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Transcript

Hello friends, I hope you enjoyed the previous class on extension administration. In today’s class we will be taking up the discussion on the principles and functions of administration. Coming to the principles of extension administration. The first and foremost principle is the principle of hierarchy, which says that there is a definite subordinate and superordinate relationship of the line positions. In an organization there is a perfect hierarchy of individuals work operating at different levels. In our previous discussion we have seen that, so there are first line managers, the supervisors at the bottom level, and the top level CEO’s and the Board of Directors. So what type of relationship that we have between these different levels of administration. So that determines the principle of hierarchy.

There might be organizations with lesser levels of hierarchy. And there might be institutions with higher numbers of hierarchy. So that depends on the number of individuals working in an organization. The larger organizations likeMinistries of Agriculture or Ministry of Human Resource Development, which has a huge infrastructure and huge structure, wherein we have the highest level of professionals who are working, operating at different levels. There the levels of hierarchy are comparatively more compared to a small department which is having one administrator and one middle level manager and one lower level manager. So there the levels are comparatively less. But in all these cases what type of relationship, these the superordinates as well as the subordinates are having. Because I may be superordinate for somebody but on the contrary I am acting as the subordinate for somebody else. So this is what is the relationship that we need to understand and accordingly work in an organization.

Then coming to the principle of authority. Authority means the power to issue orders and enforce the, enforce obedience. So what are my limitations. So that is what is your principle of authority. I have limited power to execute. So based on that I am issuing orders and I am expecting the output. And accordingly my superordinates are having little bit more power. And their higher ups are having, then coming to the principle of hierarchy, then so each and every level is given certain amount of authority and accordingly they will be operating.

Then coming to the principle of responsibility with matching authority. So in the last principle we are talking only of authority. But here both the things are coming together. So it is very very important because delegation of authority along with the responsibility is desirable. Most of the time we try to delegate the responsibility but authoritiesare not delegated. So then there is a situation of conflict that is going to emerge in an organization. Good number of organizations we can see such type of conflicts, and because of that the output is hampered, and that should not be done, and that is why we said that it is very very important in decentralization. Responsibility should always be delegated with the authority. It should not be in isolation. So that is what is the crux of this principle.

Then the principle of span of control. The span of control means the number of subordinates one has to supervise. As a leader of the unit what are the number of people working under my supervision. So that is what is the span of control. So the management science says that one individual can manage very effectively around 7 to 8 professionals at a time. It mean the span should not be beyond 7 or 8. And accordingly you make the divisions and you develop the managers, and you develop different hierarchies, so that you can have the best possible administrative structure in an organization. And it enhances the organizational effectiveness also. If one individual is asked to manage 20 or 30 or 100. So then it becomes very difficult for him and ultimately the organizational effectiveness is hampered. And to overcome that, so when we divide those responsibilities and try to provide them authorities, then we have a perfect administrative structure. Accordingly we can bring the changes in the organization.

Then the principle of communication. The communication within an organization. So there are three types that we can find out. The one, the first one is the upward communication. The lower level management communicating with the higher level management. Passing on some of the information required by the higher ups or some demands what they are putting. So they are under the upward. Then the downward just reverse of that. The higher up is passing on some instructions them activities to be carried out. All these things are coming under the downward communication. Horizontal, it is happening between the departments, the units, or the individuals engaged within the organization. So that is what is the meaning of upward communication, downward communication and horizontal communication.

Now coming to the principle of organizational structure. So the organizational structure is based on your desired output. So what type of output that you want to get and accordingly you need to develop the organizational structure. As far as the extension administration is considered or implementation of extension programs are considered. We started with the development of organizational structure under the community development program. And before that we had an example of the Firka Development Scheme also, wherein the Collector, the Extension Officers, then VLW, and accordingly the structure was evolved, and that is going to lead to the effectiveness in the organization.

Then coming to the functions of extension administration. So these functions. There are seven functions of extension administration, which starts with the planning process. Planning means the things to be done and the methods to be adopted for accomplishing the organizational purpose. So and deciding in advance, what is to be done and why. And that is the first and foremost function of the administration, which is taken up by. The approaches of this planning. It may be top down or it may be bottom up. That depends on the purpose to be served. So in case of extension administration, we advise that the programs should be; should be having the bottom up approach. It means the needs and the demands of the ultimate end-users should be taken into account. So that the top level management can satisfy those needs. But in corporate organizations, it is, they are having the top down approach. So these are the two desired approaches of planning.

Then coming to the organization. Organization is building up the structure of authority, through which the entire work to be done is arranged into the welldefined sub-divisions. The organizational structure, what we are talking about as a part of principle, and the span of control, that what we were talking about. All these things put together form the organizational structure. So what type of organizational structure that we would like to have. We can have regular modifications in to the structures, but the divisions remains same. Until and unless we divide the work from one to another, so we cannot achieve the organizational objectives.

Then the staffing. The management science says that. There is a place for everything and everything should be in its place. It means what are the abilities of the staff that are working with us, and how are we assigning the responsibilities to them. So identifying the qualities lying within that individual and assigning him the responsibilities according to his abilities is the concept of staffing. Then directing is another function of extension administration, wherein we are making the decisions and issue orders and instructions, embodying them for guidance to the staff. So these are the continuous processes, wherein we are passing on the instructions to superordinates to the subordinates. And it is a continuous process. And time and again whenever it is necessary we pass on giving them the directions.

Then coordination is the process of interrelating various parts of the work and eliminating overlapping of the conflict. So there are different divisions and subdivisions in an organization. As an administrative structure we have evolved these units. And all these units should work together. So that to achieve the organizational objective. And there should not be overlapping of the work, and if at all it is there, that needs to be eliminated. That is what is the function of coordination.

Then coming to the function of reporting. Keeping both the superordinates and subordinates informed about what is going on. So this piece of information in the form of reporting creates a positive environment in the organization, because everyone is aware of what exactly is going on, and what are the things to be achieved. And where exactly the goal is. And the moment I have that information at my disposal, the similar information the top administration is also having. And the rank and file or lower level supervisors are also having. So that creates an environment and to put the efforts in that direction, so that we can achieve the organizational objective.

The last point is allocation of funds in the form of the budgeting. So without that none of the works can be taken up. And depending on the availability of the financial resources. Whether the institution is providing that or they are arranging it from various other sources. So all these things are the parts of budgeting process.

With this we are coming to the conclusion of today’s discussion. Understanding the principle of administration helps in efficient implementation of the programs, because it involves good number of complex processes like the various functions of management and various principles of management. And it helps in putting the right man to the right place, so that we can achieve the organizational objective. And that is what is the role of a manager and a good administrator. With this we are coming to the end of today’s discussion. And in the next class we will be discussing about monitoring and evaluation.

Thank You.