Aakar’s OFFICE PRACTICE and ACCOUNTANCY Author: C. P. Sednai MBA., M. Ed. Edited by: Dr. R.K. Singh | Mr. Suraj Maharjan Mr. Sagar Binod Adhikari Book 9 Aakar Publisher & Distributor Pvt. Ltd. Kathmandu, Nepal, Tel: 01-4278629 Approved by the Government of Nepal, Ministry of Education, Curriculum Development Centre (CDC), Sanothimi, Bhaktapur as a reference material for Grade 9.
Published & Distributed by: AAKAR Publisher & Distributor Pvt. Ltd. Kathmandu, Nepal, Tel: 01-4278629 Author: C. P. Sednai Language Edited By: Dr. R. K. Singh | Mr. Suraj Maharjan Text Editor Niran Maharjan, Kathmandu | Mr. Sagar Binod Adhikari Graphic Mobilizer / Design PSDESIGN # Manoz Manohar | Baghbazar, Kathmandu @ 9849055680 Copyright: © Author New Edition : 2079 (2022) RevisedEdition : 2080 (2023) Printed in Nepal Aakar’s OFFICE PRACTICE And ACCOUNTANCY Book 9
Preface Accounting knowledge is a core business skill that both complements and enhances your other talents. Congratulations! You’ve received the right book to start developing those accounting skills at school level. This book “Office Practice & Accountancy for Grade 9” has been designed mainly for secondary level students on the basis of the New Syllabus developed by Curriculum Development Centre (CDC), Government of Nepal. While writing this book, I have applied very easy and practical approach. Both traditional and modern approaches of accounting and basic official and budgetary concepts have been given for easiness of teachers and students. With my past rich experiences (3 decades) in teaching profession, I have made every effort to present simple and practical questions and their solutions, theoretical rules and detail explanations. I hope all teachers, students and other concerned readers will have benefits from this book. As you go through this book, you’ll find that accounting concepts or information influence almost every decision you will make as a future manager. I’m interested in making sure that you finish with an understanding of several key accounting concepts. The Key Features of this book are as follows: The matters are presented and designed in simple and easy way as to fulfill the requirement of curriculum. The syllabus developed by CDC is given in each chapter. The learning objectives are given in each chapter. The colourful pictures are used to make understandable of the topics. Important and popular definitions of various scholars’ relevant subjects are given to enhance the knowledge of learner. Enough illustrations and examples are given according to the requirement of subject matter. Important points and concepts are presented as ‘points to remember’ and ‘key point’ to remind the major points of the topics. Each chapter contains word index to learn the difficult words. Each topic, theoretical questions are set as very short answer questions, short answer questions and long answer questions according to the present question pattern. Depth and sufficient numerical problems are given in practice as much as possible. Necessary project works are given in most of the chapters to enhance the practical knowledge of the students. To develop this book to this form, I have got significant help from my colleagues; Mr. D.R. Simkhada, Mr. Sagar Binod Adhikari, Mr. Niran Maharjan, Mr. Suraj Maharjan, and Gaurav Chhetri. I highly appreciate the support and comments that I have got from teachers and students. Without their classroom experience, guidance and advice, this book could not have been prepared so effectively. I would like to thank the publishers for publishing the series of the textbooks for class 8, 9 and 10. Finally, I am still expecting the comments and creative suggestions from teachers, students and well wishers so that I can bring out the next edition with improvements for better impression. Author
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S.N. Chapter Pages 1. Office and Office Personnel 7 2. Office Resources 35 3. Correspondence 53 4. Record-keeping 87 5. Postal Service and Electronic Communication Service 93 6. Business 107 7. Meeting, Assembly, Seminar & Minuting 149 8. Book-Keeping 161 9. The Journal 179 10. The Ledger 199 11. Subsidiary Books 215 12. Trial Balance 246 13. Government Accounting System 267 Model Question 277 Bibliography 279 CONTENT
6 Aakar’s Office Practice and Accountancy - 9
7 Office And Office Personnel Unit 1 Office and Office Personnel CDC Syllabus 1.1 Introduction of an Office 1.2 Importance of an Office 1.3 Establishment of an Office 1.4 Types of Offices 1.5 Introduction to Office Personnel 1.6 Types of Office Personnel Office Chief Branch Office Chief Office Assistant: Introduction and Types Qualification, Functions and Qualities of Office Assistant 24 Periods After studying this unit, students will be able to : write the meaning of an office, describe the importance and functions of an office, explain the formation and types of an office, understand the meaning and types of office personnel, write the functions of office-chief, sectional chief and office assistant, explain the functions, qualification and qualities of an office assistant. Learning Objectives
8 Aakar’s Office Practice and Accountancy - 9 Office 1. Introduction An organization, whether it is for business or service motive, has some certain objectives and it carries out a number of activities in the regular course of action for the accomplishment of the objectives. The activities of an organization are planning, policy making, directing, coordinating, controlling and the entire process of their implementation. These activities are performed by a number of persons, with their joint efforts, at a certain place. The word ‘office’ is derived from the Latin word ‘officium’, which means ‘a room or other area where administrative work is done.” (wikipedia). As such, an office simply, is a place where a number of activities are performed and the control mechanism of an organization is established. The word ‘office’ means ‘Karyalaya’ in Nepali language. It is composed of two words, i.e., ‘Karya’ and ‘Aalaya’. The meaning of ‘Karya’ means ‘work’ or ‘job’ or ‘Kam’ and the word ‘Aalaya’ means ‘a place’ or ‘a house’. So, it is a place where works are performed to achieve the organizational goals. But the place-oriented meaning of office is not appropriate in a real practice because the activities of an organization are also done outside the boundaries of that place. Thus, a modern office refers to the activities and their performance rather than a place. It is related with the performance of the activities irrespective of wherever it is done and whoever does it. According to James Stephenson, “An office is that entire part of a business enterprise which is devoted to the direction and coordination of its various activities.” Similarly, in the word of George R. Terry, “An office is the place where the control mechanisms, for an enterprise, are located, where records are initiated, for communication, control and efficient operation of the enterprise.” According to Brihat Nepali Sabdakosh, “Office means a home or work place where some official tasks are performed.” According to J.C. Dyner, “An office is any place where clerical operations are carried out.” According to Mills and Standing Ford, “The office is the administrative centre of a business.” Presidential office
9 Office And Office Personnel From the study of the above definitions, an office is the entire control mechanism for an organizational performance from the planning, organizing, staffing, coordinating, controlling, etc. and its execution to the direction, observation and evaluation with the help of various pieces of information. Key Point An office may be defined as the entire part of an organization which organizes the planning, directing, coordinating and controlling various organizational activities for the accomplishment of its objectives. 2. Importance of an Office An office is an integral part of an organization, which devotes from the planning of activities up to its execution and evaluation. It is the brain of an organization by which the entire organizational activities are guided and instructed towards the attainment of its goal. It is the source of information, channel of communication and medium of coordination of the activities, in the absence of which no organization can exist. The importance of an office can be studied in terms of the following points: i. Proof of the Existence of Institution An office is the integral part of an institution, which formulates its plans and policies and guides, instructs and controls the entire performance. Thus, the existence of an institution is found by the observation of its official activities. In other words, an institution is identified by its office. Office is the representation of an institution. In the organization like banks, insurance companies and other financial institutions, the office is the solid proof of the existence of the organization. ii. Centre for Formulation of Plans and Policies Every organization is established with some certain objectives. It should have a plan of work and a policy of conduct for the attainment of the objectives. As the representative of the entire organization, the office formulates plans and policies with the help of factual statistical figures and other information to meet the targeted objectives. Thus, an office is the centre for formulating plans and policies which allocates the resources and delegates the duties and responsibilities to the manpower to carry out the activities. iii. Resource Allocation Centre There are many resources to support the organizational performance. Manpower, capital and finance, machinery, equipment, furniture, means of transport and communication and material and supplies, etc. are the important resources of an office. An office is the central authority, which acquires the possible resources and
10 Aakar’s Office Practice and Accountancy - 9 allocates them into various segments on equitable basis. The plans and policies are also to be formulated as the availability of resources. The success of the organization depends on the appropriate allocation of resources. Thus, an office is important for an organization from the resource allocation point of view. iv. Source of Information Much information about management, production, personnel, technology, marketing, etc. is created within the office and received from other external sources in different forms. Much information is necessary for an organization from time to time. Such information is retained by an office for present and future references. Thus, an office can provide necessary information to the executives for planning, policy making, forecasting, controlling and decision making. Similarly, it can provide necessary information to the various beneficiaries of the office. v. Records Preserving Centre An office creates a number of records of different kinds of information, which are of immense importance for present and future performances. Such records are filed by the office for their security from any possible loss or damage. It is the office of an organization which stores/files documents for their well preservation. Thus, an office is the centre for preserving records which contributes an important aid to the management and even to the other beneficiaries. vi. Medium of Communication Collection and retaining of information have no use if they are not communicated for the benefit of the office. A proper communication of news and information is essential for the smooth functioning of an organization. The information is communicated in the form of order, instruction, circular, notice, report, etc. internally and by letters, agreement, treaties, etc. externally. Thus, the office of an organization is the medium of communication, which is supposed to be the breathing of an organization. vii. Medium of Coordination and Control Coordination is the act of matching one’s performance with that of others. The entire organization is a system and all the departments/units and employees are its elements. Thus, the performance of one department/unit and employee should be coordinated with that of the others. It is the office which coordinates the various activities of an organization in order to pay joint efforts for the accomplishment of the objectives. Furthermore, it is the authority to control the entire organizational performance by setting standards, measuring the actual performance against the standards and correcting the deviations, if any. The coordination and control of the performance is essential for an organization in order to direct it towards the objectives.
11 Office And Office Personnel viii. Medium of Public Relation An organization is a social element. The success of an organization, to much extent, depends upon the social relations. In this regards, the office of an organization establishes and maintains public relation by passing necessary information, advice and services and getting suggestions, cooperation and feedbacks from them. A business office serves the publics by managing supply of goods and rendering services. Points to Remember i. Proof of the existence of institution. ii. Centre for formulation of plans and policies. iii. Resources allocation centre iv. Source of information. v. Records preserving centre. vi. Medium of Communication. vii. Medium of coordination and control. viii. Medium of public relation. 3. Functions of an Office The important functions of an office are given below: i. Planning and policy making Planning is the act of making package of activities and policy is the course of action along with the statement of aims and ideas. The office formulates the plans and policies as the objectives of the organization and the availability of resources. An office carries on its activities according to the formulated plans and policies. ii. Creating and Receiving Information Information is the key factor for the success of an organization. Information relating to purchases, sales, cost, price, labour, marketing, technology, capital, etc. are created in some extent and received from other outside sources in the form of letter, instruction, circular, inquiry, quotation, telegram, e-mail, internet, advertisement, business statement, etc. Even though all the information may not be important for the organization, they are to be collected in response to the business relevancy. Thus, it is the office, which creates and receives necessary information for the goodness of the organization. iii. Arranging, Analyzing and Presenting Information The information collected from the internal and external sources in different forms and formats is not equally important for the organization. Furthermore, some of the information is useless. Thus, the information should be arranged and analyzed in such a way that only the important and useful information can easily be presented for maintaining records. Thus, arranging, analyzing and presenting information is one of the important functions of an office.
12 Aakar’s Office Practice and Accountancy - 9 iv. Recording Information It is the another important function of a modern office. The presented information is recorded on paper, card, photographic film, etc. It is created in the form of general statement, statistical charts, diagram, etc. The office prepares the records and keeps them for future references. v. Supplying Information The created and collected information is arranged, analyzed and presented by the office and they are changed in different forms and format as the official records. Such recorded information is supplied to the inside and outside parties as required or as demanded. The information is supplied to the inside parties as order, instruction, circular, etc. to the lower level and memo, report and other necessary statements and statistics with information to the executives. vi. Developing Office Systems and Procedures There are many resources in an organization. Manpower, finance, machinery and equipment, materials and supplies, vehicles, land and building, etc. are the examples of such resources. All the resources are mobilized by the office through certain systems and procedures. The office frames some certain systems and procedures for conducting the day to day activities. It guides, instructs and controls over the resources within the established frame of the systems and procedures. vii. Acquiring and Safeguarding Assets An organization needs different types of machinery, equipment, furniture, vehicles, etc. to carry on its activities efficiently. The office determines the need and requirement of different types of assets by making assets planning with the study of the need, usefulness, productivity, cost, life, technology, etc. of the assets. Among the different alternatives, the most profitable assets are acquired by the office to run the organization more efficiently. Furthermore, it safeguards the physical assets by means of repairs and maintenance from time to time and the documentary assets like insurance policy, titles, deeds, etc. by keeping in the safe lockers. viii. Management of Materials and Supplies Materials and supplies are the basic inputs for every type of office work and production. For increasing the efficiency and improving quality of work, qualitative materials and supplies are to be purchased in time. A minimum stock of such materials should be maintained to avoid their shortage and the maximum stock should also be fixed to avoid the unnecessary blocking of capital on such materials and supplies. In this way, an office manages the materials and supplies in such a way that it ensures the regular performance of day to day activities on one hand, and avoids the blocking of money on the materials and supplies by purchasing and storing materials in an optimal size on the other.
13 Office And Office Personnel ix. Keeping Record Financial records refer to all the activities with monetary involvement. Since, accounting is the main branch of financial administration, office performs the account keeping of all the financial transactions by establishing a separate account section in the organization. It keeps the records of all the financial transactions in order to ascertain the profit or loss i.e. surplus or deficit and the financial position of an enterprise. The office maintains a sound economic discipline by performing the financial function. x. Maintaining Public Relation An organization is an element of a social system. Thus, the office of an organization maintains a cordial relationship with the public and other individuals to improve the image of the organization in the society. It establishes and maintains public relation by rendering services, supplying goods, relaying necessary information, accepting opinions, suggestions and advices favourable to the organization. Points to Remember i. Planning and policy making. ii. Creating and receiving information iii. Arranging, analysing and presenting information iv. Recording information v. Supplying information vi. Developing office system and procedures vii. Acquiring and safeguarding assets viii. Management of materials and supplies ix. Keeping record x. Maintaining public relation 4. Formation/Organization of an Office An office is formed to carry out the organizational functions in a systematic and planned way so that the organizational goals can be accomplished. An organization may be big or small, and again of permanent or temporary existence. According to the nature and duration of organizations, their offices are formed/organized for permanent or temporary terms. Formation of Office Permanent Office Temporary Office Temporary Office completing a particular job Temporary Office for a specific period
14 Aakar’s Office Practice and Accountancy - 9 i. Permanent Office (Long Term Office) The offices which are formed for perpetual functioning of organizational activities are known as permanent offices. Such offices are established for an indefinite period of time. The offices of the ministries, departments, their subordinating authorities and general business organization like companies, partnership firms, sole proprietorship, public enterprises, district administration office, etc. are permanent offices. Key Point A permanent office is one which is established for the production and distribution of goods and services for a long period of time. ii. Temporary Office (Short Term Office) Temporary offices, also termed as short term offices, refer to those offices which are established by the government or other public or private organization to conduct certain plan, programme or project for a certain period of time. The life of such offices is limited up to the achievement of purpose, completion of scheduled work or expiry of the term. The offices of the temporary projects, project office of hydropower, social and religious activities, etc. are the examples of temporary offices. Generally, there are two types of temporary office as follows: a. Temporary office for completing a particular job. b. Temporary office for a specific period. Key Point A temporary office is one which is established for completing a particular job or producing and distributing goods and services for completing a particular job or a specific period of time. 5. Types of Office An office is the entire part of an organization, which shows its existence. As these is difference in the nature, scope and activities of various organizations, the offices are also of different types. Generally, offices may be categorized as government, business and service motive offices. Each of these types is briefly discussed below: Types of Office Government office Business office Service motive office Government business office Private business office
15 Office And Office Personnel i. Government Office The government of any country has many duties towards its people. It should maintain law and order, peace and security and establish a sound defence system in the country. The government should manage the housing and clothing issues of the people. In addition, it should also conduct a number of development plans in different parts and sectors of the country and should establish diplomatic relation with the foreign countries. In order to discharge all the duties of the government, it establishes different ministries, departments and constitutional bodies and a number of subordinate offices under them. Thus, a government office may be the one which is formed by the government with a view to serve the country and the people by developing economic, social, cultural and political sectors and providing necessary goods and services. The ministries and departments, and the regional/local offices like Finance Ministry, Department of Tax, District Education Office, etc. are some of the examples of the government offices. Key Point The government office is formed by the government for providing services to the public and to develop the economic, social, cultural and political sectors of the country. Objectives of Government Office a. To maintain law and order, peace and security in the country and save the nation. b. To protect the country from the internal and external violation and attacks. c. To create favourable environment for economic, social and political development. d. To prepare the rules and regulations and implement them to maintain good governance in the country. e. To protect public as well as private properties. f. To provide education, health supplies and basic services to the public. g. To develop the physical infrastructure in the country. h. To create employment opportunity. i. To collect the government revenue from various sources. Supreme court
16 Aakar’s Office Practice and Accountancy - 9 ii. Business Office Business is the act of producing or exchanging goods and services for money or money’s worth for profit motive. A business enterprise forms its office to manage the regular production or distribution of goods and services. The office of Water Supply Corporation, Sajha Yatayat, Bishwakarma Cement, Jyoti Spinning Mills, Dabur Nepal Ltd. etc. are the examples of business offices. As such, a business office is the one, which is formed by a business undertaking i.e. industrial, commercial or trading to carry out its entire activities. On the basis of ownership and objectives, business office can be classified as: (a) government business office, and (b) private business office. Key Point The business office is formed by the individuals or government for the production and distribution of goods and services to earn profit. a. Government Business Office The office which is established by the government to provide goods and services to the people in the priority areas like transportation, mining, water supply, electricity, etc. at a possible minimum price is known as government business office. The government enters in the business dealing specially to serve the people and protect them from the private business exploitation on one hand and to maintain monopoly in some certain sectors like peace, security and defence on the other. The investment in such undertaking is made fully or partially (more than 50%) by the government and thus the ownership and control are also done accordingly. The management of such offices is handled by the board of directors nominated by the government or jointly by the representatives of the government and the shareholders. These offices are also termed as office of the organizations having government investment. The office of Nepal Oil Corporation, Nepal Telecom (NTC), Nepal Airlines Corporation (NAC), etc. are some of the examples of office of government investment. Key Point The office which is established by the investment of government for the production and distribution of goods and services to the people in reasonable or minimum price is called government business office. Bhatbhatteni supermarket Nepal Telecom
17 Office And Office Personnel Features of Government Business Office i. It is owned, managed, operated established and controlled by government holding fully or partially (more than 50%) share of the business. ii. It is established to provide services through the business. iii. It has separate legal entity and perpetual existence. iv. It provides quality goods and services in cheaper price to the public. v. It performs large volume of transactions. vi. Its major decisions, plans and policies are made by the government. vii. Financial statements are audited by the Office of Auditor General. viii. Board of directors are nominated by the government. ix. It creates employment opportunities in the society. b. Private Business Office The offices which are owned, managed and controlled entirely by private sectors come under this category. This sort of office is managed by one or more investors either by themselves or by any management experts on their behalf. Offices of all non-government business organizations are the private business offices. The government does not exercise any control upon the day to day affairs of such offices in any sense but they should carry out the activities according to the provisions of the prevailing rules and regulations because these types of offices are formed/ organized by the private sector according to the provisions of the prevailing act, rules and regulations. The offices of private companies, multinational companies, partnership firms and the sole proprietorship are the examples of such office. These offices are motivated by profit, to more extent like Nepal Life Insurance Pvt. Ltd., Dabur Nepal Pvt. Ltd. etc. Key Point The office which is established by the individuals or group of persons in private sector for maximizing profit is called private business office. Characteristics of Private Business Office i. It is established with the investments of an individual owner or partners or shareholders. ii. Primary objective is earning maximum profit through the business activities. iii. It develops accounting system independently. Private business office
18 Aakar’s Office Practice and Accountancy - 9 iv. Its account and financial statements are audited by the registered auditor. v. The volume of transactions is limited. vi. It is usually small is size. vii. Prompt decision viii. Use of minimum manpower ix. Minimum administrative, expenses, etc. iii. Service Motive Office All the offices are of service motive to some extent. But some organizations are basically of service motive i.e. they are not motivated by profit. These offices render services in terms of providing goods, medicines and financial assistance to the needy persons and sometimes to certain community or society specially at the time of war, famine, flood, landslide, earthquake, etc. These offices are also termed as service motive offices. As such, a social service office is that which is established with a view to render different types of services to the society and even to the individuals without business motive. Its management is handled by the executive committee from its members according to the articles of the organization. It has a separate legal entity and an independent management. The offices of Red Cross Society, Nepal Cancer Relief Society, Nepal Blind and Deaf Welfare Society, Nepal Scout, Trusts, Social Clubs, etc. are the examples of this sort of office. Key Point The office which is established by the government or the individuals to provide services to the public or the society without the intention of maximizing profit is called service motive office. Characteristics of Service Motive Office i. The office is managed and controlled by executive or committee elected by the members or nominated by the government. ii. The income sources of this types of organization are amount of subscriptions contributed by the members or donation granted by the members and others. iii. Its plans and polices, rules and regulations, decisions, etc. are made by the executive committee or bounds of directors. iv. It has separate legal existence with its own management. v. Financial statements are audited by registered auditor. vi. Its accounting is based on cash system. vii. It is established by the individuals or government. Red Cross Society
19 Office And Office Personnel Office Personnel 6. Introduction An organization is established with a certain goal. First of all, it establishes an office to manage the entire organization by determining objectives, formulating plans and polices, designing and analysing works, making manpower planning, etc. All the organizational activities from the formulation of plans and policies to their execution are performed by many number of persons in an office. There are managerial activities, communication activities, financial and technical activities, etc., and thus many number of persons are employed in an office from the topmost to the lowest level in the administrative as well as in technical section. As such, the total number of persons employed in an office in different ranks, level with specified responsibilities are jointly called office personnel. In other words, office personnel refers to the persons at work in an office from the topmost to the lowest level bearing the responsibilities jointly for the attainment of the organizational goals. Various types of office personnel are required in different government and private offices. Police, army, civil servants, etc. are required to the government in order to maintain internal peace and security, defence and to provide various services to the people in different sectors. Similarly, various manpower is necessary for the industrial and trading undertaking to produce and distribute various types of goods and services in its regular course of operation. According to Beach, “The office personnel refer to all the employees of the office comprising the chief, sectional chiefs and assistants who jointly work for the attainment of the organizational goals.” In general, the office personnel may be in administrative or technical sector and again they may be skilled, semi skilled or unskilled as per their training, experience and calibre. Key Point The total number of persons employed in an office from the topmost to the lowest level in the administrative as well as in technical section are jointly called office personnel. 7. Personnel Management Office requires various types of staff in different levels and posts to perform the organizational activities. Qualified, experienced, dedicated, honest, and sincere staff performs the better job for the satisfaction of the customers and achieving the organizational goals. So every office requires effective personnel management.
20 Aakar’s Office Practice and Accountancy - 9 Personnel Management is related with finding right person for right positions at right time in right number. The process of recruiting, selecting, training and placing the employees in proper place are also concerned with personnel management, evaluating, developing, promoting, transferring, retiring, forecasting the further manpower, hiring, proper utilizing, developing, maintaining the staff, etc. are the activities of personnel management. It focuses on personnel administration, employee welfare, labour relation, satisfaction of the employees, best utilization of the employees and other activities for obtaining qualitative and effective products and services. 8. Types of Office Personnel There are different responsibilities to be discharged by different office personnel. Some are related with formulation of plans and policies, some others, with their execution and evaluation and control. All the activities of an organization are performed by the different personnel as per their rank/level and responsibilities. Thus, the office personnel are also categorized as (a) top level management i.e. the chief or executive, (b) middle level management i.e. officers and (c) office assistants. Office Personnel Top level/Chief/ executive Middle level/Section officer Lower level/Office assistant Section clerk Personal assistant Receptionist A. Office Chief Office is the centre for the management of the entire organization. Therefore, it appoints, first of all, the chief or executive in an office to perform the top level managerial task. The management chief determines the objectives, formulates the plans, designs and analyses the jobs and hires the manpower accordingly. It has the topmost and ultimate authority to acquire all necessary resources, mobilize them within the framework of the policies and control over them. As such, the office chief is that person who holds the topmost position and authority in the office for the management, direction and control of the entire organization. It is the office chief who plans the activities and distributes them to the personnel as per their post, calibre, interest, intelligence and experience. Office chief
21 Office And Office Personnel The proprietor himself may work as the chief or executive or a management expert may be appointed to work on behalf of him. The management of the companies is handled by the representatives of the shareholders. As the boss or master of the office, the chief enjoys the ultimate power to formulate plans and policies, acquires the necessary resources, coordinates and controls them and takes the final decisions regarding the management affairs. Office chief is termed as director, manager, principal, chief, president, etc. according to the nature of the offices. Key Point The office chief is the boss or incharge of an office who set the goals, formulate plan and policies, manage resources, co-ordinate and control the whole activities for achieving organizational objectives. Needs and Functions of Office Chief The following are the common duties and functions of a chief in an office: i. Formulation of plans and policies according to the resources in order to achieve the organizational objectives. ii. Procurement and management of assets and other resources. iii. Designing and analyzing the jobs and recruitment and selection of manpower. iv. Allocation of right jobs to the right persons along with the necessary authorities. v. Proper allocation of resources to the different sectors on equitable basis. vi. Direction, coordinating and controlling the various activities of the organization in a planned and systematic way. vii. Establishment of office system and procedures for removing procedural delays in the official performance. viii. Motivating staff, with the monetary and non-monetary incentives and by making humanitarian behaviour to get the better performance. ix. Evaluation of the actual performances with the standards and take the necessary corrections. x. Maintaining discipline and secrecy of the official matters and controlling over the leakage and corruption of the organizational properties. xi. Preparation of reports regarding the official activities, performance and achievements and submits them to the concerned authorities. i.e. the board, general public etc. B. Chief of the Branch (Section Officer) As the nature and size of activities, most of the organizations establish their branch offices in different places and a number of departments for different types of activities. Personnel department, financial department, production department, marketing department, purchase department, sales departments, etc. are the
22 Aakar’s Office Practice and Accountancy - 9 examples of such departments. Different persons are appointed as the managers in different branch offices or section officers in different departments to discharge the overall responsibilities of the office or section concerned. The person who has the responsibility of such a branch is known as branch chief or manager and a department as section officer. The branch chief and / or the section officers are known as the middle level management in the sense that they work under the top level management and coordinate between the activities of the lower level staff and the top level management. Middle level management is supposed to be the link between the top management and the assistants or junior staff. Key Point The sectional chief or chief of the branch is the incharge of a particular department or section of organization to achieve the sectional goals. C. Office Assistant As it has been already discussed in the beginning, an office is the entire part of an organization that performs all the organizational activities. The activities are generally categorized as executive level and sub-ordinate level activities. Planning, policy making, staffing, directing, coordinating and controlling functions refer to the activities of the first category and the regular and day to day functions like recording, filing, account keeping, handling telephone, mails and visitors and other personal secretarial works etc. fall under the second category. The office staff who perform such regular and day to day activities of an organization are said to be office assistants. As such, office assistants are the lower level staff who assist the senior officers and directly the chief or executive in the execution of plans and policies by performing the regular and day to day activities of an organization. Office assistants are the subordinate staff of the chief and the senior officer of an organization. They are employed by an office to execute the plans and policies and also to perform the personal secretarial works of the chief like drafting letters, keeping accounts, making arrangements of his visit, etc. Section officer Office assistants working in an office
23 Office And Office Personnel In Nepal, the office assistants are called by different names as per the tradition of the office and the nature of their working field. Kharadar, Mukiya, Subba, etc. are the office assistants in the government office. Key Point Office assistants are the lower level staff who assist the senior officers and directly the chief in the execution of plans and policies by performing the regular and day to day activities of the organization. Types of Office Assistants Head assistant, senior and junior assistants, sectional clerk, personal assistant, receptionist, etc. are the different types of office assistants termed in Nepalese offices and they are of the level of Nayab Subba, Khardar, Mukhia, etc. The following are some of the common but important office assistants in the Nepalese offices. i. Sectional Clerk (Phantwala) A sectional clerk is the one at the lower level who is assigned with the responsibilities of a certain section of a department. He/she works under the instruction of the department chief or section officer. A sectional clerk may be Subba or Khardar as the nature of work and grade of the staff. He/she is the in-charge of the section and thus known as the section-in-charge or Phantwala. A storekeeper, filing clerk, recording in charge, etc. are the assistants of this type. Key Point The sectional clerk is a junior level staff who is assigned a particular work in a department or section to assist the sectional chief in carrying out the sectional activities. ii. Personal Assistant (Nizi Sahayak) The chief or executive of the government office (the central level offices) and even of the large scale non-government and business organizations seem to be very busy in the performance of the top level management tasks. Moreover, he/she should participate in a number of meetings, conferences and seminars at national and international levels. He/ she may have different appointments with different persons in the regular course of dealing. It becomes Section clerk Personal assistant with chief
24 Aakar’s Office Practice and Accountancy - 9 difficult and sometimes impossible for him/her to manage all varieties of such activities from time to time. Thus, a person is appointed by such an office to assist the chief by performing his personal secretarial works and by arranging his appointments. As such, a personal assistant is the one who assists the chief by performing his/ her personal secretarial works, recalling and managing all of his appointments and programmes. In Nepalese government office, a personal assistant is provided to a minister, secretary of Nepal Government, director of the department, chief of the police and army force, the general managers of the corporations, etc. Key Point The personal assistant is the private secretary who is appointed to perform all the clerical activities on behalf of the chief. iii. Receptionist (Samparka Sahayak) Along with the sectional responsibilities of the organization and personal secretarial works of the chief, there are other tasks in the organization. Handling telephone calls, handling visitors, handling mails and telegrams, etc. are some of them. A person or staff is appointed in an organization to perform the tasks other than the sectional duties and personal secretarial works. He/she is known as a receptionist. Thus, a receptionist is the person who is appointed to perform the tasks of receiving and handling telephone calls and the visitors. Since, the telephone inquiries may be received on the entire affairs of the organization, the receptionist should be so far as possible familiar with such affairs to some extent. The important task of a receptionist is to receive telephone calls, reply the inquiries about the office, handle all sorts of visitors who come to the office and to manage their appointments with the officers or the chief. He/she receives the visitors, at first, in the office and thus he/ she should behave politely and courteously to give them a good impression about the office. The receptionist must be smiling and cheerful for a good dealing. Key Point The receptionist is a subordinate staff appointed for inquiry or reception section to handle visitors, customers and telephone, etc. Duties and Functions of Office Assistants Office assistants are the subordinate staff of the office who perform the day to day activities of an organization within the framework of plans and policies and the Receptionist
25 Office And Office Personnel instruction and control of the chief in accomplishing the organizational goals and targets. There are various functions to be performed by the various assistants. The important duties and functions of the office assistants are briefly described below: i. Preparation of Routine of Daily Works There are many official works to be performed by an assistant. All the works are not of equal importance on one hand and cannot be done together at a time. Thus, an assistant, specially the sectional clerk, prepares a routine of the daily work as according to their priority/importance. Sometimes, the chief’s instructions may also be obtained for arranging the order of works specially in case of holding meeting or conference, etc. to prepare the necessary documents. As such, for the smooth performance of one’s duty, he/she prepares the routine of the daily works as his/ her common duty in the office. ii. Note Taking and Transcribing The chief of the office is always busy in his managerial activities. So he/she does not have enough time to do all of his secretarial works, on one hand and he may forget some of his appointments on the other. As such, a personal assistant is given to him/her to assist him in his/her personal secretarial works specially the paper works on his/her behalf. As a regular duty, an assistant notes down the things in his/her notebook in short hand script as dictated by his/her chief and performs the works in detail as per the notes. In this way, an assistant writes different types of letters and documents, on behalf of the chief by taking necessary notes from him/her and transcribing them in hand script within his/her office time as a regular duty. iii. Drafting and Typing Letters and Documents Letters and documents play a significant role in the smooth operation of an organization. An office assistant drafts and types different types of letters like letter of appointment, letter of congratulation, letter of thanks, inquiry letter, reply letter, order letter, etc. either by himself/herself or as directed by the chief. Moreover, a number of other documents like notices, resolution, memos, etc. are also drafted and typed by an assistant in order to carry out the organizational activities smoothly ahead. iv. Filing There are many important documents in an office in different forms and formats. They are used for the present and future references as guidelines, proofs and evidences. Such documents are regularly and systematically filed by an assistant, specially by the filing clerk. This is an important duty of an office assistant to safeguard the important documents. The important documents are the documentary assets of the organization.
26 Aakar’s Office Practice and Accountancy - 9 v. Handling Mails and Telegrams There are many incoming and outgoing mails and telegrams in an office. An office assistant handles both the incoming and outgoing mails in a proper way as his/ her regular duty. The incoming mails are received by entering them into a register book and should be ultimately sent to the concerned authority for action and the outgoing mails should be collected from the various sections, entered into the dispatch book and ultimately dispatched to the concerned organization by mentioning the dispatch number, etc. The important, urgent or confidential words are mentioned on the envelope of the letters or mails, as necessary. vi. Keeping Financial Records It is another important duty of an assistant specially an accountant or cashier. An organization handles hundreds of financial transactions. Purchasing assets, materials and supplies, payment of rent, salary, wages interest, commission, receiving incomes and sales of goods and services and other many administrative selling and distribution expenses are some of the examples of such financial transactions. These are recorded regularly and systematically by an assistant. Besides this, the petty expenses of an organization, in general, and of the chief as well like stationery and newspaper, tea and refreshment, taxi fares, etc. are also recorded by an assistant, mostly by a petty cashier or personal assistant. vii. Using and Safeguarding Assets Various machineries and equipments are managed by an office to facilitate the smooth functioning and for work-comforts. These are the valuable assets of the organization and must be used with due cares. Necessary preventive and curative measures should be taken from time to time throughout their economic life. As such, using the machineries with due cares and safeguarding them from any type of losses or damages is the next important duty of an office assistant, mostly of the technical staff. viii. Handling Telephone Like the mails, telephone calls may also be incoming and outgoing. Some of the incoming calls may inquire about different kinds of information. They should be replied in polite and courteous tone. Some others may be very ordinary calls and those should be avoided tactfully and the rest may relate to the chief or other officers that should be relayed immediately to the persons concerned. Similarly, an assistant mostly the receptionist makes different calls to the outsiders on behalf of the organization. Most of such calls are made as the direction of the chief or other senior officers and get them with the person concerned. Thus, the handling of incoming and outgoing telephone calls in a polite and courteous manner is the another duty of an assistant.
27 Office And Office Personnel ix. Handling Visitors A number of people may come to the office from time to time for different purposes. Some people may ask for an appointment with the chief, some others to take important information and the rest for ordinary purposes. All of them should be properly handled. It is the receptionist, who receives the various types of visitors, serves them with necessary services and material like tea or coffee, newspaper, magazines, etc. and by avoiding the ordinary ones tactfully. The receptionist behaves towards the visitors politely and courteously thinking that they are the guests and thus a valuable property of the organization. x. Creating Records of Information Information is created and received by an office from different sources. It is analysed and presented by an assistant for making necessary records. And then, different records are created by him in the form of general statements, statistical figures, computer files, micro films, etc. The records are created by an assistant in the recording management section and used frequently in the present and future course of performance all over the organization. xi. Reminding the Chief and Making Mecessary Arrangement for His Visit The chief of any office is a busy person. In addition to the top management functions, he/she should attend various meeting, seminar and conference, etc. in and outside the country from time to time. Besides, he/she may have many appointments with different persons. As such, the personal assistant reminds him/her about his/ her appointments, attending a meeting or conference and seminar. Furthermore, the assistant makes the necessary arrangements for the chief’s visit in different places in and outside the country by preparing and collecting necessary documents, obtaining passport and visa, buying tickets and reserving hotels and lodges, etc. After the returning of the chief from such a visit, the P.A. clears the expenses with the accountant. It is a next important duty or function of an assistant. Points to Remember i. Preparation of routine of daily works ii. Note taking and transcribing iii. Drafting and typing letters and documents iv. Filing important documents v. Handling mails and telegrams vi. Keeping financial records vii. Using and safeguarding assets viii. Handling telephones ix. Handling visitors x. Creating records of information x. Reminding the chief and making necessary arrangement for his visit
28 Aakar’s Office Practice and Accountancy - 9 Traits/Qualities of Office Assistants Traits or qualities refer to the good habits and merits inherent in a person. Official work is teamwork and one’s activities should be coordinated with that of the others. Official performance should be done through mutual help and cooperation, skilfully tackling the problems and cases, and by being regular and punctual, etc. For this, an assistant should possess many qualities in him or her. The following are the common qualities of an assistant: i. Personal Appearance Personal appearance refers to the general outlook of a person. An assistant should make a good appearance by being neat, clean and tidy, by having regular bath, cutting the hair and nail shorter, putting on clean dresses. A good personal appearance makes an assistant look attractive to others and mentally efficient in his/ her regular performance. ii. Attractive Dress and Make-up An assistant should wear attractive dress according to climate and season. The dresses should be fit to the body, easy to work and neat and clean but it does not need to be costly and expensive. Most of the offices maintain office uniform to keep their staff tidy and easily identifiable. Besides, this, a light make-up is desired according to time and situation. Make up is specially required for ladies. Face cream, powder, lipstick, eyeshadow, tika and ordinary ornaments like earrings, necklace, etc. are the means of make-up. It adds necessary beauty to a person and can give good personal impression to inside and outside parties. iii. Good Health and Physique An office assistant should perform every sort of work in the office. Whether the work is administrative, clerical or technical, it needs healthy staff to perform it because an ill person cannot discharge his/her duties regularly. Moreover, some of the works are related for lifting and transfer of capital assets and they essentially require the assistants of good health and physique. Good health and physique make a person hardworking and strong enough in performing one’s works. One should do regular, exercise for the betterment of his/her health. iv. Sweet Voice and Speech It is another important quality of an assistant, specially of the receptionist. An assistant handles hundreds of telephone calls and the visitors in a regular course of duty. He/she should use a sweet voice and a good speech in handling the telephone calls and visitors in order to give good impression to them. Similarly, an assistant should talk sympathetically to his/her juniors and respectfully to his seniors in lovely and sweet words.
29 Office And Office Personnel v. Friendliness and Cooperation It is a valuable property of a person. It is rather important for the office assistants because they need mutual help and cooperation among them. An assistant should not show his proudness to others but instead he/she should do others’ works and get his works done by others when necessary. Friendliness and cooperation create the feeling of working together for the accomplishment of an organizational goal. vi. Politeness and Courtesy An assistant should be polite in talking and courteous in behaviour to his/her seniors. He/she communicates information to the chief, other seniors and outside persons. A polite and courteous assistant is liked by all insiders and outsiders and thus can obtain favourable response from them which is ultimately beneficial for the office. A polite assistant can get help and cooperation from other staff. vii. Interest and Learning Habit Interestedness is a curiosity, about a job and a positive attitude towards his/ her office. There are various works in an office. The chief assigns work to an assistant according to his/her calibre, knowledge and experience. He/she should create interest in him towards that work which is assigned to him/her. Moreover, an assistant may get new case and activity in the regular course of dealing and new ways and techniques should be applied for them. Thus, an assistant should be anxious in learning a new thing without any hesitation. This makes a person efficient in course of time. viii. Regularity and Punctuality An assistant should be regular and punctual to his/her duty. He/she should avoid taking untimely leave so far as possible because it disturbs a lot in the regular performance. In case of urgency and illness, leaves should be taken by making the necessary adjustment of his/her duties, which is done by the chief in response to his/ her application. The office personnel should come to and leave the office in time and discharge their duties continuously. It establishes a regular habit of devotion to one’s works and responsibilities. ix. Faithfulness and Confidentiality An assistant should be faithful to his/her seniors and confidential towards the organization. Assistants are employed by the chief according to the rules and regulations and policy of the organization. Thus, the assistants should be faithful to the chief and should follow the instructions of the chief and perform activities to assist him/her for the accomplishment of objectives and goals. They should maintain the secrecy or confidentiality of important matters duely. If the conflict, misunderstanding or even the technological matters, managerial techniques and
30 Aakar’s Office Practice and Accountancy - 9 other financial statement, etc. are not legally obligatory to disclose, these things must not be disclosed to outsiders. A faithful and confidential assistant can get a good guidance or help and sympathy from the seniors and, co-operation and respect from the juniors in course of performance. x. Tactfulness There may exist many problems, cases and new challenges in front of the assistant. Sometimes misunderstanding and conflicts between different persons and parties may arise. That should be tackled in a proper way by identifying the cause and convincing the concerned parties. An office assistant should possess such a skill which helps in smooth operation of the organizational activities. xi. Self-dependability Different duties and responsibilities are assigned to different assistants. Such assigned duties should be performed by them in a proper way without depending upon others. Self-dependability is such a quality which enables a person to perform his/her duties by himself/herself by developing his/her confidence and efficiency. Thus, an assistant should be self-dependable and confident so far as possible to discharge his/ her duties smoothly. xii. Patience An office assistant may get a new case or problem in the regular course of action. He/she has to receive and handle various types of visitors, sometimes abnormal and difficult ones and some unacquainted and unexpected persons and cases. The assistant should handle the cases confidently without being nervous. Sometimes the chief or seniors may scold him/her if the things are not done properly. In such situations, he/she must not lose confidence and the duties should be discharged regularly by correcting himself. Being patience is a sign of maturity in discharging duties. Points to Remember i. Personal appearance ii. Attractive dress and make-up iii. Good health and physique iv. Sweet voice and speech v. Friendliness and cooperative vi. Politeness and courteousness vii. Interestedness and learning habit viii. Regularity and punctuality ix. Faithfulness and confidentiality x. Tactfulness xi. Self-dependability xii. Patience
31 Office And Office Personnel Qualifications of Office Assistant Office assistants are collectively the lower level manpower in an office. Different duties and responsibilities are assigned to them according to their qualification, calibre, interest and proficiency to maintain the expected efficiency in the organizational performance. Most of the works can only be discharged by having a certain level of knowledge, training and experience. A certain formal degree is required to apply for a certain post or position. The following are the common qualifications of an assistant: i. Academic Qualification Each assistant should have a minimum degree of education to hold a post or position in an office. The qualification of an assistant lets him/her to compete for the post and it enables him/her to perform the jobs well. Furthermore, academic qualification is a legal formality for a person to take the responsibility. Thus, it is a basic qualification of an assistant. In the Nepalese government offices, SLC/SEE or Matriculation and Proficiency Certificate degree or 10+2 are required for different assistant level posts. ii. Training Training is an act of taking practical classes about certain thing by the persons passing a certain education level. It makes a person capable of doing works in an effective and better way. Since, the duties and responsibilities of an assistant are challenging, he/she needs enough training to perform the activities well. Thus, an assistant should have necessary training in the related field to perform the activities effectively and efficiently. Nowadays a person without training is not supposed to be qualified for a job. iii. Experience It is also a most important qualification of an assistant. Though it is not legally a must, it adds one’s qualification to make him more able in performing the jobs. A mere academic degree cannot make a person capable of discharging his/her duties without proper experiences in the related fields. If education makes a person qualified for a job, experience makes him more efficient. Thus, experience is supposed to be an important subsidiary qualification of an assistant. iv. Knowledge of Current Rules and Regulations Office assistants should have the knowledge of the current rules and regulations. Knowledge performs the assigned job properly. They also have to work within the limitations of the administrative rules and regulations. Office itself may prepare rules and regulations to maintain discipline. If it is so, an assistant must have knowledge about it.
32 Aakar’s Office Practice and Accountancy - 9 v. Knowledge of Foreign Language The foreigners from different countries may come to visit in the office. If it is so, office assistant must deal with them. So an assistant must have knowledge of foreign languages. It is not possible to know all languages but he/she should know at least English language. vi. Knowledge of Handling Computer and Other Equipments Computer and equipments are a modern device which helps to perform administrative, clerical and accounting functions effectively of prevailing and current rules and regulations. It brings rapidity in the work. It increases efficiency of staff and reliability in work, Hence, an office assistant should have the sound knowledge of handling computer and other equipments photocopy, fax, printer, calculator, etc. vii. Knowledge of Accounting Every office performs a large number of financial transactions daily. One of the most important functions of an office assistant is to keep systematic records of such financial transactions. In order to keep systematic records, he requires fundamental knowledge of principles and practices of accounting. A person having fundamental knowledge of accounting is generally preferred by an office as its office assistant. Points to Remember i. Academic Qualification ii. Training iii. Experience iv. Knowledge of current rules and regulations v. Knowledge of foreign language vi. Knowledge of handling computer vii. Knowledge of accounting Glossary Accomplishment : achievement / success Academic : educational Oriented : towards Authority : power Diplomatic : political Prevailing : current Assistance : help Render : provide/deliver Financial : monetary/related with money Patience : tolerance Caliber : ability, quality
33 Office And Office Personnel Glossary Initiated : start, begin Anxious : nervous, uneasy Procurement : buying/receiving Share : decision of capital into small portion Drafting : an act of rough writing, not final form Transcribe : a process of converting short form data in to normal form Subordinate : a person working under another Work division : dividing a job, task Exercise A. Answer the following questions in one sentence. 1. What is an office? 2. What is permanent office? 3. How does James Stephenson define office? 5. What is a business office? 6. Give any two examples of government office. 7. What is service motive office? 8. What do you mean by temporary office? 9. Define personnel management. 10. Who is office chief? 11. Who formulates plans and policies in an office? 12. Define chief of the branch. 13. Who is office assistant? 14. Write the full form of P.A. 15. Define reception. 16. Write any two differences between top level and low level staff. 17. Who handles telephone calls and visitors in an office? 18. Mention any two duties of receptionist. B Give short answers to the following questions. 19. Define office. Briefly describe its importance. 20. What are the different types of offices? Describe them in brief. 20. How is the classification of offices made on the basis of life and duration of an organization? Discuss.
34 Aakar’s Office Practice and Accountancy - 9 34 Aakar’s Office Practice and Accountancy - 9 21. Mention the important objectives of government offices in general. 22. What is business office? Explain its types with examples. 23. Define the term office personnel and mention the importance of their being in an office. 24. Define service motive office. Write its characteristics in brief. 25. What are the types of office personnel? Explain. 26. Who is office chief? Mention the important/functions and duties of the chief in an office. 27. Who is an office assistant? Explain the three different types of office assistant. 28. What are the necessary qualifications of an office assistant? Describe all of them. 29. “An office is the planning, implementing and controlling centre of the organization.” Justify. 30. “Office plays an important role in an organization.” Justify. 31. “Office assistant plays vital role to achieve organizational goals.” Justify. 32. Office chief is the leader of an organization.” Justify. C. Give long answers to the following questions. 33. Explain the functions of an office. 34. Explain the duties and functions of an office assistant in general. 35. Describe the qualities of an office assistant. Project Work a. Make a list of the functions or duties of an assistant i.e. accountant, store keeper, librarian of your school by asking him/her. b. Make a list of duties/activities which are performed by the principal of your school asking him/her. c. Discuss with your nearest friend and list out the problems you will have to face in the absence of office at your school.
35 Office Resources 35 Office And Office Personnel Unit 2 Office Resources CDC Syllabus 2.1 Meaning and Importance of Office Resources 2.2 Types of Office Resources Human Resources: Introduction and types Communication: Introduction, Types and Means of Communication Materials: Introduction and Types Transport: Introduction and Modes Income: Introduction and Sources 8 Periods After studying this unit, students will be able to : understand the meaning of office resources, know the needs and importance of office resources, explain the types of office resources, state the types of human resources, state the sources of money, state the types of materials and supply, state the modes of transportation, state importance, types and mode of communication. Learning Objectives
36 Aakar’s Office Practice and Accountancy - 9 1. Introduction An organization is established with a certain goal, and thus performs a number of activities in course of its operation for the attainment of the goals. For the smooth operation of the organization activities towards the achievement of its goals, a number of equipment, materials, and means and devices of transportation and communication are required along with the adequate finance and efficient manpower. The success of an organization depends upon the efficiency of the employed manpower and the sound management of other non-human factors like finance, machineries, materials and means of transportation and communication. As such, office resources refer to all the means and devices of an office along with its manpower, which support the smooth operation of the organizational activities to attain its goals. Manpower, capital and sources of income, machineries and equipment, materials and supplies, means of transportation and communication are the common and important resources of a modern office. According to S. P. Arora, “An office resource refers to all those means including manpower, which support in the operation of office procedures.” From this definition, office resources are all the facilities available in the office like manpower, money, materials, furniture, equipment, means of transportation, means of communication, etc. which helps to perform all the activities for achieving organizational goals. Key Point Office resources refer to human and financial resources as well as different means of transportation and communication required to run an office smoothly in order to achieve the organizational objectives. 2. Necessity/Importance/Significance Office resources are the essence of an office. They are the life of an office in the sense that in the absence of them, an office becomes an empty house and thus cannot represent the office. An office without resources looks like a skeleton. It is the resource, which fills up flesh, blood and brain to it and gives life to run the office activities. Moreover, the management of the sufficient resources in an office makes it more efficient and competent to get success in the complex business world. It is thus, success of an office mostly depends upon sound management and control of the office resources. The importance of the resources can be highlighted in terms of the following points: i. Smooth Running of an Office An office should perform a number of activities to attain organizational goals and objectives, such activities should be performed regularly and easily. It is the
37 Office Resources resources which run the office in a planned way to achieve organizational goals and objectives in simple and easy way. ii. Objectives Oriented Functioning Every office is established with certain goals and objectives. Office formulates plans and policies within the limitations of such goals and objectives. The management of resources is made according to the objectives. Thus, office resources differ from one office to another according to the objectives of the office and nature of the works. Thus, different types of resources are managed according to the objectives and nature of an office and these resources are directed towards the attainment of the goals and objectives. iii. Maintaining Work Speed An office should perform thousand of activities in course of time. In order to get success in business operation, it should maintain expected speed in performance. With the help of the modern means of communication and machineries and equipment, the works can be done easily and in a speedy way. For example, the numerical activities can be done easily and in a short time by using calculator, computer, etc. Similarly, the availability of adequate finance and sources of income helps in continuous performance by managing and supplying materials and supplies. With the help of machineries and other speedy devices, works can be done better and faster and the expected speed in performance can be maintained. iv. Efficiency in Performance Efficiency refers to skill and ability of performing the works properly and quickly by maintaining expected quality. A sound management of resources assures efficient performance. For example, the use of modern devices of communication ensures efficient and effective communication functions; use of machineries and equipment ensures easy and quick performance. Similarly, the management of adequate capital and sources of income regulate activities by supplying necessary money in time. Thus, the management of sufficient resources helps in maintaining the efficiency in performance. v. Future Expansion and Growth The resources like manpower, machineries and means of communication and transportations are employed by an office for a long period of time. They have considerably a larger capacity and thus assure the expansion and growth of the activities by utilizing their full capacity in the future. The management of sufficient and efficient resources leads an organization towards its growth and development by extending its programmes and projects in various sectors and places. The management of sufficient and efficient resource is possible with the availability of capital and sources of income.
38 Aakar’s Office Practice and Accountancy - 9 vi. Prestige and Attraction The provision of sufficient office resources is the matter of prestige for an office. The resources must be utilized for the goodness of the office. A well equipped office is a means of inspiration and attraction for its employees and thus it improves their morale and productivity. The use of the machinery and equipment maintains the expected quality in production and general functioning and reliability and confidence in performance. In this way, the sound management of efficient resources is the prestige and attraction for the employees and the outsiders as well. vii. Work Comfort Official activities are becoming complex in the modem business world with the worldwide development of business activities and communication technology. It is almost difficult to carry out the activities with the bare hands and very traditional tools. Thus, the provisions of automations like calculators, computers, machineries, telephone, fax, wireless mobiles, etc. provide work comforts to the employees and increase their morale and productivity in the performance. viii. Saving Operation Expenses Office resources ensure the growth and expansion of the official activities up to their maximum capacity. It leads the organization to mass production and division of labour and specialization. It reduces the per unit operating cost of the products on one side and increases the skill and efficiency of workers on the other. The provision of the sufficient resources easily maintains the expected standard of goods and services. In this way, mass scale production, division of labour and specialization, efficiency in performance and the high morale of the workers reduce the costs and improve the productivity. Points to Remember i. Smooth running of an office ii. Objective-oriented functioning iii. Maintaining work speed iv. Efficiency in performance v. Future expansion and growth vi. Prestige and attraction vii. Work comfort viii. Saving operation expenses 3. Types of Office Resources All the supporting means and devices along with the human factor employed in an office are termed as office resources. As the difference in the nature and scope of the organizations and their financial capacity, their resources may also differ to each other. Office resources can commonly be grouped into five categories. All of them are briefly discussed below:
39 Office Resources Manpower Administrative Office chief Sectional chief Office assistant Technical Skilled Semi-skilled Un-skilled Material Durable Non-durable Money Regular income Other income Means of Transportation Land transportation Water transportation Air transportation Ropeways and pipelines Means of Communication Verbal communication Written communication Symbolic communication Office Resources (5M) A. Manpower (Human Resource) Human resource is the basic resource in every sort of offices. All non-human resources are mobilized by human resource. Human resource refers to the combination of all the persons employed in an organization from the topmost to the lowest position. An organization prepares manpower planning and accordingly employs them in different posts and responsibilities both in management and technical sectors. Thus, human resource in an organization means the total number of persons employed in an office in different posts and responsibilities who are individually as well as jointly responsible for the attainment of the goals and objectives. The principle of the personnel management is right person in the right place. This should be applied by the personnel manager. Key Point Human resource/manpower refers to all the staff who are appointed in different posts or positions for performing clerical, administrative and technical jobs to achieve the organizational goals. Types of Manpower As per the nature and scope of organizational activities, the manpower should have proper knowledge, skill and qualification. The manpower of an organization may be grouped into administrative and technical categories. i. Administrative Manpower The manpower, which is engaged in administrative and management sectors is known as administrative manpower. They hold the posts from the topmost to the lowest level in discharging the administrative management duties, which begin from the formulation of plans and policies to their ultimate, execution and
40 Aakar’s Office Practice and Accountancy - 9 evaluation. Secretary of a Ministry, General Manager, Director General, Section Officers and their subordinates excluding the technical staff are jointly called administrative manpower. It is though not categorized as skilled and unskilled ones, they may be efficient or inefficient as their knowledge, experience and training and work practices. The administrative staff do not possess a particular technical knowledge and skill but conduct the day-to-day management duties of an organization as their qualification and rank. Key Point The manpower who have knowledge of planning, policy making, implementing, controlling and decision making of the organization is called administrative manpower. ii. Technical Manpower The manpower, which is employed in an office in the different technical sectors like survey and designing, engineering, medicine, production, repair, etc., is known as technical manpower. They possess special technical knowledge and skill in particular sectors. They also hold the different positions from senior officers to the lowest level staff working under the administrative chief. Engineers, doctors, lawyers, mechanics, electricians, carpenters, teachers, etc. are the examples of technical manpower in different sorts of offices. As their qualification, work experience and training, they are categorised as skilled, semi-skilled and unskilled manpower and paid accordingly. Key Point The manpower who have technical knowledge and skill to perform a specific job is called a technical manpower. Development of Manpower As mentioned earlier, manpower may be efficient or inefficient and skilled, semiskilled or unskilled. When an organization seeks the manpower, it should recruit and select them according to its planning. An organization can employ efficient and Management group Doctor checking health
41 Office Resources skilled manpower or semi-skilled, unskilled and inefficient manpower according to the nature of works and financial ability etc. If an organization hires/employs efficient and skilled manpower, it should pay high remuneration and launch many motivational and welfare programmes like further study, children’s education, entertainments, etc. in order to get the things done by them in a better way. Otherwise different type of manpower is employed by an office and it prepares an appropriate personnel policy for its development. The office should conduct different trainings, seminars, workshops, etc. to increase skill and efficiency of the staff for their better performance. Such training and workshop programmes should also be organized regarding the modern techniques and technologies. Manpower also termed as human resource is a social element. It is the sensitive resource and has some sorts of desires, aims and social prestige of its own. It must not be treated as other nonhuman resources. In addition to timely payment of salary, wages, allowances and other monetary benefits, a number of other welfare programmes like medical facility, health, education, entertainment, leaves and holidays, foreign visit, retirement facilities, etc. should be launched as per the need and requirement of the staff and financial ability of the office for their development. The human resource of an office wants humanitarian behaviour in addition to the facilities under the organizational rules and structure. Thus, a sound organizational behaviour should be shown to all the staff on the equitable basis. A sound personnel policy should be formulated and executed properly for the recruitment and selection of staff, promotion, transfer demotion and termination of the staff and for the entire performance appraisal. Thus, a sound personnel policy is the base for the development of the human resource in an organization. Most of the large scale private enterprises and the government offices have formed a separate personnel management section for the development of manpower. B. Money (Capital/Income/Finance) Capital and the sources of income are jointly termed as finance. It is the another important resource in an office. It is supposed to be the blood for an organization and thus should be circulated to each and every unit of the organization. It is necessary in an organization to pay out for a number of expenses and to manage materials and other necessities in the daily performance process. The sources of finance are different as organizations require. Training Programme Money
42 Aakar’s Office Practice and Accountancy - 9 Capital, sales proceeds and other sources of income are the source of finance to the business office, members’ subscriptions, government subsidies and grants, donations, etc. are the sources of finance to the social service office. Corporate taxes, general income taxes, custom duties, VAT (Value Added Tax), land revenue, profit of the government companies, foreign aids and donations, etc. are the sources of finance to the government office. Whatever is the type of office and sources of finance, they are very important for incurring various expenses for production and distribution of goods and services. Purchase of capital assets, materials and supplies, payment of wages, rent, salaries, commission, interest, repair and maintenance of assets, etc. are the examples of expenses and that should be covered by the capital and sources of income. It is a challenging task of an office, specially of the finance manager to raise capital and sources of income and allocate it in the more profitable sectors so as to get an expected return. Thus, a sound financing policy can raise sufficient capital in better structure and a regular source of income. It is the only way to have a sound management of assets and other resources in the organization. If human source is the brain of the organization, finance is assumed as the blood. Key Point The income which is earned by selling and distributing goods and services as regular basis is called sources of income. In non-business organization, it is received as revenue from other activities. Sources of incomes are of two types: (a) Regular income (b) Other income i. Regular Income The continuous incomes throughout the year made from the sale of goods or rendering services are considered as regular incomes which are essential to meet the regular expenses. Sales proceeds and fees for rendering services are the regular incomes for a business organization and income tax, custom duty, excise duty, VAT, etc. are regular incomes for government. ii. Other Income The incomes other than the regular incomes, which are not earned regularly are considered as other incomes. Such incomes are earned occasionally. Rent received, interest received, discount received, etc. are some examples of other incomes for business organizations and aids, donations received are some examples of other incomes for the government. C. Materials and Supplies Machineries and equipment provide the work comforts and speedy performance of the activities. Plant and machinery, furniture and fixtures, equipment and tools, etc. assure the proper and quick functioning by creating work comfort and easy
43 Office Resources performance. Thus, machineries and equipment should be managed in sufficient extent. These are of high cost, long life and large capacity and thus expenditures on them should be done only after a comparative study of their cost, economic life, and the expected future returns among the different alternatives. It is worth mentioning here that a well equipped office is the sign of business success. Similarly, the materials and supplies are the inputs for the day to day performance of the office. If there’s a shortage of materials and supplies, all the other resources i.e. human resource, machinery, equipment, etc. remain idle. If manpower is the brain and capital is the blood, then materials and supplies are supposed to be the foodstuff for the organization. Thus, various types of materials frequently used in the business process are the resource of an office. A sound and efficient management of materials ensures uninterrupted production and trading of goods and services. Thus, machineries, equipment and materials are supposed to be an important office resource. Key Point Materials refer to all durable and non-durable materials used by the office to perform all the activities. The materials and suppliers are broadly be classified into two groups: i. Non-durable Materials The materials consumed within one year are called non-durable materials. Raw materials, fuel, stationery and supplies like papers, carbon papers, pen, pencils, ink, stamp, staplers, files and registers, etc. which help for smooth operation of registers, etc. and which help in the smooth operation of manufacturing, administration and selling activities of the organization are non-durable materials. The amounts paid on the materials are treated as expenses. ii. Durable Materials The materials which are used for more than one year are durable materials. They are treated as fixed assets. These materials are purchased not for resale purpose. Plant and machinery equipment i.e. computer, fax, photocopy machine, printer, etc. and vehicles i.e. car, bus, bicycle, motorcycle, etc., furniture, etc. are examples of durable materials. Non-durable materials Printer Durable materials
44 Aakar’s Office Practice and Accountancy - 9 D. Means of Transportation (Vehicles) Means of transportation is another important resource in a modern office. The staff of an office live in different localities. It should pick them up by the office vehicles or should provide bicycle, motorcycle, car, jeep, etc. to them according to their rank, position, nature of work and mostly as the financial ability of the office. Besides this, the staff may have to visit different places in and outside the country for official purposes. In such a situation, transportation means are used as a resource for such tour of travel and also for the conveyance of goods. Government provides horses to its officers in the remote districts and vehicles in the urban or sub-urban areas. Similarly, private offices also provide vehicle facilities to the officers and also to the peon. In this way, different means of transportation are used for official tour, travel and trading of the goods. The means of transport enable the staff to be regular and punctual towards their duties. Key Point The means which are used to carry goods and the staff people from one place to another place inside or outside the country is called means of transportation. Means and Modes of Transport Means of transport refer to the different devices of tour, travel and carriage from one place to another. Means of transport is selected by an office under the considerations of geographical condition, availability of transportation means, economic ability of the office and nature and scope of the activity, etc. There are different types of means of transportation for daily tour, travel and carriage of goods, etc. The following are the different ways and means of transportation: i. Land Transport It refers to tour, travel and carriage of goods and equipment from one place to another through the land routes like man, horse, bicycle, cart, motorbike, car, bus, truck, lorry, train etc. The land transport charge/fare is comparatively cheaper than the other ways and means. Train Bus
45 Office Resources ii. Water/ Marine transport Water transport is the act of carrying persons and goods from one place to another in and outside a country through waterways. It is commonly used in the foreign trade dealing. Since, Nepal is a landlocked country, she uses waterways for the conduct of foreign trade with the overseas countries through India. Boats, ferries, ships, etc. are the common means of water transport. iii. Air Transport/ Airways It is the one, through which persons and goods are carried from one place to another through airways. It is the fastest means of transportation and expensive in fare. It is used in the remote areas where there’s no availability of other common means of transport. Aeroplane, helicopter, balloon, etc. are the different means of air transport. In the mountainous countries like Nepal, it is important in spite of its high fare. In Nepal, air means are used for tour, travel and carriage of goods in the remote districts like Manang, Humla, Jumla, Dolpa, Mustang, etc. and even between the towns. iv. Ropeways and Pipelines Ropeways and pipelines are also assumed as another means of transport. Ropeways are for the carriage of goods and pipelines are used for the conveyance of water, gas, oil, petrol, etc. from one place to another. Nowadays, cable car system is introduced in the country to carry the persons specially in a short distance. E. Means of Communication (Telephone, Mobile) The word ‘communication’ is derived from the Latin word, ‘communis’ that means to inform, to tell or to spread information. In this sense, the term ‘communication’ refers to the exchange of any message, news and information between persons and organizations. An office is a source of information. It relays information in the form of guidance, instructions, notices, circulars, resolutions, reports, etc. inside the office and bills, invoices, telegram, telephone, fax, e-mail, internet, etc. with the outside parties. Communication is a two-way process in the sense that the sender relays information to the receiver and the latter understands it in the same sense as of the sender and gives the necessary response. If there’s no response from the receiver, Ship Aeroplane Ropeway (Cable Car)
46 Aakar’s Office Practice and Accountancy - 9 it does not mean a communication. Thus, communication may be defined as a process of exchanging information from one person to another by way of any device. Communication is supposed to be the breathing for an organization. In the absence of communication, it cannot survived. In the modern offices, communication plays a significant role in performing the functions effectively. It is the base for the management to coordinate its various activities efficiently and it is the basis for formulating plans and policies and its effective execution. It is also the way for effective leadership, i.e. direction and control over the entire performance and maintenance of internal as well as external relationship. All such provisions ensure the success of an organization from every sense. According to Keith Davis, “Communication is the process of passing information and understanding from one person to another. It is bridge of meaning between people.” According to Newman and Summer, “Communication is an exchange of facts, ideas, opinions or information by two or more persons.” According to Theo Haimann, “Communication is the process of passing information and understanding from one person to another. It is the process of importing ideas and making ourself understood by others.” Key Point The process of exchanging information between persons or organizations through different mediums and means is known as communication. Importance of Communication Office is an information centre and communication the basis for collecting and supplying information. All the office activities are carried out with the help of effective communication. Communication plays a vital role in the success of office. The main points of importance of communication are as follows: i. It helps in preparing plans and policies, its implementation and coordination and controlling. ii. It helps the executive for making effective decision. iii. It helps in settling conflicts and misunderstanding. iv. It helps to maintain good relation between the staff, departments and offices. v. It helps to exchange achievements, performance, programs and problems between the different levels and offices. vi. It helps to maintain and develop public relation and increase goodwill of the office. vii. It helps the management for evaluating the performance and motivating the staff. Sender Encoding Message Channel Decoding Receiver Noise Feedback Process of Communication
47 Office Resources Types of Communication Communication is a process by which information is exchanged between persons and organizations through a mutually understood language or symbol. Thus, it is a two-way traffic. It is a systematic and continuous process of telling, listening and understanding. On the basis of source and nature of information, communication is grouped into: Types of Communication Internal communication External communication Downward Upward Lateral National International a. Internal Communication It refers to the communication which is made within the same office. The executive chief formulates the plans and policies in an office and educates the subordinates about such plans and policies, guides, instructs and directs the staff and coordinates and controls the entire activities and resources. Similarly, the subordinates report about the problems, difficulties and progress of their performance. All these processes are the acts of internal communication. Internal communication includes letters, memos, instructions, circulars, notices, bulletins, manuals and other suggestive measures. The internal communication may be interpersonal, interdepartmental and between the head office and its branches. It may be a downward, horizontal, upward or diagonal process as the situation requires. Hence, internal communication can be divided as follows: i. Downward Communication It is the process of transferring the official information from superior or higher level staff to lower level staff or subordinates. The instructions, orders and directions are given by the top level staff to the subordinates or low level staff and department. Here, the information flows from upward to downward. So, it is called downward communication. Office Chief Section Officer Office Assistant ii. Upward Communication The process of transferring official information by low level staff or department to the high level staff or management level body is called as upward communication. Suggestions, achievements, problems, feedback, etc. are transferred by low level staff and department to upward level. Office Chief Section Officer Office Assistant
48 Aakar’s Office Practice and Accountancy - 9 iii. Lateral/Horizontal Communication The process of transmitting the official information among the departments and executives of the same level is called lateral or horizontal communication. The department heads exchange their views and ideas to solve the problems of organization. This information is transmitted between same levels of department of organization. Human Resource Department Marketing Department Account Department b. External Communication When the communication is made between different offices in and outside a country, it is called external communication. Thus, an external communication refers to both the inter-organizational and international communication. The communication of an organization with its customers and creditors, government and other outsiders for inquiries, quotations, meetings, conferences, etc. in and outside the country is external communication. It includes official letters, agreements, contracts, treaties, business notices, meeting, conference, etc. between or among organizations. External communication is also equally important for an organization in the sense that it establishes and develops the organization’s relations with its customers, creditors, government and other concerned parties. This sort of communication helps in the growth and expansion of a business. Communication between the different organizations inside the country is called inter-organizational or national or domestic communication. When communication takes place between the organizations and the governments of different countries, it is called international communication. The external communication is formally performed in written form. Nowadays, most of the communication is performed through written and the electronic means and devices like telex, fax, e-mail, internet, etc. i. National Communication The process of exchanging official information between offices or persons within the same country is called national communication. In the government office, the communication between the ministries, departments, constitutional bodies, regional offices, district offices, etc. is the example of national communication. ii. International Communication The process of exchanging official information between offices or persons of different countries is called international communication. Nowadays modern means of communication such as fax, e-mail, internet, telephone, etc. are used for international communication. International communication is the basis for foreign trade, foreign relation, foreign employment and abroad study.
49 Office Resources Means and Mediums of Communication Both types of communication i.e. internal as well as external are made in various ways and means. The ways or methods by which information is communicated are called mediums and the devices which are used in communication are called means. There are various mediums and means of communication. The common mediums and means of communication under different mode are as follows: a. Verbal/Oral Communication The way of exchanging information verbally is called oral communication. Under this mode, the information is passed from one place to another place by spoken form. The following are some of the important means of oral communication: i. Loudspeaker It is a means of mass communication. When a piece of notice, message or information is to be relayed to a large number of people in a certain area, it is used. It is a part of a radio receiving apparatus that converts the electric impulses into audible sounds. A loudspeaker is used in a mass meeting, conference, transport station, religious programmes, etc. to deliver speeches. ii. Radio and Television These are the means of mass communication in oral/verbal medium. These means are used specially to broadcast public news, notices, circulars, business information, advertisements, etc. Sometimes television also provides information in written form ultimately by reading it. iii. Telephone/Mobile phone Telephone is a machinery device of relaying message through wire connection system or through satellite system from one person to another far and near, in spoken form. It is the most convenient and fastest means of communication. But the mobile phones do not have wire connection. It is operated with the help of satellite system. It is used mostly in urban areas. The important merit of this means is that one can get immediate reaction on the matters relayed. It is very costly in relaying lengthy information in the distant places and thus not commonly accessible to the ordinary people. But its importance is increasing with the passage of time. Loudspeaker Radio Television Telephone Mobile
50 Aakar’s Office Practice and Accountancy - 9 b. Written Communication The way of exchanging information in written form is called written communication. It is formal and most reliable means of communication. Memos, letters, fax, e-mail, newspaper, etc. are some important means of written communication. Following are some important means of written communication: i. Correspondence/Letter It refers to the communication through letter writing. Correspondence is the most common means of written communication for both internal and external levels. When lengthy information is to be sent through the most reliable and authentic means, letter correspondence is used. It is the cheapest and the most reliable means of communication and thus frequently used by all the ordinary people. ii. Telegram It is also a means of written communication. A telegram is a process of relaying information by the use of electric current by wire or wireless system. It is used in the places where there are no telephone and other electronic facilities. In this means, the sender writes his message and the receiver’s name and address along with his name in possible short form and submits it to the clerk in the telegram office and thus, the message is sent to the specified person. It is used to relay the urgent messages to the far and remote districts. It is faster but costlier than letter correspondence but cheaper and slower than telephone. Nowadays, this means is available in all the 77 districts in Nepal. iiii. Fax It is also an electronic means, which transmits the written and printed message or photograph through radio waves and telephone connection. Under this means, the sender dials the receiver’s fax number from his fax machine and feeds the written or printed materials into it. The machine reads the data and sends it into the receiver’s fax machine. Then the receiver’s fax machine prints the exact copy of the message. It is a more reliable and speedy device of written communication in the present day. iv. Electronic Mail (E-mail) E-mail is an electronic means of exchanging information through computer device. The sender types the message in his/her computer and sends to the computer address of the receiver known as e-mail address, eg. chetansednai2025@ Newspaper Fax Correspondence/Letter Telegram