[Sundari]

I work for an organisation where so many years of physical data(hard copies) has to be maintained. Could any body tell me the best procedure to maiatain these so that I can access immediately.

[Robin Holtson]

I'd first sort by department (legal, HR, finance, vendors), by year and everything alphabetically or numerically, depending on the subject. Keep in mind, whatever system you use, it needs to be neat, file labels produced on either your computer or label maker and consistent so anyone can find necessary documents. Some people use color-coded file supplies; i.e., legal/red, HR/blue, etc. I find box-bottom hanging folders very useful also.

I try to take 10-15 minutes at the end of the day to file. It's a necessary evil, but the amount of time you save by not having to search for a document is well worth it. Not to mention the positive reaction from your boss at not wasting her or his time when they've requested a document. Nothing quite like being well organized!

[Joan Burge]

Would your organisation allow you to scan these and save them? It would save a lot of physical space and be easier to search electronically?

Another option -- can you store them in boxes that you can label on the outside?

You can also keep a log sheet of each file name and where it is stored. I did that years ago before we even had electronic files.

Joan Burge