Back office work is important to the success of any corporation. It can refer to a number of different things, but typically it refers to the work that is done to support the business and the customers, without doing any real face-to-face interaction with clients. It may involve performing tasks such as data entry, maintaining records and filing, or preparing and running reports, just to name a few. Information technology or human resources departments may also be considered part of the back office work going on at a corporation. Accounting and payroll departments, and sometimes order-filling departments, may also fall into this category.
In almost any company, back office work is typically some of the most important tasks needed in order to keep the company going, even though some aspects of it can be tedious, such as data entry or database management. For companies where customers place orders online or by calling into a call center, the back office work may include taking these orders and making sure they are entered correctly, so it might involve some interaction with customers in that way, as in answering phones or replying to emails. Some companies choose to outsource this work in order to save some money.
The departments of any corporation that provides services to other employees, such as human resources and payroll, are other types of back office work. These departments will virtually never interact with clients or customers, and will instead be focused on making sure that employee records are up to date and correct, that payroll or other benefit information is handled properly, and that employees have a place to go with questions or concerns about the workplace. Information technology (IT) departments are another huge aspect of back office work that are very important to the success of the company.
Typically, the IT department is responsible for setting up and maintaining the company's website, as well as all the technology and computer resources used throughout the company. They may also be there to provide technical support assistance to the other employees when they need it. It is important to keep in mind that though the IT department is one of those back office departments that are usually located at the central headquarters of the business, many other back office departments may be located at a different location in order to cut down even more on expenses, as well as to increase security.