Content area
Full Text
Filing often suffers from the reputation of being a thankless, boring, repetitive task that's delayed until the mess reaches critical proportions. In some organizations, the term "filing system" is close to being an oxymoron.
Jokes about filing are rampant. There's one in which the filing clerk explains to the supervisor, "The reason for our having so many file drawers labeled ' L' is because we get a whole lot of letters!"
In the cartoon strip "Shoe," the main character asks, "Well, have you gone over all my records, Harvey?" Staring at huge piles of paper on Shoe's rolltop desk, Harvey responds, "Look, I'm just an accountant...not an archaeologist."
But if we examine costs related to the filing of information, searching for information that's (presumably) been filed, retrieving the information, and refiling it, we're talking about serious dollars. That's no laughing matter!
How can we prevent "filing systems" from becoming an oxymoron?
Some mistakes are easy to spot. At the lower end of the quality spectrum, records are disorganized, file drawers are overcrowded, and materials "to be filed" are stacked in baskets or boxes. I've even seen file cabinets, with full drawers, marked "To be filed."
However, appearances can be deceiving. Some of the greatest-looking files are the least efficient. Let me give you a couple of examples.
Using cross-referencing techniques is a good idea, right? I probably would have enthusiastically agreed, until I saw how dangerous cross-referencing can be. In a large file room in a corporate headquarters, files were set up alphabetically by country. Materials were inserted into well-marked end-tab file folders or expanding pockets.
Judged on appearance alone, it was a well-organized, beautifully maintained filing system. However, closer examination revealed deep trouble. The material being filed often affected the company's operations in numerous countries, but the countries affected weren't always listed on the documents being filed. The person who set up the system decided to simply photocopy documents containing information and file a copy in the folder or pouch for each country affected, using information from her long experience in the department.
There are two problems with a system of this nature. First, the expert who set up the system left no "trail" of information on where she filed duplicate copies. Second,...