OFFICE MANAGEMENT.

Auckland Star, Volume LIII, Issue 143, 19 June 1922, Page 7

OFFICE MANAGEMENT.

A TALK TO ROTARIAXS. A useful talk on '"Office Management was given to the members of the Auckland Rotary Club at. the weekly lunch held to-day in tbe Town Hall supper room. The author of tho paper was Mr. A. .1. Hutchinson, the club's secretary, lie said tho first thing that struck him in connection with New Zealand oflice work was the high standard of accountancy, lioth as regarded internal accountancy and outside accountancy or audit I work. The. second thing that impressed hint was the serious way in which office |men wore handicapped by the owner. ; general manager, or board's niisco-neep-jtion of what a properly equipped and j managed oflice meant to the business. The third point was the office manager's lor accountant's lack of knowledge of 'mechanical and other office appliances, land their use and application. Mr. I Hutchinson after referring to the imjportancc of the proper uee of such office 1 appliances as typewriters, duplicators. 'addressing machines, filing cabinets and systems. adding and calculating machines, spoke of two important branches ol accountancy that were sadly neglected in New Zealand. Those two were stock recording and cost keeping. While nil office manager or accountantwould not bo content to close the day's ! business until the cash was balanced, did he worry much about the cash in the form of merchandise? Did he : balance all the cash in various form-; that he had passed out on promises to pay, all the cash he had accepted in various, forms in the way of incoming merchandise? Broadly speaking he. never gave it n. thougift. A penpy on the floor would not be passed (if he caw it) by the most cureless man, but a pound in the form of stock wasted or lost passed unnoticed. If proper stock aud sales records were kept, a man knew exactly when lie i would need to order again, and shortjages by overweight or measure, and pilfering were disclosed. Excessive buying j was also checked. When he advocated this matter of stock recording some ot the people he advised said it was all {'I'ight for linns specialising in one or two lines, but it would mean too much cost and work for a general business. Most of the great wholesale and retail houses i» Canada and America wore. following out the system and had proved that it was invaluable. Mr. Hutchinson sketched a system of stock-recording. and then wont on to speak of training, assistant*, the. real moaning of the credit system, and general office methods.