Rule 10
The
file names of correspondence should include the name of the correspondent, an
indication of the subject, the date of the correspondence and whether it is
incoming or outgoing correspondence, except where the inclusion of any of these
elements would be incompatible with rule 2
The file names of correspondence should include the following elements so
that the record can be easily identified and retrieved:
- Name of correspondent, that is the either the name of the
person who sent you the letter/email/memo or the name of the person to
whom you sent the letter/email/memo
- Subject description, where it is not given in the folder
title
- Date of letter/email/memo
- If incoming correspondence, include ‘rcvd’
When deciding the order of the elements consider rule 8. It will usually be appropriate to order the elements in the same order in
which they are listed above, as it is likely that correspondence will be
retrieved on the basis of the correspondent. Also consider rule 2; a description of the subject may already be given
in the folder name.
The sender is responsible for filing correspondence and any attachments
or enclosures, except when the correspondence originates from outside the
University, when the first named recipient is responsible for filing the
correspondence and any attachments or enclosures.
If more than one email is received from the same person, on the same day,
on the same subject and the latest email does not include the whole string of
the correspondence, the time of the email can be included in the file name to
differentiate it from the email received earlier in the day.
The Records Management Section
guidance on managing email
gives further guidance on managing your emails and when and how to save your
emails to a shared drive.
Rule 10 Example
|
Correct |
Incorrect |
| File name |
/…/Complaints/
BloggsJ20031205.rtf
BloggsJ20040105rcvd.rtf
BloggsJ20040220.rtf
ThomasH20030610rcvd.txt
ThomasH20030710.rtf
/…/
EvansWAppeal20040715rcvd.rtf
EvansWAppeal20040820.rtf
EvansWAppeal20040905rcvd.rtf
(Ordered alphanumerically as the files would be in the directory list) |
/…/Complaints/
EmailFromHelenThomas10Jun03.txt
LetterFromJoeBloggs5Jan04.rtf
LetterToHelenThomas10Jul03.rtf
LetterToJoeBloggs20Feb04.rtf
LetterToJoeBloggs5Dec03.rtf
/…/Correspondence/
WilliamEvans15Jul04.rtf
WilliamEvans20Aug04.rtf
WilliamEvans5Sep04.rtf
(Ordered alphanumerically as the files would be in the directory list) |
| Explanation |
The first example shows some incoming and outgoing correspondence concerning complaints.
All the correspondence with Mr Joe Bloggs appears together in chronological order and it is
easy to pick out the incoming correspondence because it is indicated by ‘rcvd’. The same is
true of the correspondence with Miss Helen Thomas. In this example it is not necessary to
include an indication of the subject in the file name because it is given in the folder name.
The second example shows some incoming and outgoing correspondence with Mr William Evans
regarding an appeal. All the correspondence is listed in chronological order, it is easy to see
what the correspondence is about, who it is with and whether it is incoming or outgoing
correspondence. In reality it is likely that it will not necessary to include an indication of
the subject matter in the file name because the folder title would be likely to be ‘Appeals’. It
is not recommended to give folders very general names such as ‘correspondence’. |
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