In all the excitement of setting up or maintaining an office, it's important not to neglect the little things. The little things are those tiny, easily taken for granted items such as pens and paper clips that make it possible to run your office, whether it's a publishing firm or a London auto body shop. Though they may be small, cheap, and plentiful, they are as essential to the business process as larger items like filing cabinets and desks, but you'd never realize it unless you had to do without them for any length of time. To keep this from happening to you, make a list. Here are some common things that accidentally get left off office supply store purchase orders:
Paper Products
We dare you to try running an office without paper. Even so-called "paperless offices" generate several forests worth of hard copy in the run of a week. It's unavoidable. Whether you specialize in dealership marketing or green business solutions you're going to need to show your work to someone who doesn't have a computer on them at some point. To do this you will need items like:
Copy Paper
Sticky Notes
File Folders
Notepads
Printable Labels
Envelopes
Fasteners
Fasteners are quite literally the glue that holds your office together. While most offices don't use much actual glue anymore, the need is filled by vast quantities of re-usable paper fasteners and tape. They may not seem important now, but your clients won't be very impressed if you have to hand them your proposal in a reusable plastic container because your office has run out of staples. Here are some of the basic fasteners that should be on everyone's list:
Staples and Stapler
Paper Clips
Bulldog Clips
Clear Tape
Thumb Tacks
Report Sleeves
Writing Implements
With the advent of computers a lot of people think traditional methods of recording information, namely pen and paper, have gone the way of the dinosaur. However, pen and paper has persisted as the primary method for note-taking, editing, and recording one's disjointed ideas that can then be used as the basis for a professionally typed and structured business proposal. Also, just try writing on the shrink sleeve for packaging your lunch with a computer. Make sure your employees are able to jot to their heart's content by including these items on your list:
Pens
Pencils
Erasers
Pencil Sharpeners
Indelible Markers
White Out
Desk Accessories
While you're outfitting the employee gym with everything you can think of: recumbant bike, Toronto yoga DVDs, treadmills, etc, don't forget that your employees will need a little something extra on their desks besides a computer for your office to function as well as your exercise machines. Your company's productivity will drop if your employees have to go searching for a pair of scissors every time they need to cut something, so make sure their desks are outfitted with the following items, as well as with somewhere to store their stuff.
Scissors
Ruler
Staple Remover
Mouse Pad
Pencil Holder
In/Out Trays
Calendar
Cork Board
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