Entrepreneurs have to deal with a lot of problems as their businesses grow and expand. They have to research on new markets, develop novel business strategies and generally focus on making their enterprises better in every way. In the midst of all these, the administrative aspect of the business might present a problem.
An expanding business gives rise to all sorts of administrative difficulties. There may be new customers, staff and suppliers to handle. This in turn leads to more paperwork for the business owner, as employee records, tax and insurance contributions, invoices, supplier agreements and business leases have to be scrutinized, updated and filed anew.
It comes as no surprise that most business owners opt to hire administrators or administrative assistants. These individuals are often charged with providing the necessary clerical and administrative support to ensure the success of a business. They assist and support entrepreneurs, business owners and managers by shouldering some of the responsibilities of running a business. In this way, they take unnecessary pressure off of business executives, allowing them to focus solely on running their ventures.
A Good Administrator should have the following Key Attributes:
- Interpersonal and communication skills. Administrators need to have the requisite diplomacy and tact to manage the company’s customers. They must be able to listen, understand and react appropriately to the clients’ problems.
- Dependability and reliability. Administrators handle a lot of responsibility so a business owner needs to know they can depend on them to effectively do their work.
- Time management skills. A competent administrative assistant should know how to prioritize their duties to ensure everything is done on time.
- Organizational skills. Since they are meant to assist business owners, administrators should possess sufficient organizational skills to help alleviate some of the stress involved in running a business.
How to Manage Administrative Issues in a Business
Any entrepreneur who is swamped with administrative problems must find a suitable solution for dealing with them. The simplest way out of this dilemma is to delegate any administrative tasks to a qualified third party.
There are three common ways of doing this:
- Utilizing staff already existing within the company. The business owner can opt to promote a receptionist or clerk who is ready to advance his or her career within the business. This has the added benefit of saving the business time and money since no new staff members will be hired or trained.
- Hiring new staff. Alternatively, the entrepreneur can choose to hire a new administrator. Although the business might incur additional costs in hiring other staff members, these new individuals might have innovative ideas of their own.
- Using umbrella companies. The business owner can also decide to work with an umbrella company. The company will primarily act as an employer for any freelance or contract administrators hired by the original entrepreneur. Umbrella companies usually take over any payroll tasks and employee responsibilities, they will also deal with tax affairs, leaving a business owner free to concentrate on running his or her enterprise.
Entrepreneurs should ultimately settle on the solutions that fit in well with their businesses’ budgets and their personal goals.