Administrative manuals are a set of rules, functions, procedures, activities, objectives, instructions, guidelines and policies that must be obeyed and followed by the employees of the company, as well as the way in which they will be carried out, either individually or jointly.
The administrative manual is an instrument that helps the organization to better organize its methods, standardize procedures, improve communication between organizational sectors.
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For it, manuals must be made up of standards, instructions and routines of the organization itself, as well as using auxiliary tools.
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In this article you will find:
Importance of administrative manuals
Manuals are important within a company, as their content reaches crucial parts within it, affecting the way work is organized. They point out how to do it. That is, its main objective is
The purpose of manualization is allow the collection of information ordered in a systematic way, careful and segmented, to act as a facilitating tool for the operation of the organization.
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This is the main objective of the presence and use of manuals in the organization. Therefore, you must have a simple, clear and objective language, since all employees (regardless of their educational level), must have access to this material, as it will help them in the performance of their duties, especially for those who are recently hired in organization.
Therefore, they are valid as reference material, allowing greater knowledge management within the company. It is recommended that this material be reviewed periodically, as there are processes that change over time.
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This knowledge management, which has recently been the subject of studies in the area of administration, it is vital for the organization to evolve, investing in the development of its employees.
Since administrative manuals are one of the main means of describing all knowledge managementIt is extremely important to understand the benefits of good knowledge management, as a way to reinforce the importance of administrative manuals.
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Advantage
Among the main advantages of administrative manuals are the following:
- It is a source of information about the jobs in the company.
- Set standards and criteria.
- It allows the adaptation, coherence and continuity of the rules and the procedure of the different organizational units of the company
- Avoid discussions and errors in various processes
- Allows the training of new and old employees of the company
- Represents an effective tool for consultation, guidance and training in the company
- Represents a restriction for improvisation
- It also represents an important element of objective review and evaluation of institutionalized practices and processes.
Some disadvantages
When administrative manuals are not properly and permanently updated, they can quickly lose their value within any organization. They can also generally be inflexible.
When they are very synthetic, they are of little use and, on the other hand, when they are very detailed, they run the risk of being obsolete by any small change in an organization, company or business.
Other objectives
Among other objectives and basic guidelines of the manuals for the company, finds its penetration in the market and society in general. They briefly report the history of the company, from its founding to the present. They demonstrate in a coordinated and organized manner, the organizational structure of the company necessary to achieve the objectives and outlined guidelines.
They define the function, hierarchical position, responsibilities, relationships and authority of the positions that result from this structure. Its objective is to enforce the requirements of international standards, oriented to ISO 9000 or 14000.
Types of administrative manuals
There are some types and techniques for manuals which have different functions and structures, also depending on the needs of the company. It will be up to the manager to verify which type of manual suits their organization, and there may be more than one type of manual within that organization.
Policy Manual
Its objective is to guide the actions of the executives responsible for the management functions and advice, establishing the way of acting of the company, expressed in a general and philosophical way.
These are the policies of the different levels of the company, from the general to the different areas, such as:
- marketing policies
- human resources policies
- production policies
- financial policies
When we refer to policies we think about the philosophy of the company, that is, about the way of doing business. Successful companies generally reflect behavior in line with a philosophy that is clearly disclosed, understood and experienced at all levels of the structure.
Organization Manual
The objective is to emphasize and characterize the formal aspects of the relationships between the different departments (or organizational units) of the company, as well as establishing the duties and responsibilities related to each of the management or advisory positions of the business.
Purposes
- Formally and clearly identify how the company is organized
- Establish the levels of authority and responsibilities inherent to each organizational unit of the company.
Rules and Procedures Manual
The objective is to describe and detail the development or operationalization of the activities that make up the different functional systems of the company.
The main elements that are part of the Manual of Standards and Procedures are:
- Rules: documents that contain the guidelines and instructions necessary for the development of certain activities that are of interest and application by all administrative units of the company.
- Procedures: details the operationalization of the activities that make up a system.
- Forms: it is the indication of the forms that circulate in the administrative process, as well as the form of manipulation;
- Flowcharts: is the indication of representative graphics of the different procedures described;
- Annexes: tables, documents, reproductions of texts, legislation or any other information related to the specific topic.
Specialized Instruction Manual
It is the one that groups specific instructions for a specific type of activity or task. Its purpose is to enable greater and better education and training of a certain group of employees in the development of activities. Eg: seller's manual, secretary's manual, operations manual, etc.
