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Filing
What is in this guide?
1. 2. 3.
Why should organisations have a good filing system Important things to know about filing How to set up a filing system
1. Why should oganisations have a good filing system
Filing means keeping documents in a safe place and being able to find them easily and quickly. Documents that are cared for will not easily tear, get lost or dirty. A filing system is the central record-keeping system for an organisation. It helps you to be organised, systematic, efficient and transparent. It also helps all people who should be able to access information to do so easily. It is always a pleasure when someone looks for something and is able to find it without difficulties. In our organisations we work in groups. We receive and send out documents on different subjects. We need to keep these documents for future reference. If these documents are not cared for, we cannot account for all our organisational activities. Everyone who needs to use documents should know where to get them.
2. Important things to know about filing
What do we file? We file documents that are sent to us by other people or organisations. We also file records of all our organisational activities. These can be letters, memos, reports, financial records, policy documents, etc. When do we file? This depends on how busy your office is. In very busy organisations filing is done at least every day and usually first thing in the morning. In a small or less busy office you could file once or twice a week. Equipment used for filing Filing Cabinet - It is used to keep flat files and suspension or hanging files Steel Cabinet - It is used to keep big files that need to be locked up Date Stamp - It is used to date stamp documents that are received on daily basis so that they are filed in chronological order and so we have a record of when we received the document Register - It is used to record files taken out and files returned Filing shelves - It is used to file box files
Box file - This is a big file that is used to keep big documents that cannot go into a filing cabinet. They are kept in shelves. What files are used and how are they used? Clip folders - they are used for documents that need to be taken out very often; they hold documents tightly so that they do not fall out. Folders - paper or cardboard folders are used to keep loose documents together. The folders are placed inside suspension or box files. Suspension file -the suspension files are used to keep documents in filing cabinets. The files are put into the drawers upright. The suspension files hangs down from the cradle. These files always remain in the cabinets but folders inside them can be taken out. Box files - they are used to keep big documents including magazines and books. Lever arch files -documents are kept firm in these files and allow one to look at documents without taking them out of the file. Methods of filing There are 5 methods of filing: Filing by Subject/Category Filing in Alphabetical order Filing by Numbers/Numerical order Filing by Places/Geographical order Filing by Dates/Chronological order
These ways of filing is called classification and means organising things that are alike, together. You can, however, combine some of these methods. For example, files that are kept together according to what they are about we say are subject filing but, inside each file the documents could be filed according to date order.
3. How to set up a filing system
a. Filing Categories
To make a filing system more useful, we can group files into CATEGORIES. A category is a group/collection of things that belong together. eg. PPWAWU, SARHWU, NUM and NUMSA all belong to the category Unions. When we file by categories, we try to file in a logical way; we put files together because they belong together; we don't put them together just because they start with the same letter. For example, we could put all our files into categories. Correspondence could be one category that takes up a whole drawer of our filing cabinet. Inside that drawer we could have sub-categories. Sub categories could be things like: Fundraising correspondence Correspondence with other organisations Correspondence with members Correspondence with members of the public
Correspondence with Board and so on. Some documents may have to filed in two places to make it easier to access the information. For example you may have a category for "funders" and for "correspondence". In your funders category you will have a sub-category for each major funder and you will sometimes have to file a letter from a funder in that funder's file as well as in your fundraising correspondence file. b. How to form categories
1. Sort all your documents out into piles that you think belong together. 2. Give each pile a category name. 3. Make a list of categories. 4. Look at your list critically: Ask yourself: Can we combine any categories?. Should we break up a category into two categories? What sub-categories do we need? Do we need to have alphabetical files within a category? Make sure you don't have too many categories. It should not be difficult for anyone to decide in which category they are likely to find the information they need. c. Filing key
Once you have decided on your categories, you will have to draw up a filing index so that everyone can understand the system you used and find the information they want. This index is called a filing key. Write up a filing key by listing all the categories and sub-categories in the order they are filed in. Make sure it is laid out so that everyone can understand it. Put it on the filing cabinet and also put a key for each drawer on the front of the drawers. Give everyone a copy of the whole filing key. Make sure that everyone who does filing understands the key and uses it for filing. d. New files
Don't create new files unless you are absolutely sure the information does not logically fit into an existing file. Put the new file in the correct category and write it in the filing key immediately. Give everyone a copy of the new categories as soon as possible. e. Filing Correspondence
All letters must be filed in 2 places Incoming mail 1. The original letter together with a copy of your answer goes into the SUBJECT FILE. 2. A second copy of the letter goes into the CORRESPONDENCE IN file. Outgoing mail 1. One copy of the letter goes into the SUBJECT FILE. Any letters in answer to your letter must go into this file; and all future correspondence about the subject. 2. One copy goes into the CORRESPONDENCE OUT file. f. Filing Rules
There are two basic rules underlying filing: ALPHABETICAL FILING - filing according to the letter of the alphabet DATE FILING - most recent files on top These rules are basic because they apply to all filing systems. When we file by name, subject and area we should always file alphabetically and by date. Alphabetical filing rules Rule 1: File by name in terms of the first letter Example: African Eagle Becker Duncan & Co Greenfield Rule 2: If the first letters are the same, file in terms of the second letter. Example: Clarence Coetzee Curnow Cyril Rule 3: File in terms of surnames Example: Donkor, SJ Nkomo PS Shongwe RO Yesufu ED Rule 4: If surnames are the same, file in terms of the initial Example: Cato, JS Cato, JU Cato, RS Cato, TM Rule 5: Some surnames have prefixes and are filed in terms of the first letter of the prefix Example: de Gruchy, JR de la Rey, OP van der Linden, MN van Rensburg, MJ Rule 6: When there are two surnames, file under the first surname. Example: Mokoena & Khumalo Nxumalo & Abrahams Saloojee & Cassim Verachi & Ntuli Rule 7: Mac Mc & M' all files as Mac; St and Saint all filed as Saint Example: MacDonald McNair M'Namara Saint Christopher's St Margaret's
Rule 8: When the file does not have the name of a person we file by the MOST IMPORTANT WORD in the name or by the name of the PLACE Example: Active Wheel Co The Star The City of Johannesburg Northcliff Printers g. Taking files out - [Use the filing key]
Making sure you don't lose files When people take files out of the filing system, or they take documents out of a file, we must ensure that they don't lose them or forget to bring them back. People must never take the suspension files out, they should only take out the flat folder inside the file. To keep track of files we need a record of all the files or document that people borrow. To do this we can use: A file-out book - a file-out book is simply a book in which we write Example: NAME FILE Ms Modise Mr Ngwenya DOCUMENT Reports file Finance file DATE TAKEN OUT 10-02-2001 23-01-2001 DATE RETURNED 12-02-2001 Who borrowed the file or document Name of the file or document When they borrowed it When they returned it
The person responsible for maintaining the system can us the file-out book to check who has which files an remind them to return it. A file-out card - file-out cards are used in a filing cabinet. They are the same size as the files and are put in the place of the file, which has been borrowed. On the file-out card we write the same information as in the book, i.e. OUT NAME FILE Who borrowed the file or document Name of the file or document When they borrowed it When they returned it DATE TAKEN OUT DATE RETURNED
Finding information
Keeping information in files is only useful if we, and everyone in our organisation, knows how to find the documents we need. We file information so that we can find it easily. Finding information that is in the files is called retrieving information. Everyone who needs to use the files should be able to find information quickly and easily. This means that they must know the method of filing we use. A filing method book could be a small book that we use to explain how we file documents. For example: All letters are filed under correspondence All membership cards are filed under number Reports are filed by subject
An index book can also help us to find files. The name of each file can be written on the page with that letter. For example: The MINUTES file is written on the M page. Then we can write where that file is: "MINUTES - filing cabinet 1 drawer 2 or lever arch file 4" h. Filing procedure Step 1: Receiving the document If it is a letter or document that came through the mail, you record it in the "mail received" register and write the date received or date stamp it Step 2: Action Forward the letter/document to the person that has to deal with it. Step 3: Follow up Check that the letter has been dealt with. Step 4: Collecting Documents to be filed All documents and two copies of the replies must be collected in a filing tray. Step 5: Filing Choose a regular time to file every day so that you are never left with a huge pile of loose documents. Use a sorter to help you file and remember to file by date order. Maintaining the filing system One of the most important reasons why we file is to keep document safe. It is therefore very important to make sure that all papers and files are kept in good condition. Here are some ways that we can do this: Keep documents that are waiting to be filed in trays, do not leave them lying about on desks or shelves. File documents away at least once a day, or if your organisation is very small you can do it once a week. Do not put too much in files or folders Put new covers on old files which get a lot of use and have become worn or torn. Box files and lever arch files can hold more than simple folders. Filing procedure, maintenance and safety
Never allow filing drawers or shelves to become too full. Acquire new filing cabinets when necessary. Good housekeeping and safety At the end of every day you should: File all the documents you can Put away those you cannot file in filing trays Lock up all confidential documents Place all waste paper in rubbish bins Leave desks tidy
EXAMPLE OF A FILING KEY
1. GENERAL ADMINISTRATION 1.A Correspondence 1.A.1 Director 1.A.2 Bookkeeper 1.A.3 Training officers 1.A.4 Administrative officers 1.A.5 Programme Co-ordinators 1.B Operations 1.B.1 Rental, Postal Box, Telephones, Faxes, etc. 1.B.2 Internal organisational forms 1.B.3 Mailing list 1.B.4 Constitution, Articles of Association, legal documentation, etc. 1.B.5 Office Equipment inventory, service and maintenance agreements, etc. 1.B.6 Miscellaneous 1.C Committees 1.C.1 Director's Reports 1.C.2 Minutes and Reports 1.C.3 Finance Committee 1.D Planning 1.D.1 Annual Planning Meetings 1.D.2 Issues in Planning 1.D.3 Targets 1.D.4 Evaluations 2. EMPLOYMENT/STAFF 2.A Procedures
2.A.1 Personnel Procedures 2.A.2 Conditions of Employment 2.A.3 Contract of Employment 2.A.4 Induction 2.A.5 Job descriptions 2.A.6 Performance Management System 2.A.7 Leave 2.B Staff 2.B.1 Current Employees in alphabetical order (locked in Director's office) 2.B.2 Testimonials 2.B.3 Staff Training 2.B.4 Job applications 3. FINANCES 3.A Financial Administration 3.A.1 Budget 3.A.2 Salaries 3.A.3 Financial Statements 3.A.4 Petty Cash 3.A.5 Auditor's Statements 3.A.6 Tax 3.A.7 Strategies 3.A.8 Bank 3.A.9 Debtors 3.A.10 Bookkeeping 4. FUNDRAISING 4.A Fundraising Administration and General 4.A.1 Fundraising Act 4.A.2 Fundraising Planning and Proposals sent 4.A.3 Fundraising Systems 4.A.4 Fundraising Trips and Campaigns
4.B Funding Agencies 4.B.1 List of Agencies 4.B.2 General file for local foundations 4.B.3 SA Business in General 4.B.4 USA Funding Contacts 4.C Donor files 4.C.1 DMMA Foundation 4.C.2. SOCTA 4.C.3. ZDA
5. TRAINING 5.A General 5.A.1 Reports - Training department 5.A.2 Community Workshop outlines and materials 5.A.3 Training Contracts 5.A.4 Membership Skills Training 5.A.5 Office skills training 5.A.6 Correspondence (separate files for each client)
Efficient Office Systems
What is in this guide
1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6.
Why should organisations use office systems Important things to know about efficient offices How to deal with visitors How to set up information systems How to manage volunteers and keep track of workers How to control use of phones, copier, computer and other resources
1. Why should organisations use office systems
Many community organisations and NGOs have small offices that are the centre for running the organisation. The offices are usually used by leaders, members and the public and are staffed by employees and or volunteers. It is very important to set up simple systems that help the office and the administration to work smoothly. Information, people and resources are the lifeblood of any organisation. If you do not have systems for managing and controlling all these things, your organisation can become inefficient and waste a lot of money and time. You do not have to be a professional administrator to set up an efficient office. You simply need efficient systems that everyone understands and follows. This guide contains simple office administration systems.
2. Important things to know about efficient offices
To run an efficient office you need systems to manage the following; Visitors to your office Members of your organisation or the public may visit your office to get information or assistance from you. It is important to receive them properly, find out how you can help them, assist them and capture any information they give you. Information that comes in to or goes out from your office People will phone, fax, eMail or write to your organisation. You may receive correspondence and other documents relevant to your work. You may also write reports, speeches and articles or develop programmes and materials for your work. You need a system for storing and passing on all this information in a way that everyone who needs it can use it easily. Deployment of workers and volunteers
The work of your organisation is usually done by leaders, members, staff or volunteers. It is very important to know what work has to be done and who will do it. You should also have systems for managing volunteers to make the best use of their skills and time. When staff leave the office you should know where they are and when they will be back. You should also have a system to keep track of the days and hours that staff work or take off for holidays and sick leave. Resources All organisations have some resources that cost money - for example phones, fax, computer, printer, copier and overhead projector or sound system. If many people use your resources, you should have systems to make sure there is no wastage and that people use them for good reasons. You also have to keep track of any resources that people borrow and make sure they get returned. Money Money is your most important resource and must be very carefully controlled. See the guide on Accounting for much more detail on how to do this.
3. How to deal with visitors to your office
All visitors to your office should be properly received and assisted. Most organisations do not see only visitors with appointments and this means that people can come at any time. Someone should immediately greet a visitor and find out how they can be helped. Visitors should feel welcome and should be treated with respect. For much more detail on how to run an office that treats the public properly see the Guide on Public Relations and Your Office. Here are some simple things you should do: Have a space where visitors can wait - a small room or just seats in the front office. Make sure the reception area is always clean and tidy. All volunteers or workers who work in the reception area should be friendly and polite, even if they are busy. Put reading material on current affairs, brochures from government departments and from community organisations in the reception area. Provide water and cups for visitors. If it will take a long time before someone can be attended to, tell them how long they will have to wait. If they cannot wait, take a message for the person they wanted to see. If you provide a service like advice or counselling, you should make sure you set up a proper case file system for visitors. It would also be useful to record each visit in a diary so that you can count how many cases you see each day. See the Guide on Giving Advice for more details.
4. How to set up information systems
There are many parts to a good information system. Here are some of the most important ones: Messages A duplicate book can be used to take messages for people. You can also just use scrap paper. The important thing is to get the right information on the message and then to make sure that the message gets to the right person as soon as possible. If you can afford a duplicate message book, staff and volunteers
should check it for messages and take out the top copy of their messages. At the end of each day you will easily see who has not received their messages and can then make a plan to get it to them. If you use scrap paper, put the messages on spikes or in pigeonholes with different people's names on them. At the end of each day someone should check which messages have not been passed on. If the message seems important, make sure the message gets to the right person or phone the one who left the message back and try to help them. Here is an example of a message slip that will capture all the information you need. MESSAGE SLIP Date.............................. Time......................................
To................................................................................... From............................................................................... Telephone No................................................................... Message.......................................................................... ....................................................................................... Taken By......................................................................... Diary of important events and dates Everyone in your organisation should know what important events you have planned in the near future. Keep a calendar of important dates on the wall for everyone to see. You should also have diary that records all the dates for work of the organisation, days off for staff, meetings, deadlines and important things like AGMs and annual audits. The diary should stay in one place in the office so that anyone who wants to book an event can look in the diary to check that the date does not clash with other work. Correspondence One person should take responsibility for collecting and sorting mail. This is usually the secretary or administrator of an organisation. Correspondence should be referred to the correct person for a response and then filed. See the Guide on Filing for more details. You should have a "correspondence received" and a "correspondence sent" file. Write on the correspondence received when you got the letter and who responded to it on what date. Important correspondence should be summarised for meetings of your executive. Filing system Your office should have a filing system that separates all information into logical and easy to find categories. All documents that are important should be filed . This includes things like: letters, reports, minutes, funding proposals, accounts, invoices, budgets, work plans, service contracts and job descriptions.
A filing system is only useful if you can easily find what you need. You have to set up an index of the files you have and where to find them. The index is sometimes called a filing key, and it should be pasted on the side of your filing cupboard. Filing should be done every few days and one person should take responsibility for it. See the Guide on filing for more details. Important information at a glance Everyone in your office should have easy access to certain important information. The best way to do this is to put charts on the walls. Examples of information you should put on walls are: A list of exec members and their contact details. A map of your area. A list of contact people and numbers for all useful organisations and services in your area. A chart that shows your main plans and the dates for big events. A chart that maps progress of things like projects or fundraising. Other important information can be stored in ring-binder files that are left in an accessible place and never put in the filing cupboard. Examples of things that should be stored like this are: List of members Mailing list Blank forms that people need like: o Volunteer forms o Case forms o Report forms o Financial claim forms
5. How to manage volunteers and keep track of workers
The work of your organisation has to be done by people. Develop a proper system for deploying people to events and activities. Workers and volunteers can be deployed using a deployment diary like this one: DEPLOYMENT DIARY - DATE Time Name Deployed to Venue and do what? address Expected Return time Contact number
Volunteers Volunteers are the most valuable resource your organisation has. They cost nothing and, if properly managed, can do most of the work needed. Volunteers usually join because they want to do something meaningful. Do not waste their time and energy by just making them attend long meetings. Find out what
they want to do and what skills they have and then use them properly. Try to empower volunteers through training and letting them work with more experienced people. Get volunteers to fill in a volunteer form to understand what they would like to do, their skills and availability. Keep the forms alphabetically in a file and also process the information in a volunteer book. The book should have one page for each category of work, like typing, driving, etc. On that page write the names of all the volunteers who have those skills and want to do that kind of work. Here is an example of a volunteer form: VOLUNTEER FORM Area................... Ward...................
Thank you for volunteering. Please complete this form so that we can use your time and talents well. Name:........................................................................................................ Address:..................................................................................................... Phone: Home:......................... Work:...................... Fax:....................... Type of volunteer work you would like to do: Typing Bookkeping Office wotk Telephone Door-to-Door Catering When available to help: Weekdays (best time.........................) Saturdays (best time..........................) Sundays (best time.........................) Distributing pamphlets Putting up posters Fundraising House Meetings Driving Other
What other resources do you have available: Bakkie/Car Computer Meeting Venue Other What languages do you speak? Englisn Zulu Xhosa Tswana Tshonga Swati Afrikaans Pedi Sotho Venda Ndebele Furniture Email Internet
Do you have any organisational or campaign experience? If yes what? ..................................................................................................... Keep a roster of work for volunteers and make sure you deploy them properly. Also send volunteers with more experienced people to do work that is challenging and new to them. Make sure you create a nice work environment where people feel like they are valued and part of a team. Create a work environment where volunteers can enjoy working and learn. If people feel that they are achieving something and making a contribution that is appreciated, they will stay and work hard. Workers If you employ staff, you will also need basic systems to control time off, leave and sick leave. The easiest is to keep a log of time worked, off or sick. Also record extra hours, for example: when someone works 3 hours extra write +3hours and when someone takes off 2 hours in a day write -2 hours. Simply make a tick if someone has worked a normal day. Use a sheet like this and make someone in the office responsible for recording the information every day: DAY 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 Sonwabo Ntombi Carmel Kevin
19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 Total overtime or undertime Total Days off
6. How to control use of phones, copier, computer and other resources
Telephone, fax, internet Many small offices only have one phone line and there it is difficult to coordinate the use of that line for fax, modem and phone. When phones are used by many different people it is also difficult to control the phone bill. Here are some suggestions: Get a call waiting service on the phone. This allows you to receive or make a call whilst you are on another call. This prevents the phone from being engaged for a very long time. Get a record book to record all outgoing calls and together with the itemised bill received from Telkom use it to check that the phones are not being abused. Check long distance calls, long calls to cellphones and very long local calls. Point out the costs to the people responsible and try to reduce talking time. You may need to develop a policy about personal calls and whether they are allowed or not. It may be difficult to enforce and it is often better to develop an awareness about cost and discipline among phone users. Get a voicemail answering service from Telkom. It is very cheap and will take messages when you are out of the office or busy on another call. If your fax is on the same line, turn it on only when you get a fax call or when you leave the office.
If your modem for email and internet is on the same line, try to only use it when the office is quiet since call waiting does not work when the modem is on. It is best to check your eMial first thing in the morning before calls start and to use the internet late in the afternoon for research. Computer, printer, copier If your computer is in great demand, try to work out a roster system for when it can be used by who. Here is an example: Prioritise creative work like writing reports and training materials in the morning. Admin can be done in the afternoon and members should only use the computer after hours. If your computer is used by many people, it is very important to get an anti-virus programme and to update it often. You can get a virus from someone else's disk or from an eMail. Keep an adequate supply of toner and paper for the printer, fax and photocopier and make sure it is carefully controlled. Toner can cost R500 and paper is easy to waste. Keep a logbook for photocopier usage. This helps prevent abuse and if you charge people for copies it will help you to monitor expenses and income. If you have different funding sources for different projects it also helps you with accounting and allocating the copier costs to the right funder. PHOTOCOPIER LOGBOOK Name/ Date Organisation Number of Purpose copies of copies made Signature
Other resources If you have any other equipment or resources that people use, you need a system for controlling it. Examples are overhead projector, video machine and sound system. Here is a simple sheet you can use to keep control of resources that may be borrowed and used outside the office: Item Used for Name, address and what purpose signature of user Date out Date returned
