Office Automation and Team Collaboration As technology advances and businesses expand nationally and globally, the need for office automation and team collaboration software Group collaboration has become a necessity to stay connected. Office automation refers to computers and other office machinery that use network applications to improve work efficiency and performance, and information sharing for daily operations. Group collaboration or "groupware" allows multiple users of this collaborative software to work together to achieve a common goal. Email and texting are just two small examples of group collaboration. The University of Pittsburgh Medical Centers or UPMC is an organization of multiple hospitals and outpatient facilities in Pennsylvania, the Middle East and Europe. Supporting such a large-scale organization requires a massive IT infrastructure. UPMC maintains an internal network and uses a variety of office automation equipment and collaboration software. Microsoft Office is the primary software package used for all its many features such as Word, Excel, Power Point, and Outlook. Microsoft Outlook is the primary system for email, calendar reminders, and personal information management. Some employees are granted access to manage their supervisor's calendars and messaging services as well. This helps keep managers and supervisors connected and on the same page and sends reminders to avoid missed meetings. Word is used to create letters, documents, and memos. Excel is used for spreadsheets that track research data, and formula programs are designed to load billing information that streamlines the billing process by increasing data entry speed and decreasing programmer errors. PowerPoint is a useful tool in any training process, from how to maneuver through EPIC, the system-wide enrollment, scheduling and billing system, to a doctor offering a training session on the latest treatment methods. Other hospital software packages that improve team collaboration include Power Chart and MARS. Power Chart is the computerized patient charting system that doctors and nurses use to enter orders, results, and note patient status reports for hospitalized patients. Just one small example of how the power chart improves a patient's hospital stay is when a doctor orders a blood test and the order is entered via the power chart which is printed in the lab office. When the pick gets ready to make the rounds between patients, he will have all these orders giving the patient the name, the room number, what tests need to be done, etc...