Functions of Office Manager

A manager is a person who works with men, materials and machines to achieve some specific objectives. A person who is in charge of an office is known as office manager. He not only supervises the office work but also organises and controls all the office activities. The functions of an office manager vary from organisation to organisation depending on the volume and nature of business activity. In a small organisation office could be a one-man show. He may carry out all office activities e.g. typing, filing and despatching, however, in a big organisation he performs managerial functions which involve getting work done through and with the cooperation of office staff.

1. As mentioned earlier office work is basically a service function. The office manager, therefore, has to plan activities, and decide who should perform what and when. Office activities must be planned and organised in such a manner that the service function- is performed efficiently and economically.

2. As business expands, the volume of office work also increases. This invariably requires the decision to be taken with regard to the location of the office premises and its layout. Designing and setting up effective systems and procedures for handling office operation also depends on the office manager’s judgement.

For a large organisation, office services require the employment of people having necessary skill capabilities for different types of office jobs. Besides recruiting office personnel, the office manager has to provide for their training as well.

4. Choice of suitable furniture, equipment and machines for the office requires consideration of the office manager from the point of view of their usefulness, costs and benefits expected to be derived.

5. The office manager is responsible for providing a congenial working environment to his staff to enable them to contribute their best efforts while discharging’ assigned duties. Proper ventilation and lighting. adequate moving space and provision of rest rooms, etc. are essential pre-requisites of a good office environment.

6. Organisation and maintenance of the communication system is another important function of an office manager. Modem intercom facilities and private automatic telephone exchanges are widely used in modern offices. Telex and Fax can also be used for quick transmission .of information to distant places.

7. Coordination and control of different office activities, correspondence, typing, duplicating, filing, data processing, etc. constitute the most vital functions of the office manager, which ensure the smooth and efficient running of the office routines.