An administrator’s main objective is to ensure that business operations flow seamlessly.
Depending on the organization, an administrator’s main task includes coordinating office
activities while ensuring that all employees adhere to company policies and standards.
In a healthcare setting, an administrator is also known as a health service manager, and they are
expected to manage and supervise all medical services, as well as to monitor departmental
budgets. A health service manager is also expected to take stock of medical supplies inventory
and ensure that health information and record-keeping systems are up-to-date.
It can be overwhelming to take on this position since the responsibilities cover key aspects of the
entire operations. We suggest doing the following processes to ensure that you can stay on top of
things:
1. Delegate tasks properly
Your team should have a clear division of tasks not only for accountability but also to ensure that
tasks are completed on time. Most administration-related tasks, such as finance and payroll
processing, are time consuming.
Make sure that each of the team member knows who is doing what. At the same time, be open to
your team and communicate often. Always ask for their suggestions and don’t hesitate to
experiment, and make changes to improve your processes. And, as an administrator, always seek
the support of business executives.
2. Set-up clear processes
Often, the administration team is known to play by the rules. This is an important trait of the administration staff—they live and breathe on step-by-step procedures. Strictly following established procedures ensure that the processes are consistent with the approved organizational
policies.
These standard processes should have been written down before you, as an administrator, start
your tasks. However, if you have to introduce or change the guidelines to streamline processes,
do it.
3. Have everything documented
Aside from setting up clear administrative processes, you should also have everything recorded.
This is especially important for common procedures. If you have a newly-hired staff, you won’t
have to explain or show several administrative processes. In the same vein, having everything
documented allows you to delegate the task of training fresh hires to your seasoned
administrative staff, using the documented processes as reference.
As healthcare records-keeping and updating also fall in the administration department, consider
having healthcare document scanners to make your staff’s lives easier.
4. Establish KPIs
Don’t micromanage, but monitor your employees to come up with key performance indicators
(KPIs) if you don’t have any yet. Otherwise, you can make estimations based on your
experience. Doing this ensures that your team knows how their performance is being rated, and
to motivate them in becoming more efficient.
Along with establishing KPIs, come up with a time frame for various administrative processes to
have a baseline for when you need to tap technology to replace few of these processes, for
comparison.
5. Tap modern technology
Technological advances are opening various opportunities for business processes across all
sectors, including the healthcare sector. Be open to integrating technology and consider AI
applications to improve some of these procedures. Study all the activities and check whether
some can be automated. For instance, deploying chatbots to take over customer service
operations like answering queries over social media platforms and other apps, may save your
staff time and allow them to focus on priorities.
6. Communicate with your team often
Meetings are often considered time-killers, but not when you’re able to stick to your agenda.
Discuss the main challenges your team is facing with key persons and come up with suggestions
on how to improve specific internal procedures.
Does check processing take up too much time? Can you streamline certain approval processes
for lower-valued projects? Identify areas for improvement. The aim is not to introduce drastic
changes but to make simple and doable improvements to make operations better overall.
7. Consider outsourcing
If all else fails, consider outsourcing some of the administrative tasks to a virtual assistant. This
may be the cost-effective and time-saving solution you’re waiting for. Before embarking on this
choice, make a thorough assessment of your entire processes and system. Identify which specific
tasks or departments you need to outsource. For instance, you may outsource simple tasks such
as the updating appointment calendar and following up patient’s appointments, to a remote
worker, while keeping control of patient’s records.
Final Thoughts
Business organizations rely on administrators for overall organizational support. That being said,
an administration has too much on his and her plate. And because an administrator’s tasks expand as a business grows, you may need external solutions such as using automated software
or outsourcing, to keep up with growth.