Taming the Office Supply CabinetHow many times have you ordered paper clips or pens only to find more at the bottom of the cabinet several months later?~~ Unfortunately, the office supply cabinet has the same reputation as the office kitchen. No one wants to take responsibility for its care and feeding. It is time to take control of the chaos and restore order and organization to the dreaded office supply cabinet. Follow these simple steps and then reap the rewards of plentiful office supplies that are always at your fingertips. Assign one person to the task. Remember too many cooks will spoil the pot. Make sure that person is TOTALLY in charge of office supplies--ordering the supplies, removing them as people request items and restocking. Tackle the mess. One reason it is so difficult to find things in most supply cabinets is items are usually just tossed in and stacked one on top of the other. Take everything out and divide the supplies into front-labeled containers. Categorize the supplies. Most office supply cabinets contain a variety of items. Consider designating each shelf for different categories of supplies, i.e., computer supplies, desk supplies, paper/binders/filing and larger items. Take inventory. While the cabinet is being reorganized, take a complete inventory of all the items (jot notes on paper, then transfer to computer spreadsheet.) Alphabetize and categorize the list based on the shelf organization. Also, make a column indicating the number of each item currently in stock. The inventory list will indicate which supplies are running low and need to be reordered. Notify everyone in the office of the new procedure for requesting supplies. The office supply "manager" will be in charge of filling internal office supply requests. When supplies leave the cabinet, the person in charge will adjust the inventory number to reflect the revised count. Now, wasn't that easy? | 
