What's the story on your file?

Think of a file as a story about what has happened from beginning to end on a matter. It should be a story that you can look at to see what happened, but it should also be a story someone else will be able to read and make sense of.

It is very important if you get phone calls and make decisions on a file to document that by writing a note and putting it on the file by date. You will not remember later what transpired and what arrangements were made. When someone new looks through the file they will see a chronological record of incidents. You want to file letters, faxes and e-mails received and sent chronologically. E-mails should be filed by date and time if you have more than one on a particular day.

Your file should be neat. Papers that belong together should either be stapled or clipped so it will be evident to anyone looking through the file what belongs together. Fax transmission sheets and courier slips are also part of the story and provide proof that a document has been sent so should be kept stapled to the correspondence. If you send an e-mail with attachments, the attachments should be printed out and stapled to the e-mail to keep an accurate record of what was sent.

Occasionally it may even be necessary to keep the envelope on the file and that should be stapled to the correspondence it came with.

It is important to date stamp all received correspondence to have an accurate record of when a document was received.

What if I make a mistake?

Everyone makes mistakes, but the file has to have a record, even of our mistakes if it will help tell the story. If an error was made and something was sent to the wrong address, e-mail address or fax number, strike through the correspondence with a pen or put a note on the file saying Sent in Error. It will avoid confusion and gaps if someone is looking back trying to figure out what happened on a particular matter.

If an e-mail is sent and comes back undeliverable, print a copy of the undeliverable message and put it on the file with the e-mail or make a note on the e-mail copy on the file. It may mean following up and phoning or faxing a document if you can’t send it by e-mail, but you should have a record that you tried and it failed. Your boss at some future date may be sure he or she sent an e-mail and the failed message will be a reminder of what happened.

We would all like to forget about our mistakes, but if you make a mistake on a file and that is part of the story - make a note of it and put it on the file.

Electronic filing

As we march on to a paperless society we need to be filing our electronic documents in a similar fashion to the hardcopy file. What story are we telling?

If your document management system has the capability and has a place to put the file number along with the name, that will make it easier to find a document. It is all about “finding” it again. Try to make it simple.

We can now receive faxes by e-mail, we can scan documents and our regular e-mail can all be saved into our document management system making it easy to make an almost complete electronic file. Some things we still have in hard copy and require our paper file, but whatever we can file electronically we should do so and in a common-sense way to make it easy to retrieve when needed.

Being consistent in how documents are named will make it easier to retrieve when needed. Your company may even have a policy on their naming procedures. The key is to make it easy for anyone to find. No longer do we have our “own” filing system, but our files should be recognizable to all who need to read them.

File neat and file smart and that will go a long way in making your life and those of your co-workers a lot easier as we go searching for that needed document.

The New Kid on the Block: Establishing Good Working Relationships

I have just recently changed my working situation. I have a new boss and a new way of doing things. Here are a few tips when starting a new job:

• Pay attention to the questions you were asked at the interview. Those questions will give you a good idea about what is important to your new boss. In one interview, the person interviewing me said he needed his filing done on a daily basis as many people were using the files and it was important to have all the information up to date. This was mentioned a few times in the interview so I knew it was important and when I got the job I made sure to do my filing every day. On another interview I was asked how I handled client relations. I have always been a good people person and was able to answer the question positively. When I was on the job I made sure to take extra time establishing relationships with the clients as I knew it was important to my boss. In each instance, once my bosses saw I was acting on the things that mattered to them it gave them confidence in me as the new person.
  
• Once you are settled in your new desk, re-introduce yourself to your new boss. Even if the person knows you and this is an internal move, it is good to establish your working relationship right from the start. If you have a chance to sit down with him or her to discuss how they would like to have things done that is great. Listen and write down ideas on how you will accomplish what is required.
  
• Introduce yourself to your new co-workers who will be working close by. Even though you may have been introduced to everyone as they gave you a tour of the office, take the time to greet them and re-introduce yourself and ask their name as you get the opportunity. We meet so many people on the first day it is hard to keep track of everyone. The people that you especially want to know are those who will be working in your area. They will be your greatest resource.
  
• Acquaint yourself with your boss's files. A filing cabinet can give you a lot of information about your new boss's responsibilities and how they like things done. Don't be too eager to change things until you do some exploring and get the lay of the land. Files may need to be cleaned up and put in proper order and new file folders made. Make the filing system easy for you, not complicated.
  
• Make sure the file list is up to date. All the files in the cabinet should be on your list. As the new person the file names will be new to you. It is a great tool to have your file list up to date in a Word document so you can electronically search for the file names when your boss comes around looking for something. On one job I was in I was fortunate to have the first day to myself to go over the filing system. I ended up staying late to put it in good order as it needed a lot of work. The next day my boss was frantically getting ready to go to a meeting and came to me to get a document he couldn't find. Fortunately the night before I had found that document in the Z's, but it should have been in the B's. I would have never found it for him if I hadn't taken the time the day before. I was easily able to retrieve it for him. He was surprised and impressed that I had found it so readily. It started our relationship off to a good start as he knew I had taken the time to know his files.
  
• Get to know your boss's contacts so you will recognize names when they call. Identify yourself by name and who you work for. When people call and are unfamiliar with your voice they will know right away by your greeting that they have the right number and you are available to assist them. If you don't know the answer, take down their name and number and tell them you will get back to them as soon as possible and then ask around to get the answer and return the call.
  
• On the first e-mail contact with someone, introduce yourself and tell them who you are working for and what you are doing for them. For example, Hello, My name is Patricia Robb. I am [Insert Name]'s new assistant. I will be handling the scheduling of this meeting... Make sure your signature line is complete with name, who you work for, company name, phone and fax. If they are receiving an e-mail from you they will have your e-mail address, but some companies have a standard signature line they like you to use and include the e-mail address. You should always go by your company policy. If you don't know what it is, the HR Manager will be able to assist you.
  
• Look in your document management system and look at letters, memos and e-mails that have gone out to get an idea of what kind of work you will be doing and the style for saving documents.
  
• If you see your boss searching through the file cabinet, offer your assistance. Write down what he or she is looking for and ask when they will need it by and tell them you will look after it. Your new co-workers should be able to assist you. They are hoping to get you up to speed quickly to relieve their workload and are usually more than happy to help out.
  
• Give your boss confidence when they ask you to do something by repeating back to them what they have asked you to do. They will then see that you understood the request. Be sure to write things down when asked to do something. It gives people reassurance that it will get done when they see it on your list of things to do.
  
• Some good people to know in an organization are the mailroom staff, the accounting staff and the IT staff. Take the time to introduce yourself to these important service people. You will be calling on them often. It is a good idea to have them on your side.

What to do when the computer is down?

When your programs are not responding and your computer is down, what are you supposed to do? You certainly realize how much you are dependent on it and it sometimes leaves you feeling a little disoriented as to what to do next. At least it does for me.

Here is what I came up with:

• Catch up on filing
• Do expense reports
• Order supplies
• Prepare courier slips
• Get on the phone to check voicemail and return calls, make travel arrangements, register for conferences, book boardrooms etc.

Sometimes having the computer down is a good time to do the little things we have not had time to do because we are so busy on the computer. You just need to shift your thinking and get back on track with a different to-do list.

The Filing Poem by Lynn Crosbie

I hope Lynn's poem on filing will motivate you to do this necessary but boring task. Enjoy!

Someone's Gotta do it.

To most people filing isn't much fun
But when locating a file is number one
You need to know that you can find
The file your boss has in mind

If your company has a policy, follow those rules
Otherwise, organize it in a way that's best for you
Whether it's numerical or alpha is your choice to make
But not having a good filing system is a big mistake

A lot of paper to file, or maybe it's just one
Do something everyday and eventually you'll get it done
It may be hard to get motivated and you want to leave it alone
But tomorrow's another day and there's more paper to come

If your desire to continue gets slightly diminished
Continue to forge ahead, you'll feel better when it's finished
Filing is something we all have in our workplace
Electronic or paper, eventually there's a file we need to trace

There's a sense of achievement you don’t want to miss
When you can find a file in five seconds or less
Keep on filing and smiling. Yes, it's something you can do
You've chosen this career and people are counting on you

Lynn Crosbie writes office ettiquette poems in Ottawa, Canada and has been an Administrative Assistant for over 25 years.

Filing tip...

One day I was particularly frustrated because of my overwhelming pile of filing. I had recently changed jobs and in this new position I worked for two busy lawyers and I was used to only working for one, so the filing had doubled. I was mentioning to my co-worker about this problem and she suggested a very simple solution that has helped me manage my filing pile.

She said what she did was take a legal-sized accordion bellows and insert tabs from A to Z. In the short term she would put individual filing in alphabetical order in the appropriate tab. This got the filing off her desk and put in a place she could easily manage. Then when she had a down time she did her filing from the bellows.

The good thing about this system is if your boss needs something quickly, you can go to the bellows and easily retrieve it from the appropriate tab as opposed to going through the pile of filing on your desk and hoping you find it quickly.

This has been a great help in keeping my desk organized and I hope it will be a help to you too.