Systems Approach in AOS OSM 553 – Administrative Office Management III

Topic
Topic 22

Systems
Systems Approach
Approach in
in Administrative
Administrative Office
Office
System
System

1
Systems Approach in AOS OSM 553 – Administrative Office Management III

2.1 What is a System?

Integrated Systems
Are used by many organizations to control office
costs and improve their operating efficiency.
Areas typically incorporated into integrated systems
include these:
Sales
Finance Production

Purchasing Marketing
2
Systems Approach in AOS OSM 553 – Administrative Office Management III

Are often comprised

of several subsystems,
Integrated which commonly
Systems encompass the
organization’s
functional areas.

3
Systems Approach in AOS OSM 553 – Administrative Office Management III

Functional
Functional Systems
Systems and
and Subsystems
Subsystems
Incorporate
Incorporate Several
Several Components:
Components:

Employees
Employees Equipment
Equipment

Forms/
Forms/
Materials
Materials

4
Systems Approach in AOS OSM 553 – Administrative Office Management III

Is a series of subsystems
comprised of interrelated
System
procedures to help achieve a
well-defined goal.

Consist of related methods

Procedures necessary to complete various
work processes.

5
Systems Approach in AOS OSM 553 – Administrative Office Management III

Procedure
A planned sequence of operations for handling recurring
transactions uniformly and consistently.

Method
Represents a manual, mechanical, or automated means by
which each procedural step is performed.

What determines which method to be used?

• Nature of the system’s needs
• The skills and preferences of the workers
• The cost and availability of equipment
6
Systems Approach in AOS OSM 553 – Administrative Office Management III

2.1.1Administrative Office Systems Functions

Key Elements in AOS

• system is defined as more specific and work-related
• specialized systems are responsible for planning,
organizing, operating, & controlling

Main systems objective:

• to provide appropriate information and service
for management’s use in making decisions

7
Systems Approach in AOS OSM 553 – Administrative Office Management III

System
• A set of related elements that are linked together according to
a plan for achieving a specific objective

Use of Leffingwell’s Principles of Effective Work:

• Making decisions on what work is to be done

• How it is to be done
• Who will do the work
• When the work will be done and
• How well the work has been done

8
Systems Approach in AOS OSM 553 – Administrative Office Management III

Fig. 4-1: KEY ELEMENTS IN AOS

Controls

Physical
Resources
+
Methods of Goals of the
PERSONNEL Require Data + Using To AOS:
Resources and Achieve Desired
+ Data Info./Service

Media for
Using Data

Controls

9
Systems Approach in AOS OSM 553 – Administrative Office Management III

Fig. 4-1 emphasizes the primary role of personnel in

managing, supervising, and doing the work.
• Use of physical resources
• Use of data
• Use of media

2.1.2 Major Administrative Office Systems

• Purchasing, Sales, Production, Finance, Accounting and
Human Resources
• Large organizations or decentralized depts. might have
more functions.
10
Systems Approach in AOS OSM 553 – Administrative Office Management III

Fig. 4-2 – Systems and Sub-Systems of Admin.

Office management

SALES
SYSTEM FINANCE
SYSTEM
PURCHASING
SYSTEM
THE FIRM
(The Total HUMAN
System) RESOURCE
ACCOUNTING
SYSTEM ADMIN.
PRODUCTION OFFICE
SYSTEM SYSTEM

11
Systems Approach in AOS OSM 553 – Administrative Office Management III

2.2 Objectives of AOS

Personnel in AOS is responsible to achieve
organizational goals.
• To plan, design, operate, and control systems that
result in the highest levels of productivity at the lowest
possible cost.

12
 Objectives of AOS
•Establish an efficient, uniform procedure to follow for each
similar transaction.

•Design systems that ensure safer, less fatiguing work.

•Eliminate unnecessary work or the duplication of work.

•Automate repetitive, routine tasks where possible when

automatic equipment will do the work more quickly, more
accurately, more economically and more reliably.

•Furnish the best information, in the right format, to the right

people at an appropriate time, at the least cost, and in the right
amount so improved decision making results.

•Determine responsibility for satisfactory work performance.

13
Systems Approach in AOS OSM 553 – Administrative Office Management III

2.3
2.3 Advantages
Advantages of
of Systems
Systems

1. Various functions of the organization are better

coordinated.
2. Wasteful, unproductive, and uneconomical
activities are eliminated.
3. The operating efficiency of the organization is
improved.
4. More effective control can be exerted over various
activities and functions.
14
Systems Approach in AOS OSM 553 – Administrative Office Management III

Disadvantages
Disadvantages of
of Systems
Systems

1. A certain amount of operating flexibility may be

destroyed when using a system.
2. Any inefficiency that is built into the system likely
will disproportionately increase as work flows
through the system.
3. A totally integrated system may be affected
somewhat when changes are made in one of its
subsystems.
15
Systems Approach in AOS OSM 553 – Administrative Office Management III

2.4
2.4 Characteristics
Characteristics of
of Well-Designed
Well-Designed Systems
Systems

Flexible
Adaptable

Systematic
Functional

Simple
Resourceful
16
Systems Approach in AOS OSM 553 – Administrative Office Management III

Elements
Elements of
of Systems
Systems
(1
(1 of
of 2)
2)
Flow of work through a system
Input begins with the input of some
type of resource.

The transformation of input into

desired output takes place during
the processing element, which
Processing
is composed of methods and
procedures.
17
Systems Approach in AOS OSM 553 – Administrative Office Management III

Elements
Elements ofof Systems
Systems
(2
(2 of
of 2)
2)
Interaction between the input
Output and processing elements
produces output.

Enables the system to determine

Feedback whether results are meeting
expectations.

Controlling Has both internal and external

dimensions.
18
Systems Approach in AOS OSM 553 – Administrative Office Management III

2.5 Systems Problems

Feasibility study –

A method that seeks to find whether

specific systems operations can be improved and if the
addition of the new resources is economically justified for
making improvement.

19
 Steps in Making a Feasibility Study

•Define the nature and scope of the problem as well as the

objectives to be achieved by the study.

•Gather data on current operations through personal interview and

questionnaire.

•Analyze the data collected by studying the work/ data flow,

including space assignments, personnel and equipment used.

•Develop an approach for solving the problem, including the

factual information that logically defends the approach.

•Present the completed feasibility study to management for their

consideration and action. 20
Systems Approach in AOS OSM 553 – Administrative Office Management III

2.6 Basic Systems Concepts

2.6.1 Two classes of systems:
• Open System – interacts with its environment
• Closed System – does not interact with its
environment; operates as a self-regulating unit.
AOMs deal only with open systems in business firms.
Phases of an open system:
• Systems Phase 1
Input
• Systems Phase 2
Transformation Process – changes input into a desired form

21
Systems Approach in AOS OSM 553 – Administrative Office Management III

• Systems Phase 3
Output – ultimate goal of a system
• Systems Phase 4
Feedback – regulating force that compares the system’s
output (what was produced) with the stds. of performance
(what should have been produced).
• Systems Phase 5
Control – dictates what can and cannot be done in each of
the other phases
Systems boundary – dotted lines define the scope of an
open system and separates a system from its
environment.
22
Systems Approach in AOS OSM 553 – Administrative Office Management III

2.6.2 The General Systems Model

Model – An ideal form of operation
• Model Office
In systems work, a model:
Explains in simplified, general form the complex
interrelationships and activities of an organization
or its parts.

Solid lines – becomes a closed system

Systems environment – sets up controls that affect
the
operations of the firm.
Fig. 4-6 – Common system examples
23
Systems Approach in AOS OSM 553 – Administrative Office Management III

Fig. 4-5- THE SYSTEMS ENVIRONMENT

ECONOMIC SYSTEM
LEGAL SYSTEM
TRANSPORTATION
SOCIAL SYSTEM SYSTEM
55 CONTROLS
CONTROLS
THE SYSTEM THE SYSTEM

22TRANS-
TRANS-
Input
Output
Output 11 INPUT
INPUT FORMA-
FORMA- 33 OUTPUT
OUTPUT Input
from Data,labor
Data, labor General: Profit
General: Profit to
to
from TION
TION
another andmaterials,
and materials, Productivity
Productivity another
another
another Human
Human
system equipment,
equipment, Specific: Products
Specific: Products system
system
system and
and
andmoney
and money machine Service,sales
Service, sales
machine

44 FEEDBACK
FEEDBACK
SYSTEMS
BOUNDARY
POLITICAL SYSTEM EDUCATIONAL SYSTEM
ETHICAL SYSTEM
24
Systems Approach in AOS OSM 553 – Administrative Office Management III

2.6.3 Systems Structure

• systems hierarchy – related to org. chart
Total System – Subsystems Relationship
Major System- information system (MIS)
Subsystem
Information Systems
Database – central master file containing company-
wide information from the major systems of the firm.

25
Systems Approach in AOS OSM 553 – Administrative Office Management III

2.6.4 Systems Levels

Manual Systems
Mechanical Systems
Computer Systems

2.7 Typical Areas for Systems Studies

• Workflow
• Forms
• Equipment Use
• Personnel Use
• Systems Costs 26
Systems Approach in AOS OSM 553 – Administrative Office Management III

2.8 The Human System

Most important. element in the office
• expectations, behavior & performance of people
• office manager and office staff – key input to office job
• individual and group inputs
• by understanding philosophies of behavioral and systems
schools of management thought managers can effectively
consider employee and company goals in systems planning.
• therefore, objectives of AOS can be achieved: job
satisfaction for the workers and profit making for the firm.

27