Abstract

TORRES VALDIVIESO, Sergio  and  MEJIA VILLA, Andrés Hernán. A contemporary view of the concept of administration. Cuad. Adm. [online]. 2006, vol.19, n.32, pp.111-133. ISSN 0120-3592.

Introduction to Administration textbooks usually give simplistic definitions of administration, which do not correspond to the activities and duties that persons who perform management or administrative labors have. In addition, the concept of administration is made up of a series of unrelated loose ideas; for example, the role of managers, hierarchies in organizations or organizational culture. This paper reviews the definitions found in several such textbooks, from different theoretical perspectives and proposes a definition that relates to the various elements that comprise administration.

Keywords : Administration; administrative thought; management; organizational theory; strategic orientation; organizational behavior.

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