Office Management
comprises two words; “Office and Management”. What does the words Office and
Management means? The word “Office” can be perceived or explained differently
by people or individuals. Office is understood to be a physical building where
certain activities are performed for an organization. The Oxford Advance
Learner’s Dictionary defined Office as; “a room, set of rooms or building where
people work, usually sitting at desks.” Office from the dictionary definition refers
to room/s and desks. Thus without any person sitting at the desk, the office is
just a physical structure. A small or larger building without any human
occupation and human activity is just a physical structure or space. Such a
physical structure may be given names to suit the activity that would be taking
place inside this space. Once a name is given and attached to the physical
building infrastructure, the building space takes meaning. For example; a
building named a classroom can be immediately identified as a space that will
housed students. Students make the building come alive due to the learning activities
that take place in the classroom building. Similarly an office space will only come
alive when it is occupied by people or individuals who are involved with
certain activities.
Roles and Purpose of an Office
Offices have personalities of its own and are a reflection
of the purpose for which an office is created. Most offices spaces are set up
for different activities and purposes and reflect the nature of work being
carried out with the aim of achieving organizational goals and objectives. In
organizing a new office, the person in charge of the office known as the Office
Manager must add the necessary ingredients to bring about an efficient
operating entity to achieve predetermine results. Most activities within an
office are almost the same such as processing of income mails and outgoing mail
to ensure that the income mails are being recorded and who is responsible in auctioning
the mail. Such activity is done to ensure mails are action and processed by the
right person. Dictation, typing and printing require people who are able to
carry out such activities effectively and efficiently. Communication, answering
telephone calls and ensuring appointment are made for managers. Record keeping
and record disposal, filing and many other important activities. It can be said
that an office is the engine room of any organization. Without an office space,
all the office activities cannot be coordinated and processed effectively.
Office space or office buildings are important for the following purpose; it is
a place where records of the business are preserved and safely kept. It is a
place where all mails both income and outgoing are processed. It is a place
where the organization’s policies are formulated, discussed and implemented.
The purpose of having an office is also to direct and coordinate the activities
of various departments and to maintain accounts, statutory and non-statutory
books and files of the organization. Given all the activities that are being
conducted within an office, businesses and organization may realize that without
an office, an organization cannot operate effectively and efficiently.
Office spaces that are set up within a building takes into
considerations the various roles played by various individuals and here are few
examples.
Chief Executive Officer
(CEO) - The Chief Executive Officer (CEO) is the highest ranking officer
within an organization. As such he or she will have an office that reflects the
role they play in the organization. The CEO role or primary activities is the
management of the overall operations, making major corporate decisions, provides
the important communication link between Board of Directors and other corporate
stakeholders. Understanding the CEO important roles his or her office would be
set up differently from other offices within the organization.
Administration,
Finance and Personal Department - The office of the Administration and
Personal department have an important role to play in ensuring that the human
resources of the organization and all its departments are occupied by skilled
and qualified people. The personal department ensures that employees record are
well maintained, recruitment and training take place and the wellbeing of
employees are taken care of in term of working conditions, wages and salaries
and other important issues. The office is also where employees bring their
grievances. In most cases the personal department is also the main communication
point on staff matters to the management team of the organization.
Production Department
- The office of the Production department will have individuals whose
activities are concerned with the production of goods and services produced by
the organization. The workers working in the production department depend on
the production office for their required resources to continue the activities.
The department is to ensure their clients and customers satisfied and happy.
Individuals who works in the production department provides services such as
purchase orders, meeting the supplier demands on time and making sure
correspondences, filing and records, market research and many other activities are
maintained and functioning as expected.
Sales and Marketing
Department - The office of the Sales and Marketing department have
individuals whose main activities deals with sales and marketing, logistics,
promotions and distributions and individual working within the office ensure
resources is available to carry out activities within their department.
Definition of MANAGEMENT
There are various definitions provided by different authors.
Mary Parker Follett defined management as: “as the art of getting things done
through people”. Pearce and Robinson Management, McGraw-Hill 1984 p.4 provided
the following definition: “management is the process of optimizing human,
material and financial contributions for the achievement of organizational
goals.” The Oxford Advanced Learner’ Dictionary defined management as follows: ‘the
act of running and controlling a business or similar organization.” From the
given definition, the following aspects of management are noted;
Management deals with external and internal environment of
an organization. Management is also concerned with all kind of resources such
as human resources, financial resources, materials, and assets. Management is
ensuring that organizational goals and objectives are achieved through the use
of people. Management is making sure plans and strategies are executed and
carried out through activities performed by various departments, business units
of the organization as determined by managers. Management is providing
directions and controls of the people activities within the organization. By analyzing
the term management, students may be able to understand the management functions
and how individuals in management position perform their roles. Management
functions includes; planning, organizing, staffing, directing and controlling.
Planning involves the following; is the determination of a course of action to achieve a desired result.
Planning concentrates on setting and achieving. Planning is an intellectual
process and is the process of thinking before doing. Planning precedes all
other managerial functions and deciding in advance what is to be done. Planning
involves projecting the future course of action for the business and is
essentially choosing, depends upon the availability of alternatives.
Organizing involves the following; bringing together the human and material resources for the achievement of
certain objectives. Organizing is the foundation upon which the whole structure
of management is built. Organizing is determining, grouping and arranging
activities necessary for achieving the objectives and assigning of people to
these activities. Organizing is providing suitable environmental situation and indicating
the relative authority delegated for the execution of the activity.
Staffing Is
concerned with recruitment, selection, placement and training and development. Staffing
is a function that deals with human resource needs of the organization and
ensuring qualified and skilled individuals are recruited to perform the
required activities of the organization. Staffing is now in a new a function of
Personnel Management which is currently Human Resource Management.
Directing is the managerial
function of guiding, inspiring, instructing and harnessing people towards the
accomplishment of desired results. It is the process which actuates the members
of an organization to work efficiently and effectively for achievement of
desired goals.
Office Management
The two terms “Office Management” means the method of controlling an
office to enable it achieve its objective. In
modern society, all kinds of business are performed by a group of knowledgeable
people working for a common goal and is guided and control by a leader or
authority. Management is a technique of leadership or control to achieve an
objective through the efforts of other people. The office must be organized in a
way to achieve the objective of the business.
