10. Suggestion system.—The suggestions offered by office boys and other minor employes frequently surprise even the most ardent advocates of the sugges tion system. The usual plan is to offer two or three definite money prizes for the best suggestions turned in during a given period, say one month. The sug gestions are unsigned, a copy being kept by the author. They are deposited in a box designed for that pur pose, or are laid on the desk of the office manager. Either the executive committee or the office committee passes on the various suggestions submitted and awards the prizes, posting the winning suggestions on a bulletin board. The contributors submit their cop ies, receive the prizes, and their names are then writ ten on the posted documents. Suggestions in regard to providing a motor for a hand-driven device, reduc ing the sizes of various pieces of stationery to avoid folding, pasting carbons to letters instead of pinning them, thus saving space in the files and the cost of pins or clips, and other ideas of this sort are the most com mon. Very often, however, advertising and selling ideas and suggestions of similar importance come from the most unexpected sources.
11. Arrangement and lighting of office.—While the subject of office arrangement might properly be treated under the head of organization it is, neverthe less, an important element in the management of the office and may well be considered at this point.
The arrangement of desks, filing cabinets and other equipment depends much upon the type of organiza tion. Under the functional type, where the filing is concentrated in one department, where the typists are gathered under one chief and the other functions are similarly segregated, it is obvious that the equipment is grouped according to the departments. The prob
lem then becomes one of allotting the proper floor space and position to each department. The general principle of progression should be adhered to as far as possible. It is usual to follow the course taken by the orders received. This is illustrated by the floor plan of the office of a large clothing house in New York (Figure 10). The orders are first laid on the president's desk. From there they go to the credit de partment, and when the sales manager receives them lie knows whether or not they are approved by the credit department. After receiving his approval they proceed to the order department, where the produc tion orders are made and the proper copies sent to the filing department for the sales and other files, to the billing department and to the factory superintendent. The latter is not far distant from the purchasing agent, with whom he is in frequent communication. The treasurer is located close to the credit and account ing departments. The shipping slips come up from the shipping department, on the floor below, to the billing department, which is across the hall from the accounting department. The filing, mailing and stenographic departments are also conveniently cated. There is very little doubling bad- in this office. Care should be given to the proper lighting of the office. Poor light is responsible for much of the in efficiency in office work. Lighting has been reduced to a science, and it is in most cases advisable to call in an expert. Sometimes it is found cheaper to in stal an indirect lighting system; in others, a direct system with properly diffused light is better. The candle-power, the kind of shades, the distance of one light from another and from the work—all these are important points to be considered.