C-3

Office Automation

Chapter
3
Office Automation

Copyright © 1999, Ashok Arora, Akshaya Bhatia

3– 1 Management Information Systems Ashok Arora, Akshaya Excel Books

 C-3
Office Automation

Definition of Office Automation

 Office automation deals in application of latest technologies like compu-ters,
communications and networking.

 Office automation is the application of computer and related technologies

like communication and networking to integrate the general office tasks so
that the efficiency of office work is improved.

Copyright © 1999, Ashok Arora, Akshaya Bhatia

3– 2 Management Information Systems Ashok Arora, Akshaya Excel Books

 C-3
Office Automation

Needs for Office Automation

Office automation is needed to do various administrative and management tasks
in a better and organised way.

There are many essential requirements of today’s office environment, which are
listed below:

 To reduce cost of administrative overheads;

 To increase the efficiency of office tasks;

 To provide better service to the customers;

 To provide accurate information to the management;

 To provide best and fastest way of communication.

Copyright © 1999, Ashok Arora, Akshaya Bhatia

3– 3 Management Information Systems Ashok Arora, Akshaya Excel Books

 C-3
Office Automation

Office Functions Needed to be Automated

1. Document Generation
In all offices, many documents are needed to be prepared, typed and
printed. Typewriters, computers and printers are widely used in automating
this routine task of offices.
2. Document Processing
Documents are also needed to be processed in order to extract useful
information required for MIS and other official purposes.
3. Document Distribution
All offices require an electronic distribution system for transferring
documents and data within and outside the organisation.
4. Archival Storage
This task is achieved by the use of different storage devices like tapes,
disks etc. Copyright © 1999, Ashok Arora, Akshaya Bhatia

3– 4 Management Information Systems Ashok Arora, Akshaya Excel Books

 C-3
Office Automation

Office Automation Systems

1. Document Management Systems
These systems include computerised tools for generation, storage,
processing and distribution of documents.
2. Communication Systems
These systems are used for sending messages, documents and data within
and outside the organisation.
3. Teleconferencing Systems
An electronic means of communication for conducting seminars and training
programmes in an organisation is achieved through various
teleconferencing systems.
4. Support Systems
Besides the above major office automation systems, certain support
systems for managing the activities of work groups are also used in some
offices. Copyright © 1999, Ashok Arora, Akshaya Bhatia

3– 5 Management Information Systems Ashok Arora, Akshaya Excel Books

 C-3
Office Automation

Document Management Systems

Document management is the first important office task, which is needed to be
automated. The commonly used office automation tools for document generation
are:
Dictation Systems
By using the dictation systems, managers record the dictation on magnetic
tapes, which is later heard by the stenographer.
Typewriters
Typewriters are used to type single or multiple copies of office documents.
Computers, Printers & Scanners
 Word processing and Desk Top Publishing (DTP) are popular office
technologies used to generate documents using computers and printers.
 Image processing systems are used to electronically capture, store, process
and retrieve images of documents. Cont….
Copyright © 1999, Ashok Arora, Akshaya Bhatia

3– 6 Management Information Systems Ashok Arora, Akshaya Excel Books

 C-3
Office Automation

Archival Storage

It is generally very expensive and inefficient to store large volume of archival

data on paper or on-line computers. Therefore, offices need efficient storage
devices to store such data. The commonly used archival storage devices are
magnetic tapes, optical disks, floppy disks, hard disks and computer output
microfilms.

Photocopiers

Photocopiers are the most widely and commonly used office automation
machines for reproducing multiple copies of an original document rapidly. The
process of reproducing multiple copies is known as reprographics.

Copyright © 1999, Ashok Arora, Akshaya Bhatia

3– 7 Management Information Systems Ashok Arora, Akshaya Excel Books

 C-3
Office Automation

Communication Systems
Telex
Telex is the oldest means of telecommunication (invented in 1932) within the
country and even from one country to another. It is a method of transmitting text
through a telephone line.
Advantages of Telex
 Very simple to operate;
 Receive back immediately confirmation code of message sent;
 Have world-wide installations in over 200 countries.
Disadvantages of Telex
 Have very low speed of sending messages;
 Can send only limited type of characters (about 50) as it uses 5 bit codes.
Cont….
 Cannot handle graphics and pictures. Copyright © 1999, Ashok Arora, Akshaya Bhatia

3– 8 Management Information Systems Ashok Arora, Akshaya Excel Books

 C-3
Office Automation

Teletex
Teletex is computer related technology and is much better than telex.
Teletex is a type of superior telex, which is based on special non-telex
machinery.
Videotext
Videotext is the modern means of computer-based telecommunication. In
videotext, the data is superimposed upon TV signals and the message is
displayed on television sets.
Fax
Fax transmits images of documents/photographs/graphics through a telephone
line.
Advantages of Fax
 It is the fastest and cheapest means of sending messages locally or around
the world.
 In computerised fax machines, it is possible to send documents stored on
disk to another fax machines. Cont…. Copyright © 1999, Ashok Arora, Akshaya Bhatia

3– 9 Management Information Systems Ashok Arora, Akshaya Excel Books

 C-3
Office Automation

Disadvantages of Fax

 It cannot transmit a large volume of documents in limited time.

 As most fax machines do not offer security features, so it is difficult to

maintain confidentiality while sending confidential documents.

EPABX

EPABX is an effective voice communication facility within an office.

Workstations

Any personal computer (PC) or minicomputer in a single or multi-user

environment with a wide range of features is known as workstation. Workstations
or computers are the essential part of an automated office.
Cont….
Copyright © 1999, Ashok Arora, Akshaya Bhatia

3– 10 Management Information Systems Ashok Arora, Akshaya Excel Books

 C-3
Office Automation

Electronic Mail
E-mail sends messages or documents by using computers.
Advantages of e-mail
 It is the quickest and easiest means of telecommunication among a large
number of people within or outside an organisation.
 It generally changes the office atmosphere by making it more paper-less.
 It increases the productivity of office staff, if used honestly for office works
and not over-used for office gossip.
Disadvantages of e-mail
 It does not provide security for confidential messages.
 It is generally not known to sender, when his/her message will be read by
the recipient or even it is read or not.
Internet/ Intranet
Internet is a network of computers all over the world while Intranet is within the
closed perimeters of the office. Copyright © 1999, Ashok Arora, Akshaya Bhatia

3– 11 Management Information Systems Ashok Arora, Akshaya Excel Books

 C-3
Office Automation

Teleconferencing Systems
Audio Teleconferencing
Audio teleconferencing is simply a conference phone calls system. With such
type of conferencing, participants can only hear the voice and cannot see the
participants.
Video Teleconferencing
Video teleconferencing has completely changed the atmosphere of a modern
office. With videoconferencing systems, the participants not only hear the voice
but also see each other.
Computer Conferencing
Some types of teleconferencing systems use computers for conducting
meetings, which are known as Computer Conferencing Systems. In these
systems, the participants use either e-mail or Electronic Bulletin Boards for
sending and receiving information. Copyright © 1999, Ashok Arora, Akshaya Bhatia

3– 12 Management Information Systems Ashok Arora, Akshaya Excel Books

 C-3
Office Automation

Office Support Systems

An automated office also needs certain systems that can help to manage the
activities of work groups. These systems, which are actually software packages,
are known as office support systems.

Copyright © 1999, Ashok Arora, Akshaya Bhatia

3– 13 Management Information Systems Ashok Arora, Akshaya Excel Books

 C-3
Office Automation

Advantages of Office Automation

 Increased productivity due to better utilisation of human resources.
 Improved qualities of work and decisions due to computerised storage/
retrieval of information.
 Improved organisational effectiveness due to better communication
systems.
 Better services to customers due to fast work.
 Elimination of manual work of filing and searching of documents.
 Better utilisation of time and money.
 Elimination of manual storage systems and spaces.
 Better management control.
 Reduction in travel cost due to telecommunication facilities.
 Reduction in costs of conducting in-house meetings due to
Copyright © 1999, Ashok Arora, Akshaya Bhatia
teleconferencing.
3– 14 Management Information Systems Ashok Arora, Akshaya Excel Books
 C-3
Office Automation

Disadvantages of Office Automation

 Office staff becomes dependent on computers and other technologies, they
do not want to do work manually or mostly even cannot do work manually in
case of failure of automated systems.

 Office automation systems are generally expensive than manual systems if

not appropriately installed and implemented and without considering the
financial resources of the organisation.

 Automated offices can also create health problems to the employees if they
continuously work on computers for a long time.

Copyright © 1999, Ashok Arora, Akshaya Bhatia

3– 15 Management Information Systems Ashok Arora, Akshaya Excel Books