Administrative Services Managers

Job purpose

To plan, direct and coordinate one or more of the organisation's administrative services — records and information management, mail distribution, supplies and other office support — and the staff who deliver them, so that support services are efficient, compliant and matched to the needs of the departments they serve.

Skills

• Administrative and office procedures and systems — records and filing, forms, document and correspondence management, timekeeping and payroll — with the administration and management principles needed to plan, budget and resource a department, customer service and needs assessment, personnel procedure, office technologies, public safety and security practice, and clear written English. Secondary-level education is the most common qualification and a bachelor's degree the next most common; previous related experience is required, with one or two years of on-the-job training.
• Conducts classes to teach procedures to staff and provides training and orientation to new starters, guides and motivates the administrative team, and meets other departmental leaders to establish organisational goals, strategic plans and objectives and to decide on personnel, resources and space or equipment needs. Communicates with and guides external vendors and service providers, represents the work unit at meetings and conferences, and serves as liaison for requests and complaints.
• Analyses internal processes and recommends and implements procedural or policy changes to improve operations, such as changes to supply arrangements or the disposal of records, and reads contracts, regulations and procedural guidelines to secure comprehension and compliance. Problems are procedural and administrative with regulation and precedent available, though improvement work is open-ended and its effects reach across departments.
• Sets goals and deadlines for the department, establishes work procedures and schedules organising the daily work of administrative staff, develops operational standards and procedures for the unit, prepares and reviews operational reports and schedules for accuracy and efficiency, and plans, administers and controls budgets for contracts, equipment and supplies. Determines tasks, priorities and goals to a large degree, within organisational goals agreed with other departmental leaders.
• Desk-based office work using computer systems and new office technologies as they are implemented, with some handling and moving of supplies and records. No significant dexterity demands.

Responsibilities

• Directs or coordinates the supportive services department, supervising administrative staff, setting performance standards and monitoring performance, coaching and developing them, and hiring and terminating clerical and administrative personnel. Oversees payroll functions and carries responsibility for the health and safety of the workers in the unit.
• Plans, administers and controls the budgets for contracts, equipment and supplies, acquires supplies and services from external vendors and providers, and oversees payroll processing and submission. Commits recurring expenditure within budgets and delegated authority set by senior management.
• Acquires, distributes and stores the organisation's supplies, and holds responsibility for the office equipment, technologies and space allocated to the unit, inspecting them and identifying what is needed. Equipment and space requirements are decided jointly with other departmental leaders.
• Owns the organisation's administrative record: manages paper and electronic filing systems, recording information, updating paperwork and maintaining documents such as attendance records and correspondence, decides on the retention and disposal of records, and maintains the timekeeping information used for payroll. Payroll, attendance and contractual records are relied on within the organisation and by regulators, so accuracy and confidentiality bear directly on it.

Effort required

• Holds several administrative services in view at once — records, supplies, mail, payroll, budgets and staffing — with frequent decisions under time pressure and constant interruption by e-mail, telephone and requests from other departments. Exactness is required throughout, and part of the work is a repeated routine.
• Handles complaints, disputes and conflict as liaison for the work unit, including dealings with people who are unpleasant, angry or discourteous, and negotiates with vendors and departmental leaders over resources. Hires and terminates staff and carries responsibility for their safety at work.
• Predominantly seated office work with continuous screen and telephone use, and occasional handling of supplies and records. No sustained exertion.

Working conditions

• Indoor, environmentally controlled office premises with no recorded physical hazard. The demand is psychosocial rather than physical: continuous contact with staff, other departments and external providers, some conflict, and occasional dealings with people who are angry or discourteous.
• Almost all incumbents work a regular established schedule, and the week is divided between a standard forty hours and rather longer. The work is time-pressured and interruption-driven, since demand comes from the departments served, and part of it is a fixed routine tied to payroll and reporting cycles. Holds considerable freedom to determine tasks, priorities and goals within budgets and organisational goals set with other leaders.