Cleanliness may be next to godliness, but a neat Finance desk is more than divine: It’s the key to more productivity and fewer errors.
So how does your workspace – and those of your finance staffers – rate?
We’ve scoured the Internet for the best desk organization tips out there. Scan these and then your department to see how many of these eight best practices you’re currently embracing:
- The great pen and pencil purge. Honestly, how much are you writing by hand these days? But odds are you have too many writing instruments cluttering your workspace. The next time you’re on the phone, take out a pad and test all your pens and highlighters … then toss anything that doesn’t work. The goal, according to the experts: three pens, a pencil, and if needed, a marker.
- “De-electrify” your desk. No one’s suggesting tossing your PC. But your cable modem, wireless router, firewall, battery backup, etc., don’t need to be on Finance desks. They just add to the overall visual clutter of your own desk and the Finance department as a whole. Note: You might need to talk with IT about how to do this.
- Wired for success. Of course, you can’t rid yourself of all wires. But you want to be sure they are long enough that they can be bundled together and tucked away.
- And designate a space for the other electronics. You can’t live without them. So you’ll want a spot to park your cell phone, BlackBerry, etc. Ideally, it’s also a spot where you can charge them.
- Keep go-to items close at hand. Admins have been using this trick for years. You want the items you use most in a given day the closest to you on your workspace. Rarely staple anything anymore? Banish that to the corner of your desk or even inside it. Heck, maybe a stapler in a common area is enough for you and that’s one less item to compete for valuable real estate. (Same goes for files – the most-needed files belong at staffers’ fingertips.)
- Pitch the picture frames. We’re as sentimental as the next person, but displaying pictures on a workspace eats up a lot of area. Remind staffers they can still sneak a peek at the people and pets they love most by loading them on your PC and making it wallpaper or a screensaver slide-show. (You get even more shots that way!)
- Duplicates. How many writable CDs do you really need at arms’ length? Packages of Post-Its? These belong in the supply closet. Staffers will probably welcome the mini break they’ll get from walking down the hall to replenish their stock when they do need them.
- Manuals. Realistically, if your PC is acting up, are you going to call IT or crack open the manufacturer’s manual? We thought so. Yet manuals continue to clutter staffers’ bookshelves and drawers. If there’s a copy somewhere in house of the manual, feel free to dump yours in the recycling bin. Or keep one per department.
