THE 11 MAIN PRINCIPLES OF ADMINISTRATIVE CONTROL - DUDAS - 2025

The principles of administrative control are the general rules to be followed in the process of analyzing whether the actions are being carried out as planned and taking the necessary corrective measures to confirm the planning.

Managing means trying to make the best use of available resources to achieve the business objective. Therefore, the administration includes all the operations of the company.

Administrative controls are the set of procedures necessary for administrative and economic efficiency. As an integral part of an organization's internal control system, its objective is to ensure the full and timely implementation of management's policies and plans.

Some examples of administrative controls include procedural changes, employee training, and installation of warning signs.

The basic principles of administrative control can be grouped into eleven categories, reflecting its purpose and nature, structure and process. These principles of administrative control are detailed below.

Basic principles of administrative control

Goal assurance principle

The basic objective of administrative control is the achievement of objectives. This is done by detecting flaws in the plans.

Potential or actual deviations from plans must be sufficiently detected to allow effective corrective action.

Controls efficiency principle

An administrative control system must detect and highlight the causes of deviations from the plans with the minimum possible costs.

The principle of efficiency is particularly important in control, because the techniques tend to be expensive and cumbersome.

A manager can be so engrossed in control that he may spend more than is necessary to detect a deviation. Controls that seriously interfere with the authority of subordinates or with the motivation of those who execute the plans are inefficient.

Control responsibility principle

The main responsibility for the exercise of control lies with the manager in charge of executing the plans. Its responsibility cannot be abrogated or canceled without changing the structure of the organization.

The responsibility to control must be given to specific people at each stage of the operation.

This simple principle clarifies the rarely understood role of controllers and control units.

These agencies act as a service that provides control information. However, they cannot exercise control unless they are given managerial authority and responsibility for things controlled.

Prevention principle

Control, like planning, must be forward-looking and preventive. This principle has often been neglected, in large part because control has relied more on statistical and accounting data, rather than on forecasts and projections.

Although the forecasts are not accurate, they are better than the historical records. Ideally, a control system should provide instant feedback to correct deviations from desired performance as soon as they occur.

If this is not possible, the control should be based on forecasts, in order to anticipate deviations over time. More attention should be paid to preventing deficiencies than to remedying them after they occur.

For example, cash forecasts help keep businesses healthy by anticipating and preventing cash shortages.

Direct control principle

The vast majority of controls in use today are based on the fact that humans make mistakes. They are often used as indirect checks to detect errors, often after the fact.

Wherever possible, direct controls aimed at preventing errors should be used. Improving the quality of managers can minimize the need for indirect controls. High-quality managers make very few mistakes and carry out all their functions to the best advantage.

Principle of reflection of plans

Control is the task of ensuring that the plans are carried out effectively. Therefore, control techniques must reflect the specific nature and structure of the plans.

The clearer and more comprehensive the organization's plans and the more controls designed to reflect these plans, the more effective the controls will be in meeting the needs.

For example, cost control must be based on planned costs of a defined and specific type.

Pri ncipio Pyramid

Feedback data must first be reported at the bottom of the pyramid; that is, to supervisors and even to operational personnel at the lowest levels.

This will give employees the opportunity to control their own situations, as well as speed up corrective actions.

Organizational suitability principle

An administrative control system conforms to the area of ​​administrative authority and should reflect the structure of the organization.

When the administrative control system is adapted to the structure of the organization, it determines the responsibility of the action and facilitates the correction of the deviation of the plans.

Similarly, the information for evaluating performance against plans must be tailored to the position of the manager who will use it. In other words, all figures and reports used for control purposes must be in terms of the organization.

Principle of individuality of controls

Controls become effective when they are consistent with the position, operational responsibility, competence, and the needs of the individual concerned.

The scope and detailed information required vary by level and function of management.

Similarly, different managers prefer different forms and units of information reporting. Therefore, the controls must meet the individual requirements of each manager.

Critical point control principle

All operations have certain vulnerable or critical points. It is these that cause the most problems and lead to large deviations.

A manager, while exercising control, must focus on the factors that are critical to evaluating performance.

It would be unnecessary and uneconomical for a manager to verify every detail of performance. Therefore, you must focus your attention on critical performance points.

Principle of action

Control turns out to be a waste of time if corrective action is not taken. Corrective actions may include rethinking plans, reorganization, replacement or training of a subordinate, motivation of staff, etc.

Control is justified only when indicated deviations from plans are corrected through proper planning, organization, staffing and direction.

References

1. MBA Knowledge Base (2018). Management Control Principles. Taken from: mbaknol.com.
2. Business Dictionary (2018). Administrative control system. Taken from: businessdictionary.com.
3. Wikiquote (2016). Principles of administration. Taken from: en.wikiquote.org.
4. Arthita Banerjee (2018). 6 most important Principles of Control in management. Preserve Articles. Taken from: preservearticles.com.
5. Diksha (2018). Controlling: Meaning, Nature and Principles. Business Management Ideas. Taken from: businessmanagementideas.com.