When speaking of the origins and constant evolution of the administration, it is possible to understand how it has been developing along with the evolution of man; since from its beginnings it had the need to think, organize, decide and execute its plans to satisfy its needs.
In prehistory, the first settlers had to coordinate and join efforts to achieve objectives. As humanity progressed, the population began to form and establish small groups that later became large masses; so it was important to find ways and strategies on how to achieve organizations that carry out their activities more effectively and efficiently; This led to and contributed to the development of the administration.
The first contributions that are made are from ancient peoples such as the Sumerians, Egyptians, Romans and Greeks. Also noteworthy is the participation of institutions such as the Militia and the Catholic Church, which were influential in the development of the administration; since several of the procedures, methods and structures used by these organizations contributed to the advancement and progress of this science. As society evolved, writing began on how to achieve more effective and efficient organizations, it was then that in the twentieth century the administration took hold, and development and innovation in the administrative process could be noticed.
That is why, in order to better understand and recognize the importance that the administration has had through the years, it is important to know its origin, evolution and how it has impacted current life.
What is the Administration?
When analyzing the past of humanity it can be seen that the administration has been present in all the activities of the human being in a practical way. Therefore, it is important, before knowing its passage through the years, to know what, as such, the administration is.
The word Administration is formed from the prefix ad, Towards, and from ministratio. This last word comes, in turn, from minister, a word made up of minus, comparative of inferiority, and the suffix ter, which serves as a comparison term. Being Master (Magistrate) function of preeminence or authority and must express subordination or obedience. As regards etymologically it refers to a function that is developed under the command of the other (Cuartas, 2008).
However, there are different definitions by various authors who, as they dedicated their efforts to the development of this science, describe their perception. The following table shows some authors and the different concepts that have been given to the Administration.
Table 1. Management concepts by various authors.
| AUTHOR | ADMINISTRATION CONCEPT |
| V. Clushkov | "It is a device that organizes and performs the transformation, receives the information from the address object, processes and transmits it in the manner necessary for management, carrying out this process continuously." |
| JD Mooney | "It is the art or technique of directing and inspiring others, based on a deep and clear knowledge of human nature" And it contrasts this definition with the one that gives about the organization as: "the technique of relating specific duties or functions in a coordinated whole ”. |
| Koontz and O´Donnell | They consider the administration as: "the direction of a social organism, and its effectiveness in achieving its objectives, based on the ability to lead its members" |
| F. Tannenbaum | “The use of authority to organize, direct, and control responsible subordinates (and consequently, the groups that they command), so that all the services provided are properly coordinated in achieving the end of the company. ” |
| Henry Fayol | (Considered by many to be the true father of modern administration) says that "to administer is to foresee, organize, command, coordinate and control" |
| F. Morsten Marx | He conceives it as "Every action aimed at turning a purpose into a positive reality", "is a systematic ordering of means and the calculated use of resources applied to the realization of a purpose" |
| FM Fernández Escalante | "It is the set of principles and techniques, with their own autonomy, which allows directing and coordinating the activity of human groups towards common objectives" |
| Reyes Ponce | "It is a systematic set of rules to achieve maximum efficiency in the ways of structuring and managing a social organism" |
| Mary Parker Follet | Management has been dubbed "The Art of Doing Things Through People," calling attention to the fact that managers achieve organizational goals by having others carry out necessary tasks, but not by performing such tasks themselves. |
Some other authors define administration as "the process of planning, organizing, directing and controlling the use of resources to achieve organizational objectives" (Chiavenato, 2004).
According to Hitt, Black and Portero (Hitt, 2006), management is: "the process of structuring and using resource sets geared towards goal achievement, to carry out tasks in an organizational environment."
From the above, we can summarize that the administration can be understood as the art of carrying out tasks through others to achieve the planned objective in an effective and efficient way; otherwise it is understood as delegating activities, using all resources, to obtain results.
Administration history
Having already got an idea of what the administration is, a passage will be given throughout history to explain how the administration began and its various stages around the world.
The origin
The administration arises in the primitive time when man in prehistory carried out activities that required simple planning but which were arduous tasks such as hunting, gathering food, reproducing, etc. or more complex activities such as defining the best place to settle and as the task was more difficult, they required better organization. It is there when the beginnings of the administration occur, since in those actions without a doubt there was planning and organization; clear example, denotes the division of labor or the presence of leaders who led to the carrying out of activities in an orderly manner as well as the appointment of tasks.
Later in the agricultural period, a completely sedentary way of life, the division of labor in agriculture became by sex and age, showing a patriarchal social organization. Administration is improved as larger groups are now coordinated and effort coupling is required.
Administration in the ancient world
In ancient times is when the current administration is founded, since there were contributions from different empires around the world. The civilizations that stood out the most are described below.
Sumer (5000 BC)
This civilization made records on clay tablets and baked boards, using pictographic symbols, giving birth to writing. Progress in commerce is also presented when registering commercial transactions. The palaces were the main and first administrative centers, in addition to managing warehouses to accumulate food and utensils that were not used.
The most relevant aspect of this civilization is the labor stratification, which is formed by the presence of hierarchies between master craftsmen, workers and apprentices; to carry out work and pay wages.
Egypt (4000-2000 BC)
It marks an administration based on the coordination of large masses of workers to meet a fixed objective. The first leaders (pharaohs) with ample capacity to plan, organize and control these masses in the construction of pyramids and monuments are presented. Likewise, the handling of taxes on its inhabitants is a sign of good administration, which had a planned economy and a “bureaucratic” system with strong coordination, sustaining its high degree of economic prosperity.
Babylon (2000-1700 BC)
It is considered a firm and policy-based administration, as law and justice become important precepts for the Babylonians. Its main administrative centers were the courts, with four judges who severely enforced the law. With the Hammurabi Code, collection of laws (18th century BC), it provided an overview of the social structure and economic organization that civilization had.
Hebrews (1200 BC)
It shows a great leader and administrator, Moisés, who showed the effectiveness of the exemption principle; large delegation of authority, through the assignment of tasks; and their skills in government, law, and human relations.
China (1100 BC).
The ancient Chinese excelled in administration with very good principles of planning, organizing, directing, and controlling. In addition to personalities with great contributions shining in different periods. Around 1100 BC the Chow constitution was written, a guide to tasks to be performed by the emperor's servants, resulting in the definition of functions. Later Confucius (551 BC) stands out, who implements an orderly and well-developed administrative system, applicable to modern problems of public administration, which allowed good governance for several centuries in China. Later, Mencius (500 BC) showed how important the presence of methodologies, systems and models is for efficient administration.
Greece (500-200 BC).
He made great contributions to the administration through philosophers of the time, such as: Socrates, who separated the experience from technical knowledge; Plato, gives rise to specialization according to the abilities of the human being; Pericles, with the selection of personnel, gives guidelines to basic principles of administration; and Aristotle, gives contributions on the search for a perfect state.
Rome (200 BC - 400 AD).
This civilization was a watershed for the modern administration, since in the passage of its period of republic and the Roman empire (centralized administration), great administrative transformations were carried out. It is important to highlight that Rome made a classification of companies in: Public, which was State activities; Semi-public, belonging to unions; and Private, managed by civilians.
Administration in the Middle Ages
This era is characterized by the weakening of centralism in the Roman empire, where the king delegated areas to the nobility, as long as they rendered specific military and financial services. The nobility in turn delegates activities to low levels such as vassals, fostering a hierarchical chain towards the smallest feudal unit, the serfs.
With these signs in the Middle Ages, important facts stand out that contributed to the administration: feudalism, the Catholic Church, Merchants of Venice and the militia.
Feudalism
It was a factor for decentralization in Rome, characterized by a regime of servitude; the administration of the feudal lord was based on exercising control over the production of the servant. At the end of this time, many servants became independent workers, forming artisan workshops, giving way to new structures of authority in the administration; since they became master-craftsmen, who worked together with their apprentices to whom they left their trust to delegate their authority.
Another great contribution of feudalism was within commerce, with the appearance of guilds that regulated wages, working conditions and hours, giving rise to current unions. Accounting was also strengthened with the creation of the journal and the largest, by the Soranzo brothers in 1914, improving commercial transactions that are currently applied in companies around the world.
The Catholic Church
At this time the church was in disagreement with the profit and the commerce, since they saw this as something dishonest, giving rise to the Protestant ethic spread by Max Weber, Martin Luther and Benjamin Franklin. This is a current that promotes the accumulation of wealth among other aspects.
Another aspect in which the church stands out is the Ecclesiastical Organization, with an efficient hierarchical organization that currently continues, which consists of operating under the command of a representative in this case the Pope, whose authority coordinates the church. This structure served as a model and was implemented by many organizations, giving them good results.
Merchants of Venice
The birth of two important concepts arises: that of association and that of limited partnership. The first was applied in permanent businesses, where the owner with most of the capital would attract partners with less capital, this in a specific period of time, regularly three to five years with a renewal; and that of a limited partnership was applied in business ventures, where the owners had limited liability, with actions arising where the expenses and benefits were proportional.
Militia
He made great contributions to the development of theories of administration, with the principle of unity of command, in which each subordinate has only one superior. This shows a hierarchical or level scale of a command according to the corresponding authority and responsibility. As military operations grew, the need to delegate authority to lower levels of military organization grew.
Another contribution to the administration of this type of organization was the integration of words that were only for military use, such as: strategy, logistics, tactics, operations, recruitment, etc.
Administration in modern times
The administrative process itself shows the contributions, problems and situations that it suffered over the years, demonstrating that administration is a universal activity in the modern world. Every organization already requires making decisions, coordinating functions, directing people, evaluating performance to meet the determined objectives with the placement of different resources.
At this time Machiavelli stands out who firmly believed in the republic, this is reflected in his book written in 1531, "The discourses". The principles I propose are very applicable to administration in contemporary organizations. Within its principles it states that an organization will be stable when the members express their problems and resolve their conflicts. Another of them is that a person may start an organization, but it will last when he is in command of many people and they want to keep it. The following principle refers to the fact that leaders must have the authority to guide their subordinates. Finally, one of its principles applied to administration is that when a manager wants to change an already established organization, he must preserve part of its ancient structure and customs (Robbins,nineteen ninety six).
MaoTse Tung, founder of the Republic of China in 1949, also highlighted when modifying and using the work "The Art of War", written by Sun Tzu, more than two thousand years ago. He postulated certain principles, such as, that it is necessary to withdraw when the enemy advanced; when the enemy stops, it is necessary to harass him; and that the enemy must be chased when he retires.
As part of the modern era, the industrial revolution plays an important role, since it is during this period that various inventions and discoveries are made, resulting in the disappearance of several artisan workshops and the centralization of production, and a system of factories. It is where the businessman, owner of the means of production, bought labor power, showing a coercive administration, leaving the businessman with great freedom of action. In addition, the complexity of the work, developed specialists and fixed administrators to directly solve the problems in the factory. This administration was also characterized by its lacking scientific base, with the exploitation of the worker and the poor working conditions (excessive hours, unhealthy conditions, dangers, etc.).Later this led to the appearance of a current of social thought in favor of workers that led to research, maturity in administrative disciplines and the formation of scientific administration.
Administration in contemporary times
It was here where the administration is consolidated as a science, founded by different characters. Such as Adam Smith, who started the classical economy or well known as capitalism, announced the principle of the division of labor as fundamental to the specialization and increase of production. Robert Owen, a pioneer in human resource management, also stands out, giving ideas for worker-friendly management and better working conditions. Continuing with these characters, Charles Babbage known as the "Father of modern computing", designed incentive plans and profit sharing and turned his attention to labor specialization with studies of times and movements. Another notable is Henry R. Towne, who spread the administration as an independent discipline and as a science,developing the principles of administration.
Likewise, different theories are born that suppose solutions to different specific situations. The following table shows the main ideas of the administration and the different approaches.
Management approaches
In the contemporary era the main ideas of the administration are shown and in which different approaches emerged, which will be shown below.
Classic approach
This orientation focuses on the roots and first contributions to the administration. It seeks to find suitable ways to manage corporations and activities more effectively. Within this approach several theories stand out.
Theory of scientific administration. It arises in 1903, with main emphasis on the rational organization of work, the first studies of times and movements are made; positions and tasks are also designed according to the worker, methods and machines are standardized, among many other contributions. Among the prominent personalities who contributed to the development of this theory are Taylor and Ford (with the contribution of principles), Gilbreth, Harrington, Emerson, Henry Lawrence Gantt, among others.
Classical theory.
It arises in 1916, it focuses on structuring, since it proposes that any organization can be structured in six functions: technical, commercial, financial, security, accounting and administrative; involving the administrative process with the actions of Planning, organizing, directing, coordinating and controlling. Its main exponents were James D. Money, Tyndall F. Urwick, Luther Gulick and Henry Fayol who set forth the principles of administration, such as: the Division of labor, Authority and responsibility, Discipline, Unit of command, Unit of direction, Subordination of individual interests to generals, Staff Remuneration, Centralization, Hierarchy, Order, Equity, Staff Stability, Initiative and Team Spirit
Humanistic Approach
It is based mainly on the "Theory of human relations", emerging in 1932, with Elton Mayo as its main exponent; emphasizing mainly on people. Production levels are determined through social norms, the influence of the work group on performance is pointed out, good interpersonal relationships contribute to improving efficiency.
Neoclassical Approach
This arises in 1954, having as its main contribution the General Principles of administration, which are: objectives, activities, authority and with respect to relationships in general. Characters such as Peter F. Drucker, William Newman, Ernest Dale, Ralph C. Davis, Louis Allen and Harold Koontz contributed to the projection of this approach.
Structuralist approach
They denote two great theories, as the name of the approach denotes it, they emphasize structure.
Bureaucracy Theory (1909)
This theory is based on the fact that every organization must rely on rules and regulations, since it encourages anything to be communicated in writing. Likewise, this theory considers that the administration must be carried out by someone specialized, a professional, without necessarily being the owner. The main contributors to bureaucracy theory were Max Weber, Robert Merton, Philip Selsnick, Alvin W. Gouldner, Richard H. Hall, Nicos Mouzelis, to name a few.
The structuralist theory (1947)
Structuralist theory mainly studies human relationships and their relationships between formal and informal structure; It also seeks to reconcile the classical structure with these. It structures decision making at three levels: the directors who make the decisions, the managers who develop the plans and the executors who carry out the operations to achieve those plans (Morales, 2010). The main authors that stand out in this theory are: Víctor A. Thompson, Amitas Etzioni, Talcote Parson, Meter M. Blau, Reinhard Bendix, Robert Presthus.
Approach to behavior in the organization.
This approach is mainly aimed at people, concerned about their stability and their position within the company.
Organizational behavior theory.
It emerged in 1957, having Herbert Simon, Chester Bernard, Douglas McGregor, Rendís Likert and Chris Argyris as its main pioneers. This theory seeks to modify the style of administration of the treatment with the worker, as well as to promote the participation of all in decision making; I also seek to improve working hours, breaks, safe working conditions, a friendly relationship between management and staff, all of the above as the main ones.
Situational theory
The situational theory was developed in 1972 by distinguished ones like: William R. Dill, William Starbuck, James D. Thompson, Paul R. Lawrence, Jay W. Lorsch, Tom Burns. All of them focusing on the environment where the administration and the technology involved in it are developed; In addition, it questions the universal principles of administration and the way in which the administrator must develop his skills in certain situations.
Conclusion.
As it was possible to notice the administration is a science that arose from the prehistory and that until the present time is still present . Likewise, the emergence of theories, approaches and tools of the greats of administration, can be experienced and managed as it gained strength, facilitating the management of the principles of administration.
The application of administration in companies, be they micro-enterprises, large corporations or even governments, promises great success if it is applied in the best way, making good use of resources and increasing productivity.
Finally, it can be assumed that it should not be forgotten that administration is to go through others, properly using all material and human resources to achieve the stated objective .
Reference sources.
- Chiavenato, I. (2004). Introduction to the general theory of Administration. Colombia: McGraw-Hill.Cuartas, DH (2008). Principles of administration. Medellin, Colombia: ITM Editorial Fund, Instituto Tecnológico Metropolitano, Hernández, KM (2009, November 2009). Admin. Of Companies. Obtained from http://www.monografias.com/trabajos76/evolucion-administracion/evolucion-administracion2.shtml#ixzz3kZE2u71kHitt, SB (2006). Administration. Mexico: Pearson Education.Robbins, M. and. (nineteen ninety six). Administration principles. Mexico: Pretince Hall.Stephen., TG (2003). Principles of administration,. Mexico: CECSA Velásquez, JA (March 23, 2012). Evolution of administration and administrative thought. Obtained from Gestiopolis:
