Knowing your job

Key Responsibilities

The key responsibilities of your role are what you’ve been employed to do to support the organisation to run effectively and efficiently. 

You’ll find your key responsibilities in your job description. You should always read your job description thoroughly from beginning to end. Seek clarification from your team leader if there are any points which you are unsure about.

Let’s take a moment to introduce ourselves and why we are studying on this programme. If you are already working, share your experiences with understanding job responsibilities in a past role. Discuss the challenges you faced and how you overcame them. If you are studying this programme in preparation for starting a new career, share what your goals are and what you hope to achieve in the course. Head on over to the forum page and let us know.

Key performance indicators (KPIs) 

Your job description should also describe the expectations for performance, productivity, and success in the role. You may even have key performance indicators (KPIs) listed. A KPI is a measurable value – or metric – that helps organisations assess the success of their activities or initiatives in achieving its goals. KPIs are used to monitor progress, track performance, and make informed decisions to improve outcomes. 

On an individual level, personal KPIs evaluate an individual's performance and contribution towards achieving goals. Personal KPIs help individuals track their progress, identify areas for improvement, and align their efforts with organisational priorities.

Behaviours

You may be the public face of the organisation, so it is important that you represent the organisation well, both internally and externally. Your colleagues are effectively your customers too – sometimes referred to as internal customers.

The flip cards below outline typical behavioural expectations in the workplace. These will be explored further later in this programme. Click each card to see the full expectations.

Learning Activity

Your organisation’s expectations of your behaviour may also be expressed in policies, any induction learning and your job description. 

Recognising your value

Your role adds value to the organisation – learn to value the contribution you make to improve your confidence and professionalism.

Now that you know what your role is, it’s important to know how you fit into the wider organisation.

Purpose and objectives

Each organisation will have a purpose and the key objectives it aims to achieve. These will be communicated in key business documents and should be made clear as part of your induction.

Some organisations will have vision and mission statements. A vision statement focuses on the long-term objectives of the organisation. What the ultimate goal of the organisation is and how it plans to achieve that goal.

A mission statement is about what the organisation is doing now, who it is serving and how. These statements will often be shared publicly on an organisation’s website, or you can ask your team leader if they are available internally.

Values

An organisation’s stated values tell you what they feel is most important. The values guide the organisation’s business decisions and behaviours. The types of values your organisation champions, should give an indication of what the culture is like and what they expect from their employees. For example, NZ Post has the following values:

Values form the foundation of workplace culture, which encompasses the collective attitudes, practices, and norms that define how employees interact and work together. Workplace culture is reinforced by the behaviours and attitudes of employees. 

Positive behaviours, such as collaboration, respect, and integrity, can strengthen a healthy workplace culture, while negative behaviours, such as discrimination or unethical practices, can undermine it. It is important for organisations to cultivate a culture that promotes positive, constructive behaviours that align with their values and goals.

Functions

In an organisation, a function refers to a specific area of responsibility or activity that contributes to the overall operation and success of the organisation. Functions are typically organised into departments, each focusing on a distinct aspect of the organisation's operations, such as finance, marketing, human resources, or operations. Teams within these departments are smaller units that focus on specific tasks, initiatives, or projects within that functional domain.

Administrators support departments and teams by allocating resources, coordinating activities, and providing administrative assistance, ultimately contributing to the organisation's overall success.

Organisational Structure

Organisational structure refers to the framework or hierarchy that defines how activities are organised, controlled, and coordinated within an organisation. It outlines the relationships, roles, responsibilities, and reporting relationships among employees, teams and departments. Organisational structure provides clarity on how work is divided, authority is distributed, and communication flows within the organisation.

The organisation’s structure can be shown using an organisation chart – or several charts for larger organisations. The structure will look different for each organisation. You should be provided with or shown where to locate the organisation chart as part of your induction. It is good to be aware of where your role is on the chart and how it fits into the organisational structure.

Governance

Governance bodies are groups within an organisation that are responsible for overseeing its overall direction, ensuring compliance with laws and regulations, and safeguarding the interests of stakeholders. These bodies provide strategic guidance, make high-level decisions, and hold the organisation's management accountable for performance.

Governance bodies exist outside the day-to-day management structure and are therefore not usually depicted on the organisational chart. Instead, they are often referenced separately in governance documents.

Common types of governance bodies include:

1. Board of directors: The primary governance body in most organisations, the board of directors is responsible for setting the strategic direction, approving major policies, and overseeing the work of the executive management.
2. Advisory board: Unlike the board of directors, an advisory board provides non-binding strategic advice to the organisation’s management. They do not have decision-making power but offer expertise and guidance on specific areas.
3. Trustees: Common in non-profit organisations, trustees serve as the governing body responsible for ensuring the organisation fulfils its mission, complies with legal requirements, and uses its resources effectively.

Legal structure

While the organisational structure defines how activities are organised, controlled, and coordinated within the organisation, the legal structure establishes the legal framework within which the organisation operates.

Different organisation types operate under different legislation.

All government agencies have legislation that establishes them as crown entities. That is, their reason for being is written into law. For example, Waka Kotahi NZ Transport Agency is established in the Land Transport Management Act 2003, which also sets out the Agency’s objective. If you are working for a government department, you may find they operate differently to private sector organisations, this can be due in part to the legislation they operate under.

Government agencies are subject to the Official Information Act 1982 (OIA). One implication of this is that documents, including your emails, can be made public in some cases, so there are likely to be strict policies around email use and document control. In a similar way, local government agencies (like councils) are subject to the Local Government Official Information and Meetings Act 1987 (LGOIMA).

Charities have duties under the Charities Act 2005, among other legislations and companies are formed under the Companies Act 1993.

All organisations must comply with all laws relevant to their business such as those relating to employees, health and safety, tax, importing and exporting.

Policies

A policy is a formal statement or set of guidelines that outline an organisation's rules, principles, or directives to guide decision-making and behaviour in specific areas of operation. Workplaces use policies to help their employees understand the expectations and rules within the organisation. Policies must comply with the law, and cannot contradict what is in an employment agreement. Common policies to find in the workplace relate to:

• IT systems – for example whether ‘personal use’ of work equipment is permitted
• Appearance and behaviour – often called a ‘dress code’ and ‘code of conduct’ respectively
• Privacy
• Record management
• Flexible working
• Training and development, professional development, or staff development
• Health and safety

You should be directed to where you can find workplace policies relevant to your role as part of your induction. 

Website and intranet 

Your organisation’s website and intranet will be valuable tools for you. An intranet is similar to a website but is only accessible by staff. Familiarise yourself with them so that you can easily navigate to answer common questions, and direct stakeholders to important information. As an administrator, other staff are likely to look to you for help with the intranet so try to remain up to date with any changes by paying attention to system emails and regularly checking the intranet yourself. 

Social media

Many organisations will have at least one social media account. Whether or not you are responsible for managing it, make sure you are familiar with the platform. Read through the posts and interactions to get a feel for your customers and the type of people who engage with your organisation. Before posting or commenting yourself – either using a work account or your personal one – make sure you have read and understood your organisation’s social media policy. 

LinkedIn is a business and employment-focused social media platform that your organisation may have a presence on. Meta for business is a social media management tool for platforms including Facebook and Instagram. 

Where to go for help

If you have a question or need help, you have several options. If the matter is urgent, speak to your team leader. If it is not urgent, see if the information is contained in a policy document. Other sources of information include the organisation’s intranet and website, and fellow colleagues.  

A big part of the role of an administrator is to organise things for others. The more organised you are yourself, the more efficiently you will be able to perform your role.

Tools to help you stay organised

Calendar

You can keep track of important deadlines, meetings, and appointments by using your calendar. You can use Google Calendar or the calendar in Microsoft Outlook depending on your organisation's software. Managing calendars is covered further later in this topic.

To-do lists

Make daily or weekly to-do lists to prioritise tasks and manage your workload effectively. Break down larger projects into smaller, manageable tasks and cross them off as you complete them. Set reminders for upcoming tasks to stay on top of your schedule.

Google Tasks and Microsoft To Do can help you create and manage your to-do lists and also enable collaboration. The guide collections for getting started with each are linked below.

Your organisation may already be using other tools outside of what is available in their Google or Microsoft package, ask your team leader as a starting point. Two examples that have free plans available are Todoist and Trello. If you find an application that you think would be worth the spend for yourself or your team, speak to your team leader.

Be aware of any security restrictions outlined in your organisation’s policies concerning whether or not you can use certain applications for work-related tasks. If you are unsure, speak to your team leader.

Other tools

Taking notes can help you stay organised and remember important information. Google Keep and Microsoft OneNote are applications you can use to do this.

Time tracking helps you stay organised by providing insight into how you spend your time, allowing you to identify inefficiencies, prioritise tasks, and make better use of your resources. Examples of time tracking applications that you can use for free include Toggl and Clockify.

Asana and Monday.com are both popular project management tools designed to help teams organise, track, and manage their work more efficiently. They both offer powerful features and capabilities to help teams streamline their workflows, improve collaboration, and achieve their goals. Individuals can also use these tools to help them manage their own projects and to-do lists, and there are some basic, free plans available for this. Watch the videos below to get an introduction to these tools.

Managing data will be explored in depth later in the programme, but right now let’s take a quick look at the basics. We are interested in the foundational principles and practices involved in the efficient and secure handling of data within an organisation.

For administrators, these basics are essential for maintaining the integrity, accessibility, and security of data. Here are some core aspects of data management:

In this topic, we looked at managing emails. This included email etiquette and how to organise your emails. We also looked at mail merge and some data management basics.

There are professional admin roles at a range of different levels, from receptionist or junior call centre operator through to executive assistant.

Qualifications exist at levels 3-5, this programme being Level 3. Qualifications aren’t strictly necessary to progress to the next level, but are looked on favourably by hiring managers.

Below is a diagram showing possible career pathways in administration.

Te Kawarangi Association of Administrative Professionals NZ (AdmiNZ) offers paid membership options to both organisations and individuals. Membership benefits include free webinars and discounts on attending events. AdmiNZ also offers a certification to those who meet several requirements, including a Level 4 or 5 qualification and sufficient work experience.

Many administration skills are transferable, so as you progress, your pathway may take a different track, such as moving into project management or information technology.

In this topic, we introduced how to be a valued member of your organisation, explored how to stay organised, introduced the basic principles of data management, and identified potential career paths in administration.