No large modern company does not do without an employee who deals with document management. We are not talking about a secretary, but about a person in the position of office manager.
The ancestors of the profession are rightly considered scribes and chroniclers, about whom it is known from ancient times. If the former simply wrote letters under dictation, the latter were engaged in the presentation on paper of historical events.
The profession was officially registered in the 20th century. It was then that developing enterprises needed people who would be engaged in documentary reporting. Demand for representatives of the specialty became so high that educational institutions one after another began to open faculties of this direction.
Today, documents – one of the main components of any firm, so the state always needs a clerk. And, if the functional duties have not particularly changed, the techniques and methods of work of modern producers are radically different.
Clerk and his functions
So, the clerk – a person who is responsible for the entire document flow of the enterprise. The specialist needs to analyze, process each paper that passes through him. And sometimes send letters or documents to the addressees.
The main duties of the clerk:
- complete document management;
- maintenance of registration logs;
- working with clients: phone calls, negotiations;
- parsing, registration, distribution and redirection of correspondence in electronic and paper format;
- maintenance of the client base;
- control over documents of the organization’s employees;
- data archiving, transfer of documents to the archive database;
- creation and maintenance of accounting registers and journals.
The clerk is also responsible for electronic document management. The employee needs to monitor incoming letters, process and register them, and, if necessary, redirect them to a certain department.
The functions of the clerk can vary depending on the sphere of the company in which he works. Thus, in logistics companies it may be the maintenance of the base of road transportation, monitoring the work of couriers, etc.
Often the clerk additionally performs the duties of a secretary. In this case, he will have to work not only with paper and electronic correspondence, but also to serve the reception area. For example, to organize meetings, meet clients, book tickets, hotels, prepare business trips.
Pros and cons
To the advantages of the profession can be attributed a high demand for specialists in office management. There is also the possibility of employment in fairly large organizations, both private and public. This gives employees the opportunity to improve professionally and grow in their careers. The specialty provides work in a team and the opportunity to develop negotiation skills.
The disadvantages of the specialty are considered sedentary lifestyle, which over time can lead to various diseases characteristic of a sedentary lifestyle. In addition, a novice employee, even in a large firm will receive a low salary. And the number of duties even at the initial stage will remain large.