There are two types of programs that you need to master to continue your move into upper management: word processing and spreadsheet programs. In addition to these you should also consider learning how to work within a database program. Microsoft Office Professional Suite is the most commonly used because it comes packaged with most business systems, and also because of the great amount of documentation that is available about how to use it. I use the Office 2000 Professional Suite because it has all of the buttons and whistles that I like in one integrated package, but I have also seen the Corel WordPerfect Suite 8 used in some smaller businesses.
The word processing program can help you communicate in more effective and efficient ways than you have imagined up to this point. Most people just use it to write letters and memos, but it can do a great deal more. If you want to look educated and want to increase the esteem that you have within your organization, learn to use some of the special features that are included with it.
One of the features that managers find most useful is the Header and Footer function. The header is obvious, but the footer is the one most often overlooked by new users of the program. If you are saving your documents to a network drive, the footer should include the ‘Path’ to the document. This enables you or your boss to access and edit the document. Your footer should always include the date that the document was produced or edited. There is a special button that appears when you open the feature that you can use to set up this part of the footer.
