File Keeping System

What is File Keeping System?
An easily understood record keeping system allows you to keep track of paperwork your business generates, as well as transactions completed. It is important to know what your business' needs are before you set up an easy record keeping system. Employees need to create and keep complete and accurate records sufficient to document their decision-making and work activities. This applies to all types of government records, including documents in all formats and workspaces that provide the best evidence of government business activities, transactions, policy or decisions. These records must be managed in accordance with government records management policy and standards

File Keeping System Challenges
As a social media and compliance specialist for a technology firm, I help firms use email alongside of new forms of electronic communications such as social media and collaboration tools, while complying with various global regulations. Over the years, I have had hundreds of detailed conversations around recordkeeping with large regulated firms. Some of the challenges include:
Rising volume: According to a recent study, email is expected to increase from 3.3 billion accounts in 2012 to over 4.3 billion by the end of 2016. In fact business emails look set to grow an average of 13% to reach over 143 billion by the end of 2016.
Increasing complexity: The number of electronic communications within the enterprise is exploding. Email is used with collaboration tools (such as Microsoft Sharepoint, Salesforce Chatter, IBM Connections and Jive); unified communications platforms such as Microsoft Lync and Cisco Jabber; public instant messaging networks such as Yahoo! Messenger, AIM; mobile messaging applications such as WhatsApp; public social networks such as Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter; and industry communities such as Bloomberg, Thomson Reuters Eikon and ICE Chat. Not to mention, newer, transitory communications like Snapchat that appear for a moment then “disappear”. And then there is voice, in some cases, firms are required to capture and retain oral conversations as well.
Defining a “business record”: Regulators are only interested in communications that are “business as such”. Or in the language of the regulators, “content is determinative.” In a world where the traditional barriers of personal and professional are increasingly blurred, how do you segment true business conversations from “water cooler” chats?

File Keeping System Attempts
While some business owners prefer manual record keeping systems, most businesses use an electronic record keeping system - making it easier to capture information, generate reports and meet tax and legal reporting requirements. There are a number of issues you should consider when setting up an electronic or manual record keeping system, as each has certain advantages and limitations.

File Keeping System Solutions

Sort and store all paperwork, receipts and payments in 12 separate months.
Keep all original documents and date all correspondence.
Record all transaction dates and payment amounts.
Save all online financial transactions by month and financial year in your inbox and in a separate folder on your hard drive.
Backup all electronic records on an external hard drive or other storage device other than your computer's internal hard drive.
Capture nearly all of your income and expenses in statements from both your bank and credit card accounts.
Request that all statements and bills be sent on a monthly basis - allowing you to reconcile all financial records each month.

File Keeping System Usefulness
Well planned, modern payroll software provides the following benefits:
It considers collective labor agreements and employer-specific procedures and exceptions.
It provides a breakdown of the allowances and other bases for wages in the report, with dedicated rows for each day, week and month.
It automatically follows the legislated accounting and calculation rules in the calculation of annual holidays.
It manages the drawing up, posting, archiving and reporting of travel invoices.
When combined with work shift management software, it can utilize data concerning working hours, overtime, allowances, holidays and absences.