Administra is a valuable tool that can assist you with goal setting and professional development planning, explains Eth Lloyd
Administra is a set of guidelines produced by the World Administrators Summit (WA-Summit) to support individual administrative professionals and associations or networks around the world with their goal setting and professional development planning.
What Is the WA-Summit?
The WA-Summit is held every two years. It is managed by the World Administrators Alliance (WA-Alliance). Attendees at a WA-Summit are delegates who have been nominated by their own country, and all countries around the world are welcomed. Each country may have up to five delegates.
The WA-Summit is a working meeting, not a conference, with an agenda created from topics gathered from around the world. Delegates attending from each country are asked to undertake prior in-country research on these discussion topics before the summit commences, ensuring the discussions at the WA-Summit are well-informed and lead to useful outcomes.
Outcomes of the summit discussions are incorporated into Administra. The most recent update of Administrawas December 2021, after the 11th WA-Summit, held online in May 2021.
Administra
Administra is a valuable document for all administrative professionals to share with their manager, HR professional, or colleagues at work.
Administra can be accessed through the WA-Alliance website (https://wa-alliance.com/home/administra/) or the WA-Summit website (https://wa-summit.com/administra/).
Administra provides:
- a brief history of Administra’s development
- a brief history of the WA-Summit name
- a brief history of the WA-Summit purpose statement
- goals, objectives, and strategies for associations and networks
- goals, objectives, and strategies for individual administrative professionals
Since 2015, Administra has been set out in two parts, the first for administrative professional associations and networks, the second for individual administrative professionals. Four goals have been defined for each of the two parts as shown in the graphic.
It is interesting to note that since 2006, there have been no new goals. However, there have been new objectives and strategies added to the original four goals and some wording changes to better reflect current terminology and working practises.
After each summit, all goals in Administra are reviewed to ensure that they:
- incorporate changes requested by the delegates;
- reflect the outcomes reached in the delegates’ discussions; and
- are still “fit-for-purpose” for administrative professionals globally.
This process ensures that Administra continues to be a current and valuable resource for associations, networks, and individual administrative professionals.
Monitoring and Reporting
A critical aspect of setting goals is monitoring their progress. Since the 2018 Summit, each country attending has been asked to report on a specific goal from Administra. The goal to be reported on is selected by the WA-Alliance.
The country report gives each country’s perspective on the goal. The delegates are asked to consult with those they are representing beforehand on the selected goal and discover how it impacts them.
A new discussion topic may lead to a new goal inAdministra; however, most commonly the current goals require an updated or new objective and/or strategy.
In 2018, at the 10th WA-Summit, the goal reported on was Goal 3: “Moving with the times in the 21st century.”
In 2021, at the 11th WA-Summit, the goal reported on was Goal 1: “Managing administrative/office professional skills.”
The 12th WA-Summit
Prior to each WA-Summit, the WA-Alliance surveys administrative professionals around the world to gather the topics for discussion at the summit. The most recent survey for topics was held in January 2022 for the 12th WA-Summit, which is being held online in October 2022.
These topics also contribute to the determination of which of Administra’sfour goals is to be reported on by each country present at the summit.
The topics raised in our 2022 survey show that the four goals currently set out in Administra are still top of mind for administrative professionals right now.
For 2022, at the 12th WA-Summit, the goal to be reported on by each country attending will be Goal 4: “Market association/network membership to encourage active participation of younger people.”
To find out more about the 12th WA-Summit, go to the WA-Alliance’s webpage: https://wa-alliance.com/home/world-administrators-summit/.
How Administra Can Help You
Administra is particularly helpful for younger administrative professionals who may not (yet) belong to an association or network. It is also of value to anyone setting up a new association or network, especially an internal network, providing guidelines on four areas that are of importance to the development of their potential members.
Ideally each association or network will use Administra as a tool to support their own strategic planning and goal setting and promote and encourage its use for all administrative professionals.
Other WA-Alliance Resources
The outcomes of discussions at the WA-Summit often also lead to research projects, which are then developed into reports and tools. These reports and tools provide hugely valuable resources for individual administrative professionals globally and for each association and network, assisting them to better support their members.
These reports and tools include:
- The Global Skills Matrix
- Harassment in the workplace – “This Far and No Further”
- “The Identity and Image of Administrative Professionals” (this report includes a paper on the topic and several templates to assist you in fully developing your own identity and image as an administrative professional)
- “Diversity, Inclusion and Belonging” (sponsored by Executive Support Magazine, and delivered at the online 11th WA-Summit).
The WA-Alliance recommends that all associations and networks have these documents, as well as Administra, readily available on their websites, forming part of discussions at meetings, and shared directly in their communications with members.
These documents are written for you, by your peers, about situations you may face daily in your working environment and are specifically aimed at assisting you to develop and grow.
