The art of administration is the direction,
co-ordination and control of many persons to achieve some purpose or
objective.”
 Ordway Tead defined as: “Administration is conceived as the necessary
activities of individuals (executive) in an organization who are charged
with ordering, forwarding and facilitating the associated efforts of a group
of individuals brought together to realize certain defined purposes.”
 E. A. Nigro defined as: “Administration is the organization and use of men
and materials to accomplish a purpose.”
 Herbert A. Simon defined as: “In its broadest sense, administration can
be defined as the activities of groups co-operating to accomplish common
goals.”
 J. M. Pfiffner defined as: Administration means “the organization and
direction of human and material resources to achieve desired ends.”
 Luther Gullick defined as: “Administration is the organization and
direction of human and material resources to achieve desired ends.”

Putting all these definitions into perspective, we can establish for a fact that
administration is characteristic of all human enterprises to achieve a purpose or a
predefined objective. However, the central idea of administration is rational
action, defined as,

“action correctly calculated to realize given desired goals”.

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As such, administration is cooperative human action with a high degree of
rationality.

Human action is cooperative if it has effects that would be absent if the

cooperation did not take place. The significance of high degree of rationality lies
in the fact that human cooperation varies in effectiveness of goal attainment,
whether we think in terms of formal goals, the goals of leaders or the goals of all
who put in their cooperative efforts.

The term administration is also used in a narrower sense to refer to those

patterns of behavior that are common to many kinds of cooperating groups and
that do not depend on either the specific goals toward which they are
cooperating, or the specific technological methods applied to attain these goals.

For example, the two men rolling the stone could have used various techniques
in accomplishing their purpose. They might have merely pulled and shoved the
stone in some manner. Or they could have used a pole or a steel bar as a lever.
They might have fastened a rope to it, with a pulley attached to the nearest tree.
They might have broken the stone with sledge hammers and then carried away
the fragments. The methods of moving the stone are legion.

However, administration in the more restricted sense is not basically concerned

with the chosen technological methods. It is concerned with such questions as
how the method was chosen in this case how the two men moving the stone
were selected and induced to cooperate in carrying out such a task, how the task
was divided between them, how each one learned what his particular job was in
the total pattern, how he learned to perform it, how his efforts are coordinated
with the efforts of the other.

Although the illustration of the two men and the stone expresses the basic
characteristics of administration, the complexity of modern life requires organized
activity much more involved and specialized. To build and market an automobile,
for example, calls for a complex system of interrelationships. Specialists of a
bewildering variety must bring their competences to bear on the problem at
exactly the right time and the right place. Raw materials must be bought,
processed, and transported to the place of assembly. The factory must be
planned and built. Thousands of men with exactly the right tools and skills must
be on hand at an appropriate time. Thousands of independent parts must be put
together in a certain sequence. After the automobile is completed it must be
transported and sold a task requiring the aid of still other group of persons.

In all of this activity, every step is essential to the completion of the next step and
any failure to cooperate at any one point may disrupt the whole pattern and make
the accomplishment of the goal impossible. If the steel makers fail to provide the

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steel; if the wheel maker fails to produce the wheels; if the dealers fail to sell the
cars; the factory will close. The key to the whole process is effective cooperation
among the persons engaged in the operation.

Since the problems are complex, the work has to be carefully planned. Estimates
must be made as to what materials and persons will be needed at a given place
and at a given time. The participants must be induced to cooperate. And because
resources are limited, the amount of materials and the amount of human energy
used to accomplish the task must be held to a minimum. The employment of ten
clerks to accomplish a task that one clerk could do is inefficient it brings more
energy to bear on a task than is necessary for its accomplishment.

Public Administration: -
Public administration consists of the activities undertaken by a government to
look after its people, or to manage its affairs. Before discussing the various
interpretations of the concept of public administration, it is pertinent to
understand the meaning of the terms ‘public’ and ‘administration’ separately.

The word ‘public’ stands for the people of a definite territory or state. As the will
of the people of a state is represented by the government of the state, the word
‘public’ also has a specialized, governmental meaning. Therefore, the acts of
administration performed by the government are called ‘public administration’.
Those acts which are undertaken by individuals in their own capacity are termed
‘private administration’.

The English word ‘administer’ is derived from the Latin word's ad and ministrare,
which means ‘to serve’. Thus, in simple words ‘administration’ means the
‘management of affairs’, or looking after the people. It is a process of
management which is practiced by all kinds of organizations from the household
to the most complex system of the government. Whenever two or more people
cooperate to accomplish common goals, an administrative activity is assumed to
have been involved.

Public administration, the implementation of government policies. Today public

administration is often regarded as including also some responsibility for
determining the policies and programs of governments. Specifically, it is the
planning, organizing, directing, coordinating, and controlling of government
operations.

Public administration is a feature of all nations, whatever their system of

government. Within nations public administration is practiced at the central,

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intermediate, and local levels. Indeed, the relationships between different levels
of government within a single nation constitute a growing problem of public
administration.

In most of the world the establishment of highly trained administrative, executive,

or directive classes has made public administration a distinct profession. The
body of public administrators is usually called the civil service. In the United
States and a few other countries, the elitist class connotation traditionally
attached to the civil service has been either consciously abandoned or avoided,
with the result that professional recognition has come slowly and only partially.

Traditionally the civil service is contrasted with other bodies serving the state full
time, such as the military, the judiciary, and the police. Specialized services,
sometimes referred to as scientific or professional civil services, provide technical
rather than general administrative support. Traditionally, in most countries, a
distinction is also made between the home civil service and those persons
engaged abroad on diplomatic duties. A civil servant, therefore, is one of a body
of persons who are directly employed in the administration of the internal affairs
of the state and whose role and status are not political, ministerial, military, or
constabulary.

In most countries the civil service does not include local government or public
corporations, such as, in the United Kingdom, the National Coal Board. In some
countries, however particularly those unitary states in which provincial
administration is part of the central government some provincial staffs are civil
servants. In the United States, all levels of government have their own civil
services, federal, state, and local, and a civil service is specifically that part of
governmental service entered by examination and offering permanent tenure.

Certain characteristics are common to all civil services. Senior civil servants are
regarded as the professional advisers to those who formulate state policy. In
some country's entry requirements for a career in the higher civil service stress
qualifications in technical fields such as accounting, economics, medicine, and
engineering. In other countries legal training is deemed appropriate, and in
others no specific technical or academic discipline is required among candidates
for senior posts. Whatever their precise qualifications, senior civil servants are
professional in the sense that their experience of public affairs is thought to
provide them with the knowledge of the limits within which state policy can be
made effective and of the probable administrative results of different courses of
action. Civil servants in every country are expected to advise, warn, and assist
those responsible for state policy and, when this has been decided, to provide
the organization for implementing it. The responsibility for policy decisions lies
with the political members of the executive (those members who have been
elected or appointed to give political direction to government and, customarily,

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career civil servants). By custom, civil servants are protected from public blame
or censure for their advice. The acts of their administration may, however, be
subject to special judicial controls from which no member of the executive can
defend them.

Civil services are organized upon standard hierarchical lines, in which a

command structure rises pyramid-fashion from the lowest offices to the highest.
This command implies obedience to the lawful orders of a superior, and in order
to maintain this system the hierarchy of offices is marked by fixed positions, with
well-defined duties, specific powers, and salaries and privileges objectively
assessed. In some countries there may be direct appointment to higher office of
persons not previously employed by the service, but even then, a recognized
system of internal promotion emphasizes the nature of the hierarchical pyramid.

Basic Functions of Administration: -

1. PLANNING: -
By planning is meant to predetermine who will do which task at what place and
how. The administrators have to take due steps for the successful execution of
the functions of the school from time to time. Planning means choosing the best

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out of various alternative objectives, processes, policies and programs. The
significance of planning lies in arranging specialist training programes and
different roles of different personnel as attached to the educational institution and
also the functions that are undertaken in realizing such objectives and aims. In
fact, the educational planning is a progressive process. It does not only keep in
view the present requirements, but also looks into the future for different needs
that are likely to arise in future due to the change in perception, scientific
development, technological improvements and new inventions besides social
thinking and political changes. The judicious process of planning is a process
which keeps in view the past experiences and guidance and hopes for future
progress by keeping in tune with the present. While taking the level of planning
into consideration, it is necessary to know the objectives that have to be
accomplished. It should also be made clear what processes, techniques and
methods would be adopted in realizing those objectives. It is also necessary to
classify the aids and systems to be used in it. The administrator must keep in
mind an important point, that is, to make the planning process quite flexible so
that they are able to change with the dynamic changes in the environment and
overcome hindrances in realizing the objectives due to one or the other reason.
However, it must be known that excessive flexibility on the part of the
administrator shows their weakness.

Various activities and functions of an administration are done under proper

planning. Different kinds of problems arise before the administration in the day-
to-day functioning of the school where the administrator has to take decisions. It
is also necessary for a proficient administrator to take such decisions with justice
and without prejudice. They should take into consideration the various aspects of
a situation including the objective which would be served by taking a particular
kind of decision. They should also collect and collate all related information and
statistics for analysis and evaluate the available alternatives before taking the
final decision.

Definitions: -
 According to M. E. Hurley, “Planning is deciding in advance what is to be
done. It involves selection of objectives, policies, procedures and
programs from among alternatives.”
 According to Koontz and O'Donnel, “Planning is a mental activity, is a
conscious determination of doing a work in a particular way. It is to base
the decision on the basis of objectives, facts and pre-conceived thoughts.”
 According to William H. Newman, “Planning is predetermination of what
is to be done in the future generally. In this view, it is to include extensive
and expansive form of human conduct in it.”

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  According to the opinion of James L. Lundy, “The meaning of planning is
to determine what is to be done, where is to be done, how is to be done,
who is to do it and how the results are to be evaluated.”

 According to Haynes and Messy, “Planning is that function of

administrator in which he decides in advance what he will do. It is
decision-making process of a special kind… it is an intellectual process in
which creative thinking and imagination are essential.”
 According to Millet, “Planning is a process of determining the objectives
effort and devising the means calculated to achieve them.”

Planning Framework: -
A planning framework defines the basic structure of the planning process. This
may be defined externally (for example, if a process is already established or
legally proscribed). The planning process usually progresses from the most
general concepts to increasingly specific plans, programs and tasks. Below are
typical planning framework components.

 Principles- A basic rule or concept used for decision-making.

 Vision- A general description of the desired result of the planning
process.
 Problem- An undesirable condition to be mitigated (solved, reduced or
compensated).
 Goals- A general desirable condition to be achieved.
 Objectives- Specific ways to achieve goals.
 Scope- the range (area, people, time, activities, etc.) to be include in a
process.
 Options- Possible solutions to a problem or ways to achieve an
objective.
 Evaluation Methodology- The process of valuing and comparing
options, such as cost.
 Effectiveness- Benefit/ cost, or lifecycle cost analysis.
 Evaluation Criteria- The impacts (costs and benefits) considered in
analysis.
 Criteria Weight- The relative weight given to an individual criterion in the
analysis.
 Policies- A general course of action.
 Plans- A scheme or set of actions. This may be a strategic (general or
broad) or an action (specific and narrow) plan.
 Program- A specific set of objective, responsibilities and tasks within an
organization.

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 Task or action- A specific thing to be accomplished.
 Target- Something specific to be achieved.
 Performance Indicators- Practical ways to measure progress toward
objectives.

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Principles of Planning: -

Objectives of Planning: -
The chief objectives of planning are as follows:

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 1. Economy in management: When the planning of future events has
been finalized, the attention of the administration is diverted towards its
execution, thereby bringing about economy in execution.
2. Accurate forecasting: The objective of planning is to forecast the future
needs correctly. Hence, forecasting is considered as the essence of
planning.
3. Certainty in work: Attempts are made in administration to bring about
certainty in future works so that the objectives of the organization are met.
4. Establishment of coordination and equality: Planning helps in
establishing coordination and equality in various activities of the
organization.
5. Providing appropriate direction: Having made the future planning,
appropriate direction is given to the future course of events of the
organization. Thus, great difficulty is averted with planning.
6. Proper knowledge of main and sub-objectives: One of the chief
objectives of planning is to inform the workers and other concerned
personnel about the goals and sub-objectives of the organization.
Planning not only informs them about the goals and aims of the
organization, but also about how to achieve them.
7. Achievement of objectives: The final and the most important objective
of planning is to continuously proceed and try for achievement of the
objectives of the organization, so that the final ends can be attained while
working in the right direction.

Nature of Planning: -
The following points are included in the nature of planning:

1. Inseparable part of an organization.

2. Foremost function of administration.
3. Intellectual and continuous process.
4. Basis of proficiency in administration.
5. Universal process.
6. Futuristic.
7. Selective process.
8. Based on forecasting.

Functions Related to Planning: -

Functions related to planning can be described as follows:

1. Increase in managerial efficiency: The complete planning of the

processes of an organization directs the functions of the organization

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 towards clear objectives which makes the organization's and
administration's job easy. Coordination and control of different functions is
completed by the planning process which helps in cooperation of
administrative functions.
2. Establishment of effective control: Having decided the
measurements of forms and execution of various functions, planning
makes evaluation of the actual achievements possible. The process of
reformation can be initiated on finding a difference between the planning
and actual achievement. It helps the administration exercise control over
the situation.
3. Economy: Planning helps achieve targets reasonably and orderly with
best use of the resources available. As a result, optimal economy of
expenditure is achieved.
4. Minimizing uncertainty and risk: The fundamental basis of planning
is forecasting and not merely guesses and conjectures. It is based on the
available facts and statistics and also on the analysis of situations and
facts. As such, it makes the risks and uncertainties reducible to almost nil,
if proper planning has been made. Thus, planning means the preparation
for the future events which results in benefits.
5. Elimination of ambiguity: Lack of planning means absence of
objectives, policies, programs, processes, etc. In the absence of all these,
the functions of the administration would become aimless, disorderly and
uncertain. It would result in losses and end of their profession. Planning
helps inspire the organization to achieve their goals in an orderly and
scientific manner. It helps replace disorderliness with orderliness and
management.
6. Focusing towards the achievement of objectives: Planning helps
centralize the administrators towards the achievement of goals
proficiently, and every department focuses on the achievement of goals of
the organization while coordinating with one another, making the efforts of
different departments complementary and not competitive. Thus, planning
helps the administrators focus on the achievement of objectives.
7. Benefit of future possibilities: Future originates in the present and is
the source of possibilities for further development. Planning helps in
finding out the future possibilities and takes benefits from them. According
to Koontz and O'Donell, “Planning is such selected and chosen path which
co-ordinates the collective works of administration into one effort”.
8. Knowledge of duties and responsibilities of officers: Planning
produces organizational power and energy. Planning helps the workers
and executives to realize their duties and responsibilities easily.

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 9. Control on irrational decisions: The greatest advantage of planning
is that the decisions are taken prudently and after due consideration.
Thus, it prevents from taking imprudent and hasty decisions.

2. ORGANIZING: -

Organization is also an important function of good administration. The effective

and efficient work of the school depends upon the good organization. The

essential element of the organization is people: what they do and how they work

together.

So, for good organization, the administrator should define the purpose, analyze

and identify tasks required to meet these objectives, allocate related activities to

other staff, provide for management and coordination of activities at each level of

responsibility and lastly establish a reporting and communication channel.

Definitions of Organization: -
The term organization is quite extensive and does not admit a definite and
universal definition. Various scholars have therefore defined the term differently.
The chief ones are as follows:

 According to Me Jarland, “An identifiable group of people contributing

their efforts toward the attainment of goals is called organization.”
 According to Dr.S. P. Singh, “Organization is an art of establishing
coordination and cooperation between various elements of production for
the attainment of definite goals.”
 According to Prof.L. H. Harvey, “Organization is a harmonious adjustment
of specialized part for the accomplishment of some common purpose or
purposes.”
 According to E. F. L. Brich, “Organization is that part of management
which is concerned with the definition of the structure of (a) the
responsibilities by means of which the activities of the enterprise are
distributed among the personnel employed in its service, and (b) the forms
of interrelations established among the personnel by virtue of such
responsibilities.”

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  According to J. D. Mooney, “Organization is the form of every human
association for the attainment of common purpose and the process of
relating specific duties or function in a whole.”

Functions of Organization in Administration: -

The following are the functions of organization in administration:

1. Increase in managerial and administrative efficiency: Proficient,

effective and able organization enables the functioning of the
administration easy and comfortable. It increases the management and
capacity of administration. An able organization takes advantage of the
proficiencies of the workers according to their abilities. Besides, it
delegates and distributes duties according to the capacities of the workers
to make the administration work efficiently. In contrast, an inefficient
organization keeps itself busy in aimless works and wastes its time, due to
which hardly any time is left for undertaking fruitful activities.
2. Moral restriction on corruption: A good organization makes the
workers work hard, be honest and devoted, and makes them realize the
needs of the organization and their own duties. It helps curtail corruption
with moral implications. When the organization is inactive, the workers do
not want to work, thereby resulting in less production and inefficiency. An
organization should always remain young and energetic, else its young
workers too will become old and unenergetic. An efficient organization
makes its workers possess high values and moral character.
3. Motivation for specialization and classification: The role of an
organization at present is all the more vital as it inspires specialization and
classification. Under modern organizations, every employee is allotted the
duty which they can efficiently and ably do while keeping their interests
alive.
4. Motivation for creative work: The functions are distributed and
arranged on the basis of priority in an organization. Alternatively, the
functions can also be arranged on the basis of their importance. It enables
the workers to do the work creatively and also encourages creative work
in the organization.
5. Increase in the speed of development: A healthy organization
makes such a structure by which self-development of tile organization
takes place naturally. It is necessary at present to develop its activities
and expand them so that progress can be made rapidly.
6. Helpful for the development of administration: A healthy
organization arranges for the training of its employees. Trained manpower
is utilized in various posts in the administration. Besides, their proficiency
and ability are used for the development of their skill and ability.

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 7. Easiness in coordination: Coordination among various departments of
an organization is established with the help of the organization. The
general objectives of different departments are borne in mind and
coordinated with the objectives of other departments and of the whole
organization.
8. Easy delegation: Some administrators keep themselves busy doing
such things, which in fact should have been done by their juniors. It
reduces the time available to them for performing other important
functions which only they should do. It puts them under unnecessary
burden. An able organization makes such a person free to work on other
projects by defining the work of the administrators clearly, and marks their
boundaries under which they have to work while allotting the work to all
employees according to their efficiency and ability. It also provides for the
allotment and delegation of duties which can be done by the junior staff,
thus keeping the seniors free to plan and do other more important
functions.
9. Optimum use of resources: A healthy organization arranges for
training of its employees. The trained manpower is suitably employed on
the posts and tasks which they have been trained to perform, thus
increasing their efficiency. Besides, their ability can be measured by
delegating them authority and to ascertain whether such employees can
be promoted to shoulder bigger responsibilities.
10. Optimum use of technical improvements: An able organization
makes it possible to make use of the latest technical and scientific
achievements as a result of research and technological advancement. The
objective of every organization should be to achieve maximum production
with minimum effort, which is only possible if latest technologies are used.
11. Other advantages: In addition to the above-mentioned points, the
following can form the causes of importance of an organization:
a. Easiness in control
b. Easiness in communication
c. Enhancement of moral character
d. Helpful in national security

Thus, one can see that the importance of an organization is enormous. The
opinion of Lanvary Fish is very important. According to him, ‘Organization is far
more than a simple chart. It is such a process by the medium of which
administration directs, co-ordinates and controls the business. In fact, it is the
foundation of the administration.’

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 3. STAFFING: -

Staffing is the process of hiring eligible candidates in the organization or

company for specific positions. In management, the meaning of staffing is an
operation of recruiting the employees by evaluating their skills, knowledge and
then offering them specific job roles accordingly.

It is a truth that human resource is one of the greatest for every organization
because in any organization all other resources like- money, material, machine
etc. can be utilized effectively and efficiently by the positive efforts of human
resource.

Therefore, it is very important that each and every person should get right
position in the organization so as to get the right job, according to their ability,
talent, aptitude, and specializations so that it will help the organization to achieve
the pre-set goals in the proper way by the 100% contribution of manpower. Thus,
it can be said that it is staffing is an essential function of every business
organization.

Definitions: -
 Staffing can be defined as one of the most important functions of
management. It involves the process of filling the vacant position of the
right personnel at the right job, at right time. Hence, everything will occur
in the right manner.
 According to Koontz and O’Donell, “Managerial function of staffing
involves managing the organization structure through proper and effective
selection, appraisal and development of personnel to fill the roles
designed and the structure.”

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Functions of Staffing: -
1. The first and foremost function of staffing is to obtain qualified personnel
for different jobs position in the organization.
2. In staffing, the right person is recruited for the right jobs, therefore it leads
to maximum productivity and higher performance.
3. It helps in promoting the optimum utilization of human resource through
various aspects.
4. Job satisfaction and morale of the workers increases through the
recruitment of the right person.
5. Staffing helps to ensure better utilization of human resources.
6. It ensures the continuity and growth of the organization, through
development managers.

IMPORTANCE OF STAFFING: -
 Efficient Performance of Other Functions: For the efficient
performance of other functions of management, staffing is its key. Since, if
an organization does not have the competent personnel, then it cannot
perform the functions of management like planning, organizing and control
functions properly.

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  Effective Use of Technology and Other Resources: What is
staffing and technology’s connection? Well, it is the human factor that is
instrumental in the effective utilization of the latest technology, capital,
material, etc. the management can ensure the right kinds of personnel by
performing the staffing function.
 Optimum Utilization of Human Resources: The wage bill of big
concerns is quite high. Also, a huge amount is spent on recruitment,
selection, training, and development of employees. To get the optimum
output, the staffing function should be performed in an efficient manner.
 Development of Human Capital: Another function of staffing is
concerned with human capital requirements. Since the management is
required to determine in advance the manpower requirements. Therefore,
it has also to train and develop the existing personnel for career
advancement. This will meet the requirements of the company in the
future.
 The Motivation of Human Resources: In an organization, the
behavior of individuals is influenced by various factors which are involved
such as education level, needs, socio-cultural factors, etc. Therefore, the
human aspects of the organization have become very important and so
that the workers can also be motivated by financial and non-financial
incentives in order to perform their functions properly in achieving the
objectives.
 Building Higher Morale: he right type of climate should be created for
the workers to contribute to the achievement of the organizational
objectives. Therefore, by performing the staffing function effectively and
efficiently, the management is able to describe the significance and
importance which it attaches to the personnel working in the enterprise.

CHARACTERISTICS OF STAFFING: -
 People-Centered: Staffing can broadly view as people-centered function
and therefore it is relevant for all types of organization. It is concerned with
categories of personnel from top to bottom of the organization.
 Blue collar workers (i.e., those working on the machines and engaged in
loading, unloading etc.) and white-collar workers (i.e., clerical employees).
 Managerial and Non-Managerial personal.
 Professionals (e.g.- Chartered Accountant, Company Secretary)

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  Responsibility of Manager: Staffing is the basic function of
management which involves that the manager is continuously engaged in
performing the staffing function. They are actively associated with the
recruitment, selection, training, and appraisal of his subordinates.
Therefore, the activities are performed by the chief executive,
departmental managers and foremen in relation to their subordinates.
 Human Skills: Staffing function is mainly concerned with different types
of training and development of human resource and therefore the
managers should use human relation skill in providing guidance and
training to the subordinates. If the staffing function is performed properly,
then the human relations in the organization will be cordial and mutually
performed in an organized manner.
 Continuous Function: Staffing function is to be performed continuously
which is equally important for a new and well-established organization.
Since in a newly established organization, there has to be recruitment,
selection, and training of personnel. As we compare that, the organization
which is already a running organization, then at that place every manager
is engaged in various staffing activities.
Therefore, he is responsible for managing all the workers in order to get work
done for the accomplishment of the overall objectives of an organization.

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 4. DIRECTING: -

Direction is an important function of educational administration. Direction involves

getting the work done through instructions and orders. There should be proper
supervision, motivation and communication on the part of the administrator for
getting the work done. The ultimate aim is to see that work is accomplished
according to policies and programs and given instructions. Directing involves
exercising leadership motivating people, determining accountability and
developing guidelines for action. The term direction means to take work from
others. In other words, direction is to guide or direct a function towards the
desired direction. It is also known by the term's operation, guidance, etc.

Definitions: -
 According to Marshall E. Demock , “The heart of administration is the
directing function which involves determining the course of giving orders
and instructions, providing the dynamic leadership.”
 According to Koontz and O'Donell, “Direction is a complex function that
includes all those actions which are designed to encourage subordinates
to work effectively and efficiently in both the short and long run.”

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  According to Theo Haimann, “Directing consists of the processes and the
techniques utilized in issuing instruction and making certain that
operations are carried on as originally planned.”

Characteristics of Good Direction: -

The characteristics of a good and effective direction can be described as follows:

1. Direction inspires and stimulates the employees towards fulfilment and

achievement of the objectives of the organization.
2. The need of direction is felt at every level of administration.
3. Direction is a necessary and important function of administration.
4. Direction helps make inspection, supervision and evaluation of the
subordinates effective.
5. There are two chief objectives of direction: to make the employees work,
and to prepare the administrators to take responsibility.
6. Direction is a continuous process.

Characteristics Used in the Feild of Direction: -

The following are used in the field of direction:

1. Delegation of authority
2. Communication
3. Order
4. Leadership and supervision
5. Motivation.

Work of Direction in Administration: -

Direction has an important place in the administration because in the absence of
it, the administrative works of different nature fail to achieve targets and
objectives, besides lacking control and coordination. As a boat cannot be steered
without an oar, an army cannot fight without a leader, a vehicle cannot be driven
without a driver, so an administration cannot function without direction. According
to John Seymour, ‘Direction in administration is akin to strategy in war. This
function concerns itself with the disposition of resources, the points at which
special efforts are to be concentrated, and survival among the stresses and
strains of practical life of the administration.’

Functions of Direction: -
The following functions are performed under the process of direction:

1. Inspect the works of the subordinates.

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 2. Order the subordinates.
3. Establish coordination among various functions.
4. Guide and train the subordinates from time to time.
5. Make control effective.
6. Effectuate the administrative policies.
7. Raise the moral of the subordinates.
8. Make communication effective.
9. Provide able leadership to the subordinates and motivate them.

Elements of Directing: -
 Supervision: Supervision is the activity of the management that is
concerned with the training and discipline of work force. It includes follow
up to assure the prompt and proper execution of orders. Supervision is the
art of overseeing, watching and directing with authority, the work and
behavior of other.
 Motivation: Motivation refers to the way in which the needs (urges,
aspirations, desires) control, direct or explain the behavior of human
being. The manager must motivate, or cause, the employee to follow
directives.
 Leadership: Leadership is the ability to inspire and influence others to
contribute to the attainments of the objectives. Successful leadership is
the result of interaction between the leaders and its subordinates in a
particular organizational situation. There are number of styles of
leadership that have been identified such as, autocratic, democratize
participative leadership.

 Communication: Communication is the passing of information and

understanding from a sender to receiver. Communication is vital to the
directing function of the management, one way to visualize this
importance is to view the manager on one side of a barrier and the work
group on the other. Communication is the means the manager has of
reaching through the barrier to attain work group activity.

6. Coordinating: -

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Coordination is the function of management which ensures that different
departments and groups work in sync. Therefore, there is unity of action among
the employees, groups, and departments.

It also brings harmony in carrying out the different tasks and activities to achieve
the organization’s objectives efficiently. Coordination is an important aspect of
any group effort. When an individual is working, there is no need for coordination.

Therefore, we can say that the coordination function is an orderly arrangement of

efforts providing unity of action in pursuance of a common goal. In an
organization, all the departments must operate a part of a cohesive unit to
optimize performance.

Coordination implies synchronization of various efforts of different departments to

reduce conflict. Multiple departments usually perform the work for which an
organization exists.

Therefore, synchronization between them is essential. Lacking coordination,

departments might work in different directions or at different timings, creating
chaos.

It is the act of synchronizing people and activities so that they function smoothly
in the attainment of organization objectives. Coordination is more important in the
health service organization, because functionally they are departmentalized.
Different kinds of organization require different amount of coordination.

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Definitions of Coordination: -
 According to Mooney and Reiley, “Coordination is an orderly
arrangement of group efforts to provide unity of action in the pursuit of
common goals.”
 According to Charles Worth, “Coordination is the integration of several
parts into an orderly hole to achieve the purpose of understanding.”
 According to Brech, “Coordination is balancing and keeping together the
team by ensuring suitable allocation of tasks to the various members and
seeing that the tasks are performed with the harmony among the
members themselves.”
 According to Mary Parker Follett, “The first test of a business
administration should be whether you have a business with all its parts so
coordinated, so moving together in their closely knit and adjusting
activities, so linking, inter-locking, inter-relating, that they make a working
unit that is not congenic of separate pieces, but a functional whole or
integrated unit.”
 According to Terry, “Coordination is the integration process in an orderly
pattern of group forts in an organization towards the accomplishment of a
common objective.”

Features of coordination: -
Coordination is the integration, unification, synchronization of the efforts of the
departments to provide unity of action for pursuing common goals. A force that
binds all the other functions of management.

The management of an organization endeavors to achieve optimum coordination

through its basic functions of planning, organizing, staffing, directing, and
controlling.

Therefore, coordination is not a separate function of management because

management is successful only if it can achieve harmony between different
employees and departments. Here are some important features of coordination:

 It is relevant for group efforts and not for individual efforts. Coordination
involves an orderly pattern of group efforts. In the case of individual
efforts, since the performance of the individual does not affect the
functioning of others, the need for coordination does not arise.
 It is a continuous and dynamic process. Continuous because it is achieved
through the performance of different functions. Also, it is dynamic since
functions can change according to the stage of work.

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  Most organizations have some sort of coordination in place. However, the
management can always make special efforts to improve it.
 Coordination emphasizes the unity of efforts. This involves fixing the time
and manner in which the various functions are performed in the
organization. This allows individuals to integrate with the overall process.
 A higher degree of coordination happens when the degree of integration in
the performance of various functions increases.
 It is the responsibility of every manager in the organization. In fact, this is
integral to the role of a manager because he synchronizes the efforts of
his subordinates with others.

Functions of Coordination: -
 Planning and Coordination: Integrating the various plan through mutual
discussions, exchange of ideas. E.g. Coordination between finance
budget and purchases budget.
 Organizing and Coordination: When a manger groups and assigns
various activities and to subordinates and when he creates department’s
coordination uppermost in his mind
 Staffing and Coordination: A manager should bear in mind that the right
number of personnel in various positions with the right type of education
and skills are taken which will ensure right men on the right job.
 Directing and Coordination: The purpose of giving orders, instructions
and guidance to the subordinates is served only when there is a harmony
between superiors and subordinates.

PAGE 24
 7. REPORTING: -

Reporting is providing information about serious wrongdoing that you have

become aware of at your workplace/ place of study. Reporting is about notifying
concerning what you believe to be the discovery of breaches of laws and
regulations, breaches of ethical norms or serious conditions which might harm
individuals, the university, cooperative partners, or society as a whole.

Reports are oral or written exchanges of information shared between caregivers

or workers in a number of ways. A report summarizes the services of a person,
personnel and of the agency.

Definition of Report: -
A Report may be defined as a statement or an account, either big or small, on

some happenings, findings, observations or recommendations prepared either by

an individual or by a group. A report may be oral or written.

PAGE 25
It may be prepared by a single individual (like a secretary or a departmental head

or an investigator) or by a group of persons or a committee or a sub-com mittee.

A report may be prepared at regular interval of time (like annual report of an

organization or a monthly report by a branch to the head office) or only once (like

a report by an enquiry committee).

Importance of Reports: -
Importance of reports in organizational life and for general administration is very

great. Decisions are very often taken on many controversial and problematic
issues based upon some reports. Members of an organization or a committee or

a department, etc., can know many relevant and material facts about the

organization or committee or group itself or of other organizations, committees or

groups through reports thereon. General administration is guided very much by

different kinds of internal and external reports.

Sometimes reports have to be prepared, submitted, and circulated statutorily. For

example, annual reports of a company. A report has a documentation value. It is

a source of reference, evidence, and history. The secretary of an organization or

a committee or a sub-committee, etc. has great responsibility in connection with

reports because he has to prepare them.

Features of Reports: -
(1) A report is based upon facts and also very often supported with some

statistics data, references etc.

(2) A report has to be prepared in a proper form and style. The form and style

depend on the purpose of the report.

PAGE 26
(3) A report has definitely a purpose. One common purpose is spreading of infor-

mation. Other purposes are—compiling of record, providing guidance to action or

judgement, making of evidence, etc.

(4) A report is meant for circulation either exclusively to an individual, or group of

individuals, or members of an organization or public at large.

(5) A report shall satisfy all the characteristics for its effectiveness.

(6) Reports are of various types.

(7) Reports are closely related to meetings.

(8) The basic function of a report is that it is a means of communication of some

facts.

(9) A report is addressed to some definite reader or readers.

(10) A report has invariably a bearing on time.

(11) A report may be just received or adopted, or tabled (i.e., deferred for taking

any action), or referred back to committee for reconsideration. So, a report may

be treated differently.

Types of Reports: -
Reports are of various types. They are classified on the basis of various

principles. Such classification is also based on groups.

1. Formal or Informal Reports: -

Formal reports are carefully structured; they stress objectivity and organization,
contain much detail, and are written in a style that tends to eliminate such
elements as personal pronouns. Informal reports are usually short messages
with natural, casual use of language. The internal memorandum can generally be
described as an informal report.

PAGE 27
 2. Short or Long Reports: -
This is a confusing classification. A one-page memorandum is obviously short,
and a twenty-page report is clearly long. But where is the dividing line? Bear in
mind that as a report becomes longer (or what you determine as long), it takes
on more characteristics of formal reports.

3. Informational or Analytical Reports: -

Informational reports (annual reports, monthly financial reports, and reports on
personnel absenteeism) carry objective information from one area of an
organization to another. Analytical reports (scientific research, feasibility reports,
and real-estate appraisals) present attempts to solve problems.

4. Proposal Report: -
The proposal is a variation of problem-solving reports. A proposal is a document
prepared to describe how one organization can meet the needs of another. Most
governmental agencies advertise their needs by issuing “requests for proposal”
or RFPs. The RFP specifies a need and potential suppliers prepare proposal
reports telling how they can meet that need.

5. Vertical or Lateral Reports: -

This classification refers to the direction a report travel. Reports that more
upward or downward the hierarchy are referred to as vertical reports; such
reports contribute to management control. Lateral reports, on the other hand,
assist in coordination in the organization. A report traveling between units of the
same organization level (production and finance departments) is lateral.

6. Internal or External Reports: -

Internal reports travel within the organization. External reports, such as annual
reports of companies, are prepared for distribution outside the organization.

7. Periodic Reports: -
Periodic reports are issued on regularly scheduled dates. They are generally
upward directed and serve management control. Preprinted forms and computer-
generated data contribute to uniformity of periodic reports.

8. Functional Reports: -
This classification includes accounting reports, marketing reports, financial
reports, and a variety of other reports that take their designation from the ultimate

PAGE 28
use of the report. Almost all reports could be included in most of these
categories. And a single report could be included in several classifications.

Purpose of Reporting:
1. To show the kind and amount of services rendered over a specific period.
2. To illustrate progress in reaching goals.
3. As an aid in studying health conditions.
4. As an aid in planning.
5. To interpret services to the public and to the other interested agencies.
6. Records and reports must be functional, accurate, complete, current
organized and confidential.

7. BUDGETING: -
Budgeting, through primarily recognized as a devise for controlling, becomes the
major part of the planning process in any organization. It is expressed in financial
terms and based on expected income and expenditure. Budget is the heart of
administrative management. It served as a powerful tool of coordination and
negatively an effective device of eliminating duplicating and wastage. A budget
is a tool that managers use to plan and control the use of scarce resources. A
budget is a plan showing the company’s objectives and how management
intends to acquire and use resources to attain those objectives.

Companies, nonprofit organizations, and governmental units use many different

types of budgets. Responsibility budgets are designed to judge the performance
of an individual segment or manager. Capital budgets evaluate long-term capital
projects such as the addition of equipment or the relocation of a plant. This
chapter examines the master budget, which consists of a planned operating
budget and a financial budget. The planned operating budget helps to plan
future earnings and results in a projected income statement. The financial
budget helps management plan the financing of assets and results in a projected
balance sheet.

Definition of Budgeting: -
A budget is an estimation of revenue and expenses over a specified future period
of time and is usually compiled and re-evaluated on a periodic basis. Budgets
can be made for a person, a group of people, a business, a government, or just
about anything else that makes and spends money.

PAGE 29
Conditions Applied on Budgeting: -
Budget makers should carefully consider the conditions that follow:

 Top management support All management levels must be aware of the

budget’s importance to the company and must know that the budget has
top management’s support. Top management, then, must clearly state
long-range goals and broad objectives. These goals and objectives must
be communicated throughout the organization. Long-range goals include
the expected quality of products or services, growth rates in sales and
earnings, and percentage-of-market targets. Overemphasis on the
mechanics of the budgeting process should be avoided.
 Participation in goal setting Management uses budgets to show how it
intends to acquire and use resources to achieve the company’s long-
range goals. Employees are more likely to strive toward organizational
goals if they participate in setting them and in preparing budgets. Often,
employees have significant information that could help in preparing a
meaningful budget. Also, employees may be motivated to perform their
own functions within budget constraints if they are committed to achieving
organizational goals.
 Communicating results People should be promptly and clearly informed
of their progress. Effective communication implies (1) timeliness, (2)
reasonable accuracy, and (3) improved understanding. Managers should
effectively communicate results so employees can make any necessary
adjustments in their performance.
 Flexibility If significant basic assumptions underlying the budget change
during the year, the planned operating budget should be restated. For
control purposes, after the actual level of operations is known, the actual
revenues and expenses can be compared to expected performance at
that level of operations.
 Follow-up Budget follow-up and data feedback are part of the control
aspect of budgetary control. Since the budgets are dealing with
projections and estimates for future operating results and financial
positions, managers must continuously check their budgets and correct
them if necessary. Often management uses performance reports as a
follow-up tool to compare actual results with budgeted results.

Features of Budget: -
1. Should be flexible.
2. Should be synthesis of past, present and future.
3. Should be product of joint venture and cooperation of executives/
Department heads at different levels of management.

PAGE 30
 4. It should be in the form of statistical standard laid down in specific
numerical terms.
5. It should have support of top management.

Conclusion: -
The POSDCORB activities were neither the whole of administration, nor even the
most important part of it. The POSDCORB view overlooks the fact that deferent
agencies are faced with different administrative problems, which are peculiar to
the nature of the services, they render and the functions they performed. The
POSDCORB view takes into consideration only the common techniques of the
administration and ignores the study of the ‘subject matter’ with which the agency
is concerned. A major defect is that the POSDCORB view does not contain any
reference to the formulation and implementation of the policy. Therefore, the
Function of administration is defined very narrowly, being too inward looking and
too conscious of the top management.

PAGE 31
PAGE 32
References: -
1. Dr. Najia Younus, Public Administration, Maktaba-e-Faridi, 2010(edition),
Karachi.
2. Dr. Sultan Khan, Public Administration: with special reference to Pakistan,
Famous Books, 1994, (Latest Edition), Lahore.
3. Dr. Liaquat Ali Khan Niazi, An Introduction to Public Administration,
Jahangir’s World Times Publications, 2016, Lahore.
4. www.slideshare.net/J-E-N-I/functions-of-administration
5. www.yourarticlelibrary.com/education/4-major-functions-of-educational-
administration-in-india/45233
6. https://learning.oreilly.com/library/view/educational-administration-and/
9788131771624/xhtml/chapter005.xhtml
7. https://www.worldwidejournals.com/paripex/recent_issues_pdf/2013/
May/May_2013_1368714918_28531_82.pdf
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administration-81761526
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workshop/management/scope_of_public_administration
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9788131761182/xhtml/chapter001.xhtml
12. https://pubad-ias.blogspot.com/2011/08/scope-of-public-
administration.html
13. https://www.britannica.com/topic/public-administration
14. https://www.toppr.com/guides/business-management-and-
entrepreneurship/direction-and-coordination/concept-and-features-of-
coordination/
15. https://www.investopedia.com/terms/b/budget.asp
16. https://www.managementstudyguide.com/types-of-budgets-in-public-
administration.htm
17. https://courses.lumenlearning.com/sac-managacct/chapter/introduction-to-
budgeting-and-budgeting-processes/
18. https://www.uia.no/en/about-uia/speak-up/hvordan-varsle/what-is-
reporting
19. https://www.businessmanagementideas.com/business-reports/report-
types-top-8-types-of-reports/3317
20. https://www.yourarticlelibrary.com/company/meetings/reports-definition-
features-and-types-company-management/75173

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