Final answer:
The statement is false. Automated telephone systems can be both effective in achieving their goals and efficient in their operations, with potential inefficiencies arising from specific issues rather than a systemic lack of efficiency.
Step-by-step explanation:
The statement that automated telephone systems are often very effective, but rarely are they efficient could be considered false based on how the terms 'effective' and 'efficient' are defined. In a business context, an effective system is one that achieves its intended goal. An automated telephone system, such as a robo-poll or customer service line, can be very good at reaching a large number of people or handling customer queries without requiring human intervention. Therefore, these systems can be deemed effective.
Efficiency, on the other hand, refers to the system's ability to achieve its goals with minimal waste of time and resources. Automated systems can be very efficient in many cases because they allow for tasks to be completed with less human labor and at a faster pace.
However, there can be inefficiencies due to errors such as incorrect keypad responses or respondent misunderstandings, lower response rates, legal restrictions like those stemming from the Telephone Consumer Protection Act, and the exclusion of large populations, like cell phone users, from automated calls. Still, these do not inherently make automated systems inefficient as a whole.