A recordkeeper is a person who works with, organizes, and stores information such as reports, files, meeting minutes, ledgers, and other correspondence in the office. He or she is in charge of keeping records organized and accessible to other employees as well as outside parties such as lawyers who may require the information. A recordkeeper must keep an up-to-date order of a company’s financial books, files, and receipts for tax purposes.
Tax records, including expense breakdowns, must be meticulously maintained and updated on a regular basis. To prove the information on company tax returns, financial records such as receipts are required. The management of business financial records is divided into two main categories: receivables and payables. Customers make payments on accounts receivable, while the company buys equipment and other items on accounts payable.
Because this accounts for a deficit, or reduction, in what the company should have received for payments according to its invoicing, a recordkeeper must keep a list of clients who are past due in their payments. Invoices are numbered in sequential order and issued when a customer receives a good or service. Customers who pay with cash pay invoices immediately, while those who pay with credit pay their account total each month or according to another agreed-upon schedule. All invoices must be accounted for; any canceled customer orders must be marked as “void,” and credit customers must receive statements. Statements are documents sent to credit clients on a regular basis that detail how much they have paid or not paid toward invoices on their accounts.
Cash, sales, payroll, and company purchases are all organized by recordkeepers into easily accessible information that fits into a larger system, such as computerized accounting software. Recordkeepers may be in charge of downloading a company’s bank information into software programs in computerized accounting systems. Another common responsibility is backing up files in the event of an office fire or other emergency. A recordkeeper may still need to manually record some receipts and items in a ruled ledger book in some cases. Petty cash and office supply purchases are frequently entrusted to recordkeepers.
Rather than letting receipts and information pile up, an efficient recordkeeper organizes and files items on a daily basis. This type of office worker’s job entails daily recordkeeping, but other administrative tasks may be assigned. Minutes are frequently taken at meetings by recordkeepers, who then distribute and store the information.