Use of Information Technology in Office and Accounting (कार्यालय सञ्चालन र लेखामा सूचना प्रविधिको प्रयोग)

Thirty years ago an office was paper, a typewriter and a ledger. Today it is a computer, a network, a printer and a software package, and the ledger is a database. Information technology has changed not only the speed of office work but the nature of it: a salary sheet that took three days is produced in an hour, a bank reconciliation that took a morning takes a minute, and the accounts of a whole country can be consolidated overnight. This unit explains what information technology is, the office packages and the internet, what the computer is used for in an office, its advantages and disadvantages, the software used in business accounting, and the information systems used in Nepal's government accounting.

15.1 Computer and information technology: introduction

A computer is an electronic device that accepts data, processes it according to a set of stored instructions, stores the result and gives it out in a usable form. Its working cycle is input → process → store → output, and its five physical parts are the input unit, the processing unit (the CPU), the memory, the output unit and the storage devices.

Information technology (सूचना प्रविधि) is the whole set of devices, software, networks and methods by which information is collected, stored, processed and communicated. Information technology is therefore wider than the computer: it includes the printer, the scanner, the telephone, the internet, the software and the people who use them.

Main components.

Component	What it does	Examples
Hardware	The physical equipment	CPU, monitor, keyboard, mouse, printer, scanner, router
Software	The instructions that make the hardware work	Operating system (Windows, Linux), application packages (Word, Excel)
Network	The connection between computers	LAN in an office, the internet, Wi-Fi
Data	The raw facts the office works with	Names, amounts, dates, stock quantities
People	The users	Clerk, accountant, manager, computer operator
Procedures	The rules for using the system	Password policy, daily backup, entry checks

An office needs all six. A computer with no trained operator, or with no rule about backup, is not an information system — it is a piece of furniture.

15.2 Office packages used in office operation

An office package (अफिस प्याकेज) is a set of application software that does the ordinary work of an office. The commonest is the Microsoft Office family, with free alternatives such as LibreOffice.

Package	What it is for	An example of its use
Word processor (Word)	Typing, formatting and printing text	A letter, a notice, a report, a memorandum, a contract
Spreadsheet (Excel)	Calculations in rows and columns, with formulae, charts and sorting	A salary sheet, a budget, a stock register, a bank reconciliation
Presentation (PowerPoint)	Slide shows	A briefing to the office head, a training session, a project proposal
Database (Access)	Storing and querying large structured records	A staff database, a store register, a debtors list
Accounting package (Tally, Swastik)	Recording transactions and producing the accounts	Day books, ledgers, trial balance, final accounts
E-mail and calendar	Sending messages and fixing appointments	Official correspondence, meeting invitations
Graphics and PDF tools	Preparing and reading documents in a fixed form	Designing a notice, converting a report to PDF

Spreadsheet uses worth remembering for the exam. In a spreadsheet the cell holds a value or a formula; a formula begins with = and refers to other cells (for example =SUM(B2:B20)); and when the figure in a cell changes, every result that depends on it updates by itself. That one feature — automatic recalculation — is why a spreadsheet is the office's most useful tool for salary sheets, budgets, stock registers and depreciation schedules.

15.3 Internet: introduction and use in an office

The internet is a worldwide network of computers that are connected to one another and can exchange information using common rules (protocols). The World Wide Web is the part of the internet that carries pages of information; e-mail carries messages; and other services carry files, voice and video.

Uses of the internet in an office.

1. Communication — e-mail, instant messaging and video meetings, which replace much of the post and much of the travel.
2. Information — searching for a rate, a rule, a circular, a standard, a supplier's catalogue, or a government form.
3. Government services — filing tax and VAT returns, registering a company, applying for a licence, checking a PAN, downloading an official form.
4. Banking — checking a balance, transferring funds, paying a bill; internet banking means the office does not have to visit the branch.
5. Publishing — an office's own website or social media page carries notices, results and tenders to the public at almost no cost.
6. Cloud working — documents and accounts kept on a remote server, so that staff in two districts can work on the same file.
7. Procurement — electronic government procurement (E-GP) publishes tenders and receives bids online.

The internet also brings risk: electronic fraud, phishing messages that look like a bank's, viruses, and the leakage of confidential information. An office therefore needs a written policy on what may be sent, which sites may be used and how passwords and backups are handled.

15.4 Use of computer technology in office operation

Area of office work	How the computer is used
Correspondence	Letters, notices and reports typed in Word, stored in folders, mailed out and filed electronically
Records and filing	Scanning paper into electronic files; naming and storing them in a folder structure; searching by name, number or date instead of walking to the record room
Accounts	Day books, ledgers, trial balance and final accounts in an accounting package; automatic posting and automatic totals
Payroll	Salary computed from a spreadsheet or payroll software, with provident fund, income tax and other deductions calculated automatically
Store and inventory	Bin card and store ledger maintained in a database; the balance updates on every receipt and issue; a reorder alert when stock falls
Budgeting and reporting	Spreadsheets preparing the budget, comparing actual with budget, and drawing graphs for the monthly report
Bank work	Bank reconciliation and internet banking
Communication	E-mail, video meetings, shared calendars
Data analysis	Sorting and filtering data, preparing charts, finding an average or a total in a moment
Security	Passwords and user rights limiting who may see and change which record; audit trails showing who entered what

The last row is important. A computer system can be more controlled than a paper one, because it can be made to record what it did and who did it. But that only happens if the office sets the user rights and reads the log.

15.5 Advantages and disadvantages of information technology

Advantages.

1. Speed — a calculation that took an hour is done in a moment.
2. Accuracy — the machine does not make arithmetic mistakes; errors come from the data entered, not from the adding.
3. Storage and retrieval — thousands of records in a small space, found in seconds.
4. Automatic posting and updating — one entry updates the ledger, the trial balance and the reports.
5. Reporting — statements and charts produced at any time, for any period, without rewriting anything.
6. Communication — instant, cheap and documented.
7. Less paper and less space — an electronic record needs no cabinet.
8. Better control — user rights, passwords and audit trails.
9. Consistency — the same format and the same calculation for everybody.

Disadvantages.

1. Cost — hardware, software, licences, maintenance, internet and training are expensive for a small office.
2. Dependence — if the system fails, the work stops; a paper office can still write with a pen.
3. Data loss — a hard disk failure, a virus or a fire can destroy everything unless there is a backup.
4. Fraud and hacking — electronic money can be moved in a moment and records can be altered; without controls the fraud is larger and harder to trace.
5. Training — staff must be trained, and staff change.
6. Unemployment — routine clerical jobs are reduced, which is a social cost.
7. Health — long hours at a screen cause eye strain, backache and repetitive strain.
8. Garbage in, garbage out — a computer is only as good as the data entered; a wrong entry produces wrong accounts faster than a clerk ever could.
9. Loss of the paper trail — unless the system keeps an audit trail, there is no signed voucher to check afterwards.
10. Obsolescence — hardware and software must be replaced every few years.

15.6 Use of information technology in business accounting

In a business, the computer has changed accounting from a manual task into a system.

Recording. Transactions are entered once in the accounting package from the voucher. The package posts the entry to the ledger automatically, so there is no separate posting stage and no posting error.

Ledgers and trial balance. The ledger, the debtors' and creditors' accounts and the trial balance are always up to date — not at the end of the month, but at the moment of entry.

Final accounts. The trading account, the profit and loss account and the balance sheet are produced for any period at the press of a key, together with the ratios, the graphs and the comparison with last year.

Specific jobs. Payroll with statutory deductions; inventory valuation by FIFO or weighted average; depreciation computed automatically from the asset register; bank reconciliation against an imported bank statement; VAT computation and the tax invoice; ageing of debtors; and the budget against actual statement.

Controls in a computerised system. The advantages come with duties: passwords and user rights so that only the authorised person may enter or change an entry; a backup taken daily and kept in a second place; the audit trail left on, so that every entry shows who made it and when; a check that the data entered agrees with the voucher; and a printed copy of the statements signed and filed, because an electronic file alone is not evidence.

Accounting software used in Nepal. For trading and small businesses: Tally, Swastik, Easy Account, Quick Book. For banks and financial institutions: Pumori, Finacle, FlexCube, Globus. For non-profit and social organisations: FASS, Peach Tree. The choice depends on the size of the business, the number of users and the reporting the law requires.

15.7 Information systems used in Nepal's government accounting

Government accounting has its own systems, because a government office must answer to the budget, the release, the chart of accounts and the auditor, and ordinary commercial software does not do that. Nepal has built a family of them.

System	Full name	What it does
BMIS	Budget Management Information System	Budget preparation, release and budget transfer; used in the Ministry of Finance
LMBIS	Line Ministry Budget Information System	Budget formulation and implementation by every ministry, department and government office; the provinces use PLMBIS
FMIS	Financial Management Information System	An integrated national financial reporting system; operated by the Financial Comptroller General Office
TSA	Treasury Single Account	The single account system through which the budget is released and spent, one account per district or area; operated by the Treasury and Comptroller Offices; in force at the federal and provincial levels
CGAS	Computerized Government Accounting System	Activity-based accounting system linked with LMBIS; records expenditure activity by activity and produces the reports; under the FCGO
SUTRA	Sub-National Treasury Regulatory Application	The integrated system for the local levels — budget preparation, execution, accounting and reporting
Others	PAMS public asset management, PMIS pension management, E-GP electronic government procurement, ITS integrated tax system, RAS revenue administration system	Asset records, pension records and payments, online tendering, tax administration and revenue collection

Why these systems matter. Together they make the government's finances visible. The Ministry of Finance can see the budget it prepared being executed; the FCGO can see every office's expenditure as it happens instead of waiting for a monthly return; the Auditor General can test the data rather than only the paper; and a citizen can read a published financial statement. They also make control possible: a payment beyond the release or against a wrong head is refused by the system rather than discovered by the auditor two years later.

Chapter summary

• A computer accepts data, processes it by stored instructions, stores it and outputs it; its parts are the input unit, the processing unit, memory, the output unit and storage.
• Information technology is the whole set of hardware, software, networks, data, people and procedures by which information is collected, stored, processed and communicated.
• Office packages are the application software of an office: the word processor (letters and reports), the spreadsheet (salary sheets, budgets, registers), the presentation package (slides), the database (large structured records), the accounting package (double-entry accounts) and e-mail.
• In a spreadsheet, a formula refers to other cells and the results update automatically when a figure changes — which is why it is the office tool for repeated calculations.
• The internet is a worldwide network of computers using common rules. An office uses it for communication, information, government services, banking, publishing, cloud working and electronic procurement, and must guard against fraud, phishing, viruses and leakage.
• A computer is used in an office for correspondence, electronic filing, accounts, payroll, stores, budgeting, bank work, communication, data analysis and security.
• The advantages of information technology are speed, accuracy, storage and retrieval, automatic posting, instant reporting, communication, less paper, better control and consistency. The disadvantages are cost, dependence, data loss, fraud and hacking, training, unemployment, health, garbage in garbage out, loss of the paper trail and obsolescence.
• In business accounting, the computer records the transaction once, posts it automatically, keeps the ledgers and trial balance always current, and produces the final accounts and reports for any period. It needs controls: passwords and user rights, daily backup, the audit trail, and printed signed copies. Software used in Nepal includes Tally, Swastik, Easy Account, Quick Book; in banks, Pumori, Finacle, FlexCube, Globus.
• In government accounting Nepal uses BMIS (budget preparation, release and transfer in the Ministry of Finance), LMBIS (line ministry budget formulation and implementation; PLMBIS in the provinces), FMIS (integrated national financial reporting, FCGO), TSA (the single account through which the budget is released and spent, operated by the Treasury and Comptroller Offices), CGAS (activity-based accounting linked to LMBIS, under the FCGO) and SUTRA (the integrated system for local levels), besides PAMS, PMIS, E-GP, ITS and RAS.
• These systems make the government's finances visible and its controls automatic, and they are integrated, so a figure entered at one end is seen at the other.

Practice questions

Group A — Very short answer (1 mark each)

1. What is a computer? [1]
2. What is information technology? [1]
3. Write any two components of an information system. [1]
4. What is an office package? Write any two names. [1]
5. Write one use of a word processor in an office. [1]
6. Write one use of a spreadsheet in an office. [1]
7. What is the internet? [1]
8. Write any two uses of the internet in an office. [1]
9. Write any two advantages of information technology. [1]
10. Write any two disadvantages of information technology. [1]
11. Name any two accounting software used in Nepal. [1]
12. Write the full form of LMBIS or SUTRA. [1]

Answers to Group A

1. A computer is an electronic device that accepts data, processes it according to stored instructions, stores the result and gives it out in a usable form.

2. Information technology is the whole set of devices, software, networks and methods by which information is collected, stored, processed and communicated.

3. Any two of: hardware, software, network, data, people, procedures.

4. An office package is a set of application software that does the ordinary work of an office; examples are Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Access.

5. Typing and formatting a letter, notice, report or memorandum and printing it.

6. Preparing a salary sheet, budget, stock register or bank reconciliation with formulae and totals.

7. The internet is a worldwide network of computers connected to one another so that they can exchange information using common rules.

8. Any two of: e-mail; searching for information; filing tax and VAT returns and other government services; internet banking; publishing notices; cloud working; electronic procurement.

9. Any two of: speed; accuracy; storage and retrieval; automatic posting and updating; instant reporting; communication; less paper; better control; consistency.

10. Any two of: cost; dependence on the system; data loss; fraud and hacking; training; unemployment; health problems; garbage in garbage out; loss of the paper trail; obsolescence.

11. Any two of: Tally, Swastik, Easy Account, Quick Book.

12. LMBIS — Line Ministry Budget Information System; SUTRA — Sub-National Treasury Regulatory Application.

Group B — Short answer (5 marks each)

1. What is information technology? Explain its main components and any three office packages used in an office. [5]
2. Explain the advantages and disadvantages of information technology in an office. [5]
3. Explain the use of computers in office operation. [5]
4. Explain the use of information technology in business accounting, and name the accounting software used in Nepal. [5]
5. Write in brief about the information systems used in Nepal's government accounting. [5]
6. Explain the use of the internet in an office and the precautions an office must take. [5]

Answers to Group B

1. Definition as in Group A answer 2. Components: hardware (CPU, monitor, keyboard, printer, scanner), software (operating system and application packages), network (LAN, internet), data, people and procedures — all six are needed. Office packages: word processor for letters and reports; spreadsheet for salary sheets and calculations with formulae; presentation package for slides; database for large records; accounting package for double entry. (Any three explained.)

2. Advantages: speed, accuracy, storage and retrieval, automatic posting and updating, instant reporting, cheap communication, less paper and space, better control by user rights and audit trails, and consistency. Disadvantages: high cost of hardware, software and training; dependence on the system; risk of total data loss without backup; electronic fraud and hacking; the need to train staff; reduction of routine clerical jobs; health effects such as eye strain; garbage in garbage out; the loss of the signed paper trail unless an audit trail is kept; and quick obsolescence.

3. Correspondence typed and printed; records scanned and filed electronically and searched by name or number; accounts kept in a package with automatic posting and totals; payroll computed with deductions; store and inventory kept in a database with an updating balance and a reorder alert; budgets prepared and compared with actuals on a spreadsheet; bank reconciliation and internet banking; e-mail and video meetings; data analysis with sorting, filtering and charts; and security through passwords, user rights and audit trails.

4. The transaction is entered once from the voucher and posted automatically; the ledger, the debtors' and creditors' accounts and the trial balance are current at all times; the final accounts and reports are produced for any period, with ratios and graphs; payroll, inventory valuation, depreciation, bank reconciliation, VAT computation and the ageing of debtors are all automated. Controls needed: passwords and user rights, daily backup kept elsewhere, the audit trail on, checking data against the voucher, and printed signed copies filed. Software: Tally, Swastik, Easy Account, Quick Book for business; Pumori, Finacle, FlexCube, Globus for banks; FASS and Peach Tree for non-profit organisations.

5. BMIS — budget preparation, release and transfer, used in the Ministry of Finance; LMBIS — budget formulation and implementation by every ministry, department and office, with PLMBIS in the provinces; FMIS — the integrated national financial reporting system operated by the FCGO; TSA — the Treasury Single Account through which the budget is released and spent, operated by the Treasury and Comptroller Offices and applied at the federal and provincial levels; CGAS — the activity-based accounting system linked to LMBIS, under the FCGO; SUTRA — the integrated system for local levels covering budget, execution, accounting and reporting; and other systems such as PAMS for public assets, PMIS for pensions, E-GP for electronic procurement, ITS for tax and RAS for revenue administration. Together they make the government's finances visible and its controls automatic.

6. Uses: e-mail and instant messaging; video meetings; searching for information, rules, forms and rates; government services such as filing tax and VAT returns and applying for registration or a licence; internet banking; publishing notices and tenders; cloud working on a shared file; and electronic government procurement. Precautions: a written internet-use policy; strong passwords changed regularly; no confidential file sent over an unsecured channel; care about phishing messages that imitate a bank or the tax office; antivirus software and updates; no unlicensed software; a daily backup kept in a second place; and restricted access so that only the authorised staff see confidential records.

Group C — Long answer (8 marks each)

1. What is information technology? Explain the use of the computer in office operation and the advantages and disadvantages of information technology. [8]
2. Explain the information systems used in Nepal's government accounting, and describe the software used in business accounting and the controls a computerised accounting system needs. [8]

Answers to Group C

1. Definition and components (2). Definition as in Group A answer 2; components — hardware, software, network, data, people and procedures — explained in a line each. Use in office operation (3). Correspondence; electronic filing and retrieval; accounts with automatic posting; payroll; store and inventory; budgeting and reporting; bank work and internet banking; communication; data analysis; security through user rights and audit trails. Explain each with a concrete example. Advantages and disadvantages (3). Advantages: speed, accuracy, storage and retrieval, automatic posting, instant reporting, communication, less paper, better control, consistency. Disadvantages: cost, dependence, data loss, fraud and hacking, training, unemployment, health, garbage in garbage out, loss of the paper trail, obsolescence. Weigh them: the advantage is real only when the volume of work justifies the cost and the controls — training, backup and audit trail — are in place.

2. Government systems (4). BMIS, LMBIS (and PLMBIS in the provinces), FMIS, TSA, CGAS and SUTRA, with PAMS, PMIS, E-GP, ITS and RAS as others. Name each with its full form and its one job, and state that they are integrated, so a figure entered at one end is visible at the other — and that they make control automatic, since a payment beyond the release or against a wrong head is refused by the system. Business software and controls (4). Accounting software for trading and small businesses (Tally, Swastik, Easy Account, Quick Book); for banks and financial institutions (Pumori, Finacle, FlexCube, Globus); for non-profit organisations (FASS, Peach Tree). What such software does: single entry from the voucher with automatic posting; ledgers and trial balance always current; final accounts for any period; payroll, inventory, depreciation, bank reconciliation and VAT. Controls it needs: passwords and user rights so that only the authorised person may enter or alter an entry; a daily backup kept in a second place; the audit trail left on so that every entry shows who made it and when; checking each entry against its voucher; printed signed copies of the statements filed as evidence; and a tested recovery plan. Close with the principle: a computer is only as good as the data entered, and computerisation improves the accounts only when the controls are in place.