Caribbean Secondary Examination Council

Office Administration
School Based Assessment

Name of Candidate: Timothy Pahalad

Centre Code: 090048
Candidate Number: 090048
Name of Centre: Skeldon Line Path Secondary School
Title of Project: Communication and Operations, Dispatch and
Transport Services
Year of Exam: 2019
Territory: Guyana
Name of Teacher: Ravin Ragbeer
Date Submitted: 2019-01-23
 Table of Contents

Contents Page Number

Acknowledgement ……………………………………………………..... 1
Introduction ……………………………………………………………… 2

Criteria One: Preparation

Title of Project…………………………………………………………… 4
Aim of Project …………………………………………………………… 5
Function of Relevant Department………………………………………... 6
Correspondence Letter…………………………………………………… 7

Criteria Two: Gathering Data

Methodology…………………………………………………………….. 9
Five Questions asked……………………………………………………. 10
Schedule of Activities …………………………………………………... 11
Regulations and Policies ………………………………………………... 12

Criteria Three: Presentation

Report…………………………………………………………………… 14
Limitations, Findings, Recommendation……………………………….. 15
Conclusion……………………………………………………………… 17
Impact of Office Equipment……………………………………………. 18
Bibliography……………………………………………………………. 19
Appendix ……………………………………………………………….
Questionnaire…………………………………………………………... 21

Document of Business ………………………………………………... 23

 Acknowledgement
The successful completion of this project would not have been possible without the
assistance and cooperation of many people.
First the researcher would like to thank God almighty for the strength and wisdom needed
to complete this assessment.
Second, the researcher would like to thank his parents in assisting him where he was weal
and unsure what to do.
And finally, the researcher would like to thank Sir Ravin Ragbeer in assisting him in
every step of this undertaking.
 Introduction
The researcher was given the Office administration SBA to complete in order to gain 30% of the
marks at the CSEC Examinations in 2019 for Office Administration. The researcher’s task was to
examine the duties and attributes of a clerk in the operations office, the researcher had chosen
Ghamandi hardware store for his project. in order for the researcher to gain information he
prepared some questionnaires to distribute to the organization and also went to the organization
for an interview with some of the employees.
 Title of Project

To examine the duties and attributes of a clerk in the operations office of Ghamandi.
 Aims of project

1. To find out the significant duties and attributes of a clerk in the operational office.
2. To investigate the type of work done in the operational office of purchasing of an
organization and the benefits of having a clerk within that office.
 Functions of the Relevant Department

 Manage inventory- if an organization keeps too much stock the cash flow may be
affected as money that can be sent elsewhere will be tied up in the stock. Additional
storage space may also be needed which may incur additional expense. Conversely, if an
organization carries insufficient stock this may result in a slowdown in production and
loss of sales. The business must therefore implement an inventory management/ stock
control procedure.
 Sourcing suppliers- the purchases manager will investigate how materials that can be
bought from various suppliers will be of benefit to the business. There will be a list of
frequently used suppliers and the purchasing manager is also responsible for investigating
new sources of supply. These suppliers are expected to provide quality goods at
competitive prices
 Liaise with other departments- the staff of the procurement department must liaise
closely with all other departments in the organization to ensure that supplies are ordered
in good time
 Correspondence letter
Lot 31 Kingston
Corriverton
Berbice

1st June, 2018

Manager
Ghamandi
Purchasing department
Corriverton
Berbice

Dear Sir,
Re: Permission to conduct a CSEC SBA investigation for Office Administration on the duties
and attributes of a clerk in the operations office.
I am a student of form five from Skeldon Line Path Secondary School and I will soon be writing
my CSEC Examination in 2019. I was assigned to complete a project for Office Administration
in which I will obtain marks for my examination.

The title of my project “Operations, Dispatch and Transport Services”. In order to complete my
project, I am seeking permission to visit your business on the 20th of June at 1:30pm to distribute
questionnaires to the members in the operational office of purchasing as well as to yourself. I
kindly also ask for little tour around the business.

You can contact me on my cell, 6776341 or email me at timothypahalad14@gmail to inform me

if the time I stated would be convenient enough for you or not. I assure you that every
information obtain will be confidential and will only be used for my project’s completion.
Your faithfully
………………………………………….
Timothy Pahalad
Student of Skeldon Line Path Secondary
Methodology
- questionnaire’s
- Interviews
As the source of primary data, questionnaire and interview sessions were
conducted.

The questionnaires were distributed on the 20th February 2019 at 14:30hrs and was
recollected back in the 24th February 2019 at 15:00hrs. A total of fifteen (15)
questionnaires was distributed to the organization and a total of fourteen (14)
questionnaires were recollected. The researcher chose to distribute questionnaires
because the employees would have enough time to think and answer the questions
honestly, the questionnaires were distributed to employees within the Purchasing
Department excluding the manager of this department and also employees of
other departments in the organization .

The interview lasted for an hour during which the Purchasing Department manager
was interviewed whose name is Lawford Ghamandi, of Ghamandi hardware store.
The reason for choosing the interview was because you could have a face to face
conversation / interaction. The interview was conducted on the 20th February 2019
on 13:30 hrs before the questionnaires were distributed
 Five (5) questions asked

1. What is the main the function of the purchasing department?

2. What would be the benefits of the Purchasing Department?
 Business is up to date when it comes to stocking goods.
 attract customers to the business.
 Maintain the business reputation.
3. What are the duties of the clerk in the purchasing department?
4. What are the attributes of a clerk within the purchasing department?
5. What are the benefits of having a clerk in the purchasing department?
 Schedule of Activities
Date Activities
2018/06/12 Selected a topic.
2018/06/13 Formulated two aims.
2018/06/14 Identified an organization.
2018/06/15 Letter requesting permission
was written and sent to the
organization.
2018/06/20 Visited the organization to
conduct interviews and
distribute questionnaires.
2018/06/24 Revisited the organization to
collect questionnaires and
make observation
2018/06/24 Analysed the information
collected.
2018/07/19 Rough report was written
2018/08/05 Methodology was written up
in sequential order
2018/08/29 Conclusion was stated and
referential materials were
recorded in the bibliography
section.
2018/12/14 First draft of the report was
submitted to the subject
teacher for corrections.
2019/01/23 S B A was submitted in a
typological manner to the
subject teacher.
Comments
A suitable topic was
identified and discussed
with the teacher.
Aims were written with no
difficulty.
The organization called
Ghamandi was selected.
Researcher waited for
permission to be granted to
visit the organization.
Interview was completed
and revisited the
organization in the
afternoon session to
recollect questionnaires.
Questionnaires were
collected and observation
made were carefully
recorded.
Analysed information was
placed in report.
Report was checked and
corrected by subject
teacher.
Corrections were made by
the subject teacher.
There was no difficulty
encountered in formulating
the conclusive statement
and identifying referential
materials.
A few errors were
identified and corrected by
the subject teacher.
Suggestions for
improvements were also
Teacher collected the
report for marking.
 Regulations and Policies of the organization
Legislation governing the work place.
External Legislation: Ghamandi hardware store is governed by the small business act no.2 of
2004 which is incorporated or registered under the Companies act 1991 or the Business Name
(Registration) Act. The business adopted this Act in the year of 2007.It also follows the Health
and Safety Act of 1997 and this act was adopted in the year of 2005.
How the researcher became aware of the Legislation:
The researcher became aware of the Legislation during the interview conducted with the
manager.
Internal Legislation: Anyone who enters the operations and dispatch office, he or she should
inform the manager or some other personnel, in authority before entering.
How the researcher became aware of the Legislation:
The researcher became aware of the Legislation, because he entered the workplace and was asked to wait
for the manager’s permission to enter.
Health and Safety Rule: “No Smoking beyond this point”. This sign was seen on the entrance doorpost
of the building.
Staff Rule: One staff rule in the organisation that the researcher had to comply with was no eating or
drinking is allowed inside the store
 Report
After carefully scheduling and establishing this project, it can be determined that the aims was
established and finalized with its information gathered on the duties, responsibilities and
attributes of a clerk engaged in the Purchasing Department of Ghamandi.
The researcher clearly outlines three (3) aims and three (3) functions for the suitable data
gathering for this project / SBA. The researcher prepared a letter to seek permission to visit the
organization to conduct interviews and to distribute questionnaire’s for gathering data. The
researcher then constructed a questionnaire consisting of five (5) questions based on the
Purchasing Department of the organization and were distributed to the organization for
completion by selected individuals. After a few days’ permission was granted and the researcher
visited the organization and observations were also made on the same day.
The main objective of the purchasing department is to ensure the supply and delivery of quality
goods and materials required in the business, at the best price. This includes the purchase of
office equipment stationery and all other supplies needed for the efficient running of the
business.
The functions of the purchasing department include managing inventory, sourcing suppliers,
liaise with other departments, etc. Managing inventory is very important in the organization
where by it helps to keep the right amount of stock, reduce expense and avoid slowdown in
production and loss of sales. Sourcing suppliers include investigating new sources of supply and
see how material bought from various suppliers can benefit the business and ensure that these
suppliers provide quality goods at competitive prices. Liaise with other departments require that
the staff of the purchasing department link closely with all other departments within the
organization to ensure that supplies are ordered in good time
The researcher noticed that all employees were abiding by the rules of the organization and there
was no interruption of work which resulted in the completion of tasks easier. Thus, the
information /data obtained was found crucial in the completion of this project as the aims were
conducted and completed.
 Limitations
While carrying out this research the challenges faced was to get all fifteen (15) personnel to
complete the questionnaire because they had to deal with customers etc. Another was to collect
all questionnaires because of day offs and vacations taken by some personnel. During the
structured questionnaires process, it was also noticeable that the manager was occupied with
tasks most of the time. Thus, in charging someone else to complete his tasks

Findings
 All staff were dress in the same colour uniform bearing the organisation logo.
 On Thursdays the business place is very busy due to fact that it opens five (5) days a
week excluding Saturday and Sunday
 When ask the question “what is the main function of the purchasing department?” the
answer varied among the 14 respondents.

Functions of the
Purchasing deartment

6
No. of Respondents

0
Manage inventory Determine the items Liaise with other
to be purchase departments

The bar chart above show the various responses of 14 staff working in the
Purchasing department when asked the question “what is the main function of the
Purchasing department”
 Recommendations
Some recommendations are:
 To strengthen public relations, offer exquisite deals to the public
 All members of staff within Ghamandi Hardware Store should always be polite and
courteous with customers even if they are displaying inappropriate attitudes to you.
 There should be more emergency exits within the purchasing department of the
organization.
 Conclusion
In conclusion, the researcher attained all the information needed to complete this SBA on
Communication and Operations, Dispatch and Transport Services and the purchasing department
at Ghamandi hardware store.
 Impact of Office Equipment
Date Equipment used Purpose of equipment Suitability for tasks

June 20th 2018 Printer (All in one) Used to copy, scan and print Saves office space time and
documents off the computer money
onto printing paper.

June 20th 2018 Fax Machine Used to send documents to Reduces the problem of
other departments. postal services

June 20th 2018 Stapler Used to attach files together Less messy than the use of
with use of staples. glue to attach files together.

June 20th 2018 Telephone Used to receive and make It is a good decision to have
calls. this because you can contact
other workers instead of
walking the business to pass
on information
June 20th 2018 Computer Used to type, edit, store It reduces the time to
show and send prepare documents.
details/ information/
documents
 Bibliography
Interviews
Date Name Place Job title
20th June 2018 Ghamandi Lawford Ghamandi hardware store, Manager
Time: 1:30m. Corriverton,
Berbice.

Publications
 Ann M. Jacob, Office Administration for CSEC, Nelson Thornes Publishers 2013.
 Reid J Finisterre, Longman Office Administration for CSEC- 2nd edition Pearson
Publishers 2012.
 Questionnaire
1. In which year was the business established?
 1880-1885
 1990-1995
 2000-2005
 Other year
2. How many different types of departments can be found in this organization?
……………………………………………
3. How long have you been working in the purchasing department?
 0-5 years
 6-10 years
 11-15 years
 16-20 years
 Over 20 years
4. How regularly are the workers being paid?
 Weekly
 Monthly
 Fortnight
5. What is the main the function of the purchasing department?
…………………………………………………………
6. Are the functions of the Purchasing Department being carried out in the Business?
 Yes
 No
7. What would be the benefits of the Purchasing Department?
 Business is up to date when it comes to stocking goods.
 attract customers to the business.
 Maintain the business reputation.
8. What are the duties of the clerk in the purchasing department?
................................................................................................................................................
................................................................................................................................................
9. What are the attributes of a clerk within the purchasing department?
………………………………………………………………………………………………
………………………………………………………………………………………………
10. In your opinion which department is more important in the organization?
 Purchasing department
 Reception and hospitality department
 Financial department
11. What could be a disadvantage of this organization having a purchasing department?
 ………………………………………………………………………………………………
………………………………………………………………………………………………
12. What filing equipment is being used in the purchasing department?
 File folders
 microfilm/ microfiche
 Cabinet

13. What is some equipment used in the Purchasing Department?

……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………………
14. What are the benefits of having a clerk in the purchasing department?
............................................................................................................................................
……………………………………………………………………………………………
15. Are you willing to put any special effort to make the business successful?
 Yes
 No
Document in use in the business