Effects of Office Automation on the Productivity of Secretaries
Chapter One
Purpose of the study
- To identify the effects of modern office automation on the productivity of secretaries.
- To identify the use of office automation.
- To examine the importance of automation.
- To identify the problems secretaries encounter in using those automation.
CHAPTER TWO
LITERATURE REVIEW
The term “secretary” is another term that has a wide meaning and it is important to appreciate the various meanings associated with it. According to Whitehead (1994), the secretary is usually thought to be a person who takes dictation from a manager or other senior members of staff and turns the notes into typed correspondence. The term means all sorts of things for many people and certainly many of those who work in offices choose to be under the secretarial umbrella (Harding 1994). Office automation is the use of self-regulating machines to execute office tasks formerly done manually or through semi-mechanical means. Office automation has changed the secretarial duties from the manual method to purely mechanized process. According to Olsgaard (1989), office automation involves the application of integrated information handling tools and methods to improve the productivity of people in an office operation. As such, office automation is the integration of the computer application into the office tasks to make the work faster, easier and consistent. Spencer (1981) described office automation as the process of replacing human work with work done by machines or system designed to perform a specific combination of action automatically or repeatedly. As noted by (Edwin, 2008), the roles of secretaries in contemporary times have changed tremendously from the traditional roles. They have access to modern office technology such as the internet, intercom and fax. These technologies make work much easier. Dulek and Fielden (1999) also noted that it is easier to send messages using telex, electronic mails, fax and telephones. He noted that the era of computers and information technology helps users to write and edit and send memos, letters and reports. According to Duniya (2011) modern day offices are equipped with technologically sophisticated gadgets that inform accuracy and efficiency of work output.
Chukwumezie (2002) stated that, if an office must function effectively especially in this country, the organization must go technologically in its basic operation. Onifade (2009) stated that machined make for higher accuracy and speedy operations and reduces work tensions and also relieves monotony and fatigue on the part of workers. As noted by (Edwin, 2008), the roles of secretaries in contemporary times have changed tremendously from the traditional roles. They have access to modern office technology such as the internet, intercom and fax. These technologies make work much easier. Dulek and Fielden (1999) also noted that it is easier to send messages using telex, electronic mails, fax and telephones. He noted that the era of computers and information technology helps users to write and edit and send memos, letters and reports. According to Duniya (2011) , modern day offices are equipped with technologically sophisticated gadgets that informs accuracy and efficiency of work output.
Information and Communication Technology (ICT) is concerned with managing and processing information. This is made possible through the use of electronic computers and computer software to manage information (Okute, 2001). According to Atakpa (2010), secretarial functions the world over have undergone tremendous technical transformations. He noted further that secretarial functions which were previously done manually have been mechanized. On the other hand, Okwuanaso and Obayi (2003) have noted that ICT has posed several challenges to secretaries in the execution of their duties. Supporting this claim, Eze (2000) asserted that any office staff of today that is lacking in Information Communication Technology would find work boring and uninteresting.
CHAPTER THREE
METHODOLOGY
Research Design
The survey method was adopted for the study. This is a quantitative study, and an appropriate quantitative data analysis approach is undertaken. According to Willis (2010), quantitative research is about asking people for their opinions in a structured way so that facts and statistics can be produced to guide the researcher in answering the research question.
Population of Study
The target population comprised of 96 secretaries working in the various departments and units in government ministries in Oru West L.G.A. of Imo state. The population of the study comprises male and female, as well as high and low experienced secretaries.
Sample Size and Sampling Procedure
The sample for this study comprised of the ninety-six (96) secretaries which was sampled from the entire population on probability based on simple random techniques. In random sampling the researcher adopted the technique whereby all the workers in an organization were given chance of being chosen in the sample, where in the non-random sampling, the researcher applied the selection methods in which personal knowledge and opinion are examined in the process of getting information.
CHAPTER FOUR
DATA PRESENTATION AND ANALYSIS
This chapter presents the analysis of data derived through the questionnaire and key informant interview administered on the respondents in the study area. The analysis and interpretation were derived from the findings of the study. The data analysis depicts the simple frequency and percentage of the respondents as well as interpretation of the information gathered.
CHAPTER FIVE
CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATION
CONCLUSION
The study examined The Effects Of Modern Office Automation On The Productivity Of Secretaries. The result of the study showed that most of the ICT resources such as software that produces printer-based products, e-mail facilities, telecommunication gadgets, internet facilities etc are available in government ministries and these have greatly enabled the secretaries to manage and process information effectively and has also contributed significantly to the growth of the ministries. Based on the findings of this study, the following conclusion was made: Advances in ICT and availability of ICT resources such as internet, e-mail, videoconferencing etc have made information and communication processes a lot easier in modern organizations. The secretaries on their part need to acquire new and requisite skills to remain relevant on their jobs. The effectiveness of a secretary is a modern organisation strongly depends on the availability of office technologies as well as their skills. Based on the findings of this study, it can be concluded that office automation greatly influence secretaries’ interpersonal skills, personal quality, professional behaviour and job related skills.
RECOMMENDATION
Having examined the influence of office automation on secretaries’ performance in government ministries, the following recommendations are made:
- Government ministries should endeavor to organize training and development programmes that will further enhance the effective performance of secretaries through acquisition of additional skills. Job training is the ultimate purpose to reach a level of productivity. Therefore, there is need for training and re-training of secretaries on ICT in order to achieve maximum output.
- Secretaries should always be ready and open-minded to acquire additional training/skills development, bearing in mind that changes occur frequently in the line of their chosen career and they are not left behind in the use of ICT in this digital age.
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