One of my pet peeves – maybe my biggest one – is time wasted looking for things. Everything from “where did I leave those glasses?” to “I’m sure I bought shampoo but can’t find it…” If I had every minute back I have wasted searching for things, I could probably add another year to my life, maybe more.
One of the biggest time-wasters, and one that I see all the time, is trying to find files on a computer. It’s also one of the easiest things to solve. Example: my homeowner’s association property manager sends a financial report every month to the Board of Directors. Last month the file name was “tshoresJuly”. The month before it was “junefinancials”.
In managing a contract, there are all kinds of files that make up your official contract file. These days so little is kept (or needed) in hard copy that electronic storage is the norm. Chances are that at some point you or someone else is going to need access to those files. It could be years later, you could have moved on by then, leaving someone totally unfamiliar with what has been filed or how to find it with the challenge of finding something. How much time have you yourself spent looking for something that you filed?
I can hear you now, “I get so much email. I have no time to rename documents before saving them.” I guarantee you that the time it takes to rename a document when you first save it is 10 times less than you will spend if you have to go back and find it later, and a 100 times less than someone totally unfamiliar will spend later. Structuring your electronic filing system for ease of access is a time-saver in the long-run. Here are some tips that I use in my contract files.
- Limit the content of any portion of the “tree” to about 20 folders or less where possible.
- Anything that is filed by date should start with the year, then month, then date.
- Keep the folder/file names as short as possible. This will allow you more folder levels before you exceed the limit for any file name for certain applications or uses, like emailing or moving to another location.
Here is an example: //Contracts/Active/Customer/Contract #/TO #/Reports/2016-07.doc.
The Active category allows you to have a separate Inactive folder where you can move things that you need to archive but won’t need for frequent access. If you only have 20 active contracts, you can skip the “Customer” level. If your contract is for a long period (multiple years), you may want to add a subfolder under “Reports” for each year. Using numbers instead of names is always helpful because they will “stack” in order. For example, a file named
“2016-12” will be listed in the tree right below “2016-11” but “December 2016” is going to follow “August 2016” if you use the month name instead of number.
The more you can standardize the nomenclature for folders, subfolders and file names, the easier it will be for you and everyone else to find files. Taking the time at the beginning of the contract to establish a structure for that contract file based on the specific contract type, content and requirements will get you started on the right path to storing your contract data in an easily retrievable filing system.
I suspect that some of my customers could have taken a page from this book. I was often asked for documents that they couldn’t find. My ability to respond to these requests quickly contributed to my reputation for excellent customer service. That was a bonus on top of all the time I saved myself when I needed something.