Active Filing for Business Records.

• Author: HERBERT, LYNN

TITLE: Active Filing for Business Records

ISBN: 0-933887-85-X

PUBLISHER: ARMA International

PUBLICATION DATE: 2000

LENGTH: 233 pages

PRICE: $40 members / $58 nonmembers

SOURCE: ARMA International Bookstore, http://www.arma.org or 888/298-9202

If you really want to develop a file system, Ann Bennick's Active Filing for Business Records will give you a first-class start. She delivers on her promises to present file system development concepts and applications, provide sample forms for gathering facts and user requirements, and explain process flow charts and case studies to illustrate concepts and problems.

Active Filing for Business Records is arranged into 12 chapters and three appendices. Chapter One explains the structure of the rest of the book and lists 17 objectives to assist the reader in understanding these concepts and processes and how to apply this knowledge to file systems development projects. These objectives are in a style reminiscent of a college course outline or course catalog description; she tells the reader precisely what to expect from the text.

Chapter Two gives the overview of what and why and uses case studies to help relate theory to what does or could happen in an organization. Chapter Two also illustrates her easy-to-read style of writing. Even if you miss a point or two in this rather complex topic of active files, you can go back and easily understand it with a quick re-read.

Chapter Three discusses the knowledge prerequisite to file system development by presenting a seven-step systems analysis process to be applied in the subsequent chapters. Chapter Four takes the reader through the file system development walk-through, records survey, and index review. Here is a helpful explanation of how to prepare for a potential task in the process. Chapter Five moves into the in-depth records inventory. The detail in this section is well-arranged. Chapter Six explains how to use the survey and inventory data to make preliminary files analyses. There is a good section on how to begin developing the index. Chapter Seven is brief, but it provides a good example of a table of contents for an active file procedures manual.

Chapters Eight through Ten cover filing equipment, layouts, and supplies. Chapter Eight, which addresses types of filing equipment, includes a helpful section on how to determine the volume of files needed on an active file project. Chapter Nine presents active file room layouts that ensure efficiency and...