Data entry since 1970--from holleriths to holograms

Today, Jun 2000 by Haley, John

These early online data entry systems tended to be slow. They restricted the speed with which an operator could key, but the turnaround time to process a job was reduced significantly from days to just hours. Using previous data entry methods the business process involved knowledge workers "coding" the data and professional data entry operators keying the data. The online terminals allowed the knowledge workers to key the data. Even though they did not key nearly as fast, the net cost was reduced to enter data into the computers.

30 Years Later

Today, high volume data entry typically takes place on standard PCs using specialized data entry software that allows operators to key faster than 20,000 keystrokes per hour. OCR and ICR (intelligent character recognition) have improved to the point where in some cases, even handwriting can be read by machine. However, the current state of the art is such that virtually all applications still require some data to be keyed by hand.

Outsourcing, of course, is now one of the biggest trends in information technology. Some companies are now outsourcing functions, like accounting, that were previously considered essential in-house functions. Others are "virtual corporations", outsourcing almost all corporate functions to outside vendors.

Although online data entry terminals have mostly been replaced by PCs, they started a process that has continued today moving data entry away from one centralized group and disbursing it throughout the enterprise. Most organizations have data entered where it originates: departmental groups, branch offices, even out in the field. Today, with new data entry software available for use over the Internet, anyone can enter large volumes of data anywhere they can connect to the Internet. As a result, in many businesses today, you can walk down one hallway after another searching in vain for the data entry department.

Yet data entry today is just as essential as it was 30 years ago. As businesses depend more and more on enterprise resource planning (ERP), customer relationship management (CRM) and other enterprise applications, more and more of the information needed to run a business must be online. Whatever is not already in electronic format must be converted. Someday almost all information will exist electronically from the start and will be easily moved from one location to another. Until then, we'll have people typing on their keyboards, entering it in one way or another into a computer.

John Haley is president of Viking Software Services (www.vikingsoft.com). He can be reached at (914) 491-6144.