Within the area of accounting and finance, a broad range of positions exist whose primary function is that of analysis. Examples of position titles are financial, budget, credit, cost, methods, and statistical analyst. Financial analysts study trends and assess economic performance of individual firms or whole industries. Cost analysts study costs involved in manufacturing, construction or services.
Administration comprises activities that are primarily non-technical in nature.
In corporations, they are usually performed at the headquarters, since they are corporate-wide functions serving all areas of the company. Administrative activities include materials management, contract administration, and human resources. Materials management involves controlling the flow of materials from the purchase of goods and services, transportation to production facilities and distribution centers, packaging, and distribution to warehouses and customers. Contract administration entails supervising the details of a contract once it has been awarded. On the industry side, the contract administrator serves as the customer liaison for the whole project.