Public administration is a field in which leaders serve communities to advance the common good and effect positive change.
It can also be defined as the activities undertaken by the government to look after its people and manage its affairs.
Scholar and author John McDonald Pfiffner wrote, “Public administration consists of getting the work of the government done by coordinating the efforts of the people so that they can work together to accomplish their set tasks…managing, directing, and supervising the activities of thousands, even millions of workers so that some order and efficiency may result from their efforts.”
The daily functions of government are performed by the public administrators who organize, implement and oversee the enforcing agencies that administer the laws and regulations that keep public life in motion.
As the population grows and the government expands to meet the needs of its citizens, so too does the need for special advisers like public administrators, who assist leaders and executives.
Public administrators deal with containing the situation and helping to keep people safe, from arranging evacuations to distributing necessary supplies. With the rise in natural disasters and states of emergency, due to factors such as climate change, there’s plenty of need for people with the right skills.
Public administrators also act as support to individuals who need it, especially vulnerable populations who do not have family or other advocates to speak for them. This may even include acting as guardian or conservator for individuals who lack this care.
In addition to implementing specific policy, public administrators can also be made responsible for helping a community develop economically.
Though the private sector may assume some responsibility for creating jobs and economic growth, it is the job of a good public administrator to ensure that it does so fairly, with equal opportunity to different stakeholders in the community.
