Filing - A necessary evil

Filing, when managed effectively, does not have to be a labour intensive aspect of running your business. With a consistent and methodical approach you can maintain an efficient and compliant system with minimal effort.

A good system saves you time, it’s easy to access and makes sense to your organisation and how it runs. Lost or misplaced files can have ramifications beyond wasted time; if the content is confidential or sensitive then you may have serious challenges on your hands.

There are people in the world who love filing, if you have one of these folk on your payroll then you are sorted, if you don’t then here’s a guide to how you can learn to love it and do it correctly:

Make time to File Dedicate time to maintaining your filing system. Paying close and constant attention to your filing prevents it from becoming a beastly beast that is difficult to stay on top of and ensures the system does not fall into disarray. Put aside time each week to take care of your filing.

Allocate Sufficient Resources If you are a large organisation with a complex filing system then allocate adequate resource to managing it. This will make certain that the system is well maintained and in good order.

Don’t Over Think it Your system does not need to be complex, the more sense it makes to you and your business the easier it will be to manage. Its function is to make files easy to identify, remove for use and then re-file without the risk of misfiling. Using a colour coded system will make any misfiling errors very easy to recognise as the colours will be out of sequence. Be careful not to over label the files as the benefit of colour coding will be lost if there are too many colours. 3 – 4 labels would be ideal as the tab on the file will allow you to write further text if required.

Use Suitable Storage Consider what it is you’re filing and the frequency in which you need to access it. If you are working with sensitive documents then lockable storage will be ideal, if you are working with live files then at desk storage will be best. Stored active files can be housed in multi level units and shared with other colleagues or teams. A lateral colour coded filing system stored in suitable units will be space savvy, efficient and very easy to use.

Seek Professional Help If you’re struggling to get your system up and running then enlist the services of Filing Specialists. It’s a one stop shop for assistance with filing products, storage, spatial advice and staying abreast of the latest legislation in regards to record keeping and management.

At Filecorp, we are Filing Ninjas and can help you build a system from scratch, revamp an existing system that has become inefficient and support you with technology and appropriate storage options to make you the envy of all those that file.

Please contact us to get your filing sorted.