Tax season brings about several different emotions from individuals. Once it is over, many people experience relief – as long as they do not owe the government any money. However, there is also a good chance you realized you could be more organized to make next year a little easier. On top of that, you need to find a place to securely save all of your tax documentation from this year.
A recent Business 2 Community article examined different ways that companies can save themselves from getting overwhelmed with the vast amount of paper that it must deal with. Ali Aldrich, the author of the piece, does push the use of electronic documents but recognizes that there is a mix that needs to be considered.
“Multiple document types and storage locations make it difficult to stay organized,” Aldrich wrote. “Small businesses typically juggle a mix of paper documents and electronic files, stored in filing cabinets or saved on computers, respectively.”
While moving to a digital realm sounds like the easiest route, it is not always feasible. In many cases, especially businesses that have been open for some time, trying to scan every old document is an investment not worth undertaking.
To manage physical documents that are required to be retained for reasons of legality or best practice, businesses should partner with document storage and management company. Every organization that has paper files can benefit from centralizing boxes at a local record center.
General Document Storage Procedure
- Designate the file management team
- Establish procedures for file management
- Create a record information management schedule
- Create a document destruction plan