Technology

Office automation systems are used by companies to make communication easier and faster (Laudon and Laudon, 1994). My organization has acquired the software, hardware and a number of network applications to make office operations easier and economical. The office automation software used in my organization is used to exchange information, manage administrative data, handle numerical data, manage work schedules and plan for meetings. All this is possible through the use of spreadsheets word processor, databases, email, internet browser, presentations and desktop publisher.

Like all technology, office automation tools also come with their benefits as well as pitfalls (Richards, 2008).

Advantages
Data entry using office automation is much easier as compared to doing it manually.

There is no redundancy in data entry.

The overall office work is less tedious. This makes the total workload for everyone in the organization less than it would have been had it not been for office automation.

The risk of loosing data in the case of am accident such as a fire is minimized. The data can be retrieved off site when such an accident occurs, or in case of an emergency.

Multiple communications is possible. For instance, if there is a change in the daily schedule, different people can be notified all at once.

Disadvantages
It requires constant upgrading
A lot of the older staff have difficulties using the software
Regular training for employees is required. This involves using a lot of the companys resources.

In case data is not entered correctly, that is, if it is misfiled, it will be hard to locate it in the system.

Group Collaboration Software in My Organization
According to Lively and Glenn (1996), Group collaboration software is the software used by company employees to work on the same problems. Some of the group collaboration software in my organization includes a Task Manager for Workgroups. This allows everyone in the company to share task definitions and different tasks that are assigned to different people who are part of the workgroup. Each department normally has its own workgroup.

There is also a web calendar that is used to schedule the companys and group events.

There are a number of advantages and disadvantages that come with group collaboration software (Lively and Glenn, 1994).

Advantages
More people in the company have access to crucial information.

Team work is enhanced through the use of group collaboration software, and different teams can work together without a problem.

Disadvantages
Initially the installation cost was a bit high.

Not all people are conversant with how the software works.