ADMINISTRATIVE &

OFFICE MANAGEMENT
 features of development of
The virtual
virtual the electronic
workplace
workplace office

features and feasibility of the managing

advantages of virtual virtual
electronic office workplace employees

CHAPTER MAIN TOPICS 2

Describe Describe the virtual workplace

Explain Explain the development of an electronic office

Explore Explore the features and advantages of electronic office

Discuss Discuss the management of virtual employees

Discuss Discuss the feasibility of a virtual workplace

Apply Apply critical thinking skills in the analyzation of problems

CHAPTER LEARNING OBJECTIVES 3

 • A virtual workplace is a workplace that is
THE not located in any one physical space and
not tied to any geographic boundaries.
VIRTUAL • Employees and management are connected
WORKPLA via a private network or the internet and
interact with each other via phone, Skype,
CE cloud computing programs and a whole
host of other virtual options.

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 • Technology. Communication and
collaboration are critical when
teams are partially or fully virtual,
FEATURES so your tech tools have to be top
notch. Luckily, there are some
OF A great ones available – from Trello
VIRTUAL to Dropbox, Zoom to Slack. The
right technology tools will work to
WORKPLA keep your team members in touch,
keep projects running smoothly,
CE and make all documents and
information quickly accessible..

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 • Trust. If a manager or business owner
cannot trust their employees to do their
FEATURES jobs remotely, a virtual workplace will fail.
OF A There needs to be complete buy-in from the
top of the organization that supports a
VIRTUAL flexible work environment. There also
WORKPLA needs to be specific expectations set for
employees about their role in the company,
CE the work they own, and how performance
will be measured.

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 • Time Management. Working virtually
is not a good fit for everyone. Some
people will find it too challenging to
separate work from their personal
lives and will consequently be
FEATURES OF distracted by home life during the
work day and vice versa. Helping your
A VIRTUAL team to set boundaries for
WORKPLACE themselves so they can focus
productively during their work time
and then shut it off so they can have a
rich personal life will increase the
success of your virtual workplace and
help retain great employees.

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 • Travel Budget. It is absolutely possible
FEATURES to create a great culture and achieve
high productivity in a fully virtual
OF A workplace. But there is no way around
the fact that face time has to happen for
VIRTUAL the best results. You need to have a
travel budget to bring people together,
WORKPLA either for a semi-annual or quarterly
company gathering, since these live
CE events will help build even stronger
connections.

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 • Sense of Togetherness. Even if your
employees are not together all day, and
even if they see each other just a few times
FEATURES a year, they can still enjoy a great sense of
togetherness and function highly as a team.
OF A The tips above will help a lot – trusting
VIRTUAL them, providing the right technology, and
giving them face time to build strong
WORKPLA connections. Sharing company news and
CE information regularly is also valuable to
help everyone remember that they are part
of something bigger, even as they toil away
in their home office.

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 • An electronic office is an office or work
environment that is utilizing electronic
THE methods of storing and using
documents over using paper. The term
DEVELOPME “Electronic office system” is a new
NT OF THE keyword in advanced information
technology. Basically, it stands for the
ELECTRONIC huge area of text processing in
OFFICE distributed environments and office
applications based on it.

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 • Feedback and direction. Whenever making a
huge change in a company, it's important to
find out what is difficult for employees and
what isn't. Anonymous surveys allow staff to
FEATURES feel comfortable sharing how they feel about
OF a process and their involvement.
ELECTRON
IC OFFICE
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FEATURES OF
ELECTRONIC OFFICE

• Digital sharing. Forbes recommended companies give

workers the direction to share files digitally from the very
beginning. Document management software helps
workers collaborate and view files remotely. Employees
don't have to go searching for a report in a messy filing
cabinet anymore. Demonstrating the benefits of this
method can also give them the drive to use it daily.

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FEATURES • Automation. When automation is put in
OF place alongside electronic workflow, it
creates a smooth system. Workers are
ELECTRON better able to access documents and have
more time to accomplish other tasks.
IC OFFICE

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 • Scanning and conversion. Paperless offices
FEATURES implement long-term processes such as
document conversion. An enterprise has to
OF determine what's worth keeping and what
ELECTRON can be destroyed completely. This is a
workflow system that all employees have to
IC OFFICE get used to for digital documentation to be
successful.

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 • Strengthened Document
Security & Confidentiality. Many
cloud-based content
ADVANTAGES management systems offer
high-tech, bank-level data
OF security in order to keep
ELECTRONIC information away from those
seeking unlawful access to
OFFICE critical data.

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 • Easy Access to Data. Based on your specific
ADVANTAG business goals and needs, information can
ES OF be made accessible to numerous employees
without hassle or time wasted. Properly
ELECTRONI indexed digital documents and useful file
C OFFICE naming conventions will make your PDFs
easy to find, download, and share.

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 • Decreased Carbon Footprint. Choosing a
ADVANTAG paperless office not only decreases the
ES OF number of trees used and reduces carbon
ELECTRONI footprint in terms of producing paper
products, but it’s significant for contributing
C OFFICE to a sustainable society.

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ADVANTAGES • Automatic Data Retention & Digital Backups. Data
OF can be saved automatically on a cloud-based system,
flash drives, or external hard drives. This enables

ELECTRONIC digital data to exist in various locations as opposed

to a single paper source, reducing risk of damage,
loss, or misplacement.
OFFICE

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 • Less Expensive Client Communication.
You’re able to maintain relationships with
ADVANTAG clients via multiple methods, like an email
ES OF list, which naturally saves you in printing
and mailing costs. In addition,
ELECTRONI communication in a digital office enables
C OFFICE you to track leads and new clients and
obtain analytical data for more effective
marketing strategies.

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 • Financially More Cost-Effective. Apart from
saving money on mailing costs, you’re also
ADVANTAG able to run your business more cost-
ES OF effectively without having to purchase ink
cartridges and office supplies. Ultimately,
ELECTRONI the use of copiers and fax machines may
C OFFICE also reduce overhead costs. Determine the
cost of document scanning for your
paperless office needs.

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ADVANTAG • Reduced Daily Data Storage & Supply Costs.
ES OF When you no longer have paper based file
ELECTRONI retention, you can free up hundreds of
square feet of space.
C OFFICE

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 • Adhere to Audit Guidelines. As a
business, you most likely have to
store several years of data for
audit purposes. When switching
ADVANTAGES over to electronic systems for
OF document and content
management, you’re able to easily
ELECTRONIC and conveniently store as much
data as you need while
OFFICE maintaining compliance with audit
regulations and guidelines.

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 • Increased Customer Service. The
quicker and more cost-effective
you’re able to conduct business,
ADVANTAG the happier your customers.
You’ll be able to receive and
ES OF process orders faster, deliver on
ELECTRONI time and save money in the long
run — all while contributing to a
C OFFICE successful customer experience.

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 • More Time Spent on
Important Tasks. While your
employees are losing
productivity by processing
ADVANTAGES OF physical documents and you’re
retrieving information sifting
ELECTRONIC through cabinet drawers, it’s
OFFICE possible you could have
achieved far more in less time.

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 • It is certainly possible that some individuals do
FEASIBILIT fail to find working from home productive and
need strict hours and an official place of work
Y OF THE to keep them regulated and effective. Simply
put, working from home requires a level of
VIRTUAL self-discipline that not everyone possesses.
WORKPLAC The best way to determine whether virtual
working is right for your company is by
E assessing the revenue brought in by remote
workers vs any staff in office..

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 • Managing employees is a bit like
conducting an orchestra—directing
everyone so that the different parts work
together for the good of the whole. So, in
that vein, managing virtual teams can
MANAGING feel like you’re conducting that orchestra
blindfolded. It’s not impossible; it’s just a
THE VIRTUAL special challenge. With COVID-19
restrictions forcing many employees to
EMPLOYEES work from home, some managers are
taking on a challenge they’ve never faced
before: managing entire teams remotely

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 Set the ground rules

MANAGING Provide some face time

THE Set up reporting

VIRTUAL
EMPLOYEES Schedule in-person meetings when possible

Hiring smarter can help with managing virtual

teams

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 • The Hartford (n.d.). The Virtual Workforce: What You Need to
Know. Business Owner’s Playbook. Retrieved on February 11,
2021 from
https://www.thehartford.com/business-insurance/strategy/virt
ual-workplace
• The Lee Group (n.d.). Understanding the Virtual Workplace.
Retrieved on February 11, 2021 from
https://theleegroup.com/understanding-virtual-workplace/
• Nagdeman, M. (2018, May). Transitioning to a Virtual
Workforce. Retrieved on February 11, 2021 from
https://expectsolutions.com/office-layout-important/
REFERENCES • The Hartford (n.d.) Advantages and Disadvantages of a Virtual
Workforce. Business Owner’s Playbook. Retrieved on February
11, 2021 from https://www.thehartford.com/business-
insurance/strategy/virtual-workplace
• Schindler S., Flasche U., Herrtwich R.G. (1985) Electronic Office
Systems, International
Standards/Recommendations/Specifications for Document
Exchange and the Committee Support System. In: Krückeberg F.,
Schindler S., Spaniol O. (eds) Offene Multifunktionale
Büroarbeitsplätze und Bildschirmtext. Informatik-Fachberichte,
vol 92. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg.
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-662-09043-5_16

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 • Tatum, M.(2021, January 4). What Is an Electronic Office?
WiseGeek. Retrieved on February 11, 2021 from
https://www.wisegeek.com/what-is-an-electronic-office.htm
• Papersave (2015, January 30). The common characteristics of
a paperless office. Retrieved on February 11, 2021 from
https://www.papersave.com/blog/the-common-
characteristics-of-a-paperless-office/
• Condon, M.(2016, March 23).5 Must Haves for Creating A
Rockin’ Virtual Workplace. Retrieved on February 11, 2021
from https://www.precisionmarketinggroup.com/blog/5-

REFERENCES must-haves-for-creating-a-rockin-virtual-workplace
• Harris-Briggs, N. (2018, August 16). Is a Virtual Workplace
Really Possible?. Retrieved on February 11, 2021 from
https://martechseries.com/mts-insights/guest-authors/virtua
l-workplace-really-possible/
• Monster Worldwide (n.d.). Managing virtual teams effectively.
Retrieved on February 11, 2021 from
https://hiring.monster.com/employer-resources/workforce-
management/employee-performance/virtual-management/
• Showeet.com

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for your
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