Walk into the office of a Piler, and there will be no mistake recognizing which type they are, as piles of paper will surround them. The Piler is the most singularly noticeable of all the four types, not just because of their piles but what they pile… paper.
Why the piles, you ask? They don’t trust or like traditional filing systems. So, they pile. They pile on their desks, they pile on the floor, and they pile on the window ledge. If there’s a surface – it has a pile on it. Pilers are the masters of multi-tasking and problem-solving. They have all kinds of projects on the go and are active members on committees.
The Piler tends to organize chronologically, not alphabetically. Also, unlike the rest of us mortals, “current” to a Piler can be up to three years ago! If they have a pile in their office, it’s because that pile has something, some piece of information, that potentially holds an answer to something (another pile) they are working on now. Thus, they can’t put it away yet – they still need it. The piling system of the Piler only becomes a problem for them when they run out of space to pile. However, for the individuals they work with, It can become a problem a lot sooner sometimes.
They know precisely what each pile is about, what is in it, and when it was created. Interfering with or moving their piles wreaks havoc on their productivity, thought process, and mood.
The Piler has the biggest issues around paper management. So, let’s take a deeper look at “The Why’s” of piles of paper in the office. When it comes to paper, people have three fears;
It is not that Pilers don’t want to have a filing system, or a filing cabinet. They are strong proponents of order and process. From the Pilers perspective, filing cabinets are like graveyards – where paper goes to rest in peace. For them, filing cabinets cannot support the complexity of “work in progress”. For the Piler, practically everything is “work in progress”.
When they do finally file something away, it’s when it’s ready for archiving. They do file, but only when what they are working on is completely finished and only if the document in question needs to be kept as a hard copy. They have no problem with letting go of what is no longer needed.
Like the Spreader, for the Piler, it is all about work in progress. This is where the piling for The Piler begins and ends – with their current work. There are many options out there that can help keep the piles manageable, safe, and efficient. A drawer system is good, or a shelf specifically for each pile. Another option is using large capacity hanging file folders with wide bottoms. Instead of filing their current projects alphabetically, ordering information and documents in groups, stages, deliverables would work really well for them.