1.1 FORMS ANALYSIS AND DESIGN
1.1.1 WHAT IS A FORM?
A form is basically a fixed arrangement of captioned spaces designed for entering and
obtaining pre-described information. A form is considered effective if it is:
? easy to complete
? easy to use
? easy to store
? easy to retrieve information quickly
? easy to dispose
1.1.2 HOW IS IT IMPORTANT?
In a business, forms and design are greatly needed to allow the company to better
organize the way they want their business to operate smoothly and efficiently. Although
the presence of forms and design in a company ensures that the company will run better,
be able to make better decisions and be able to coordinate activities more easily, these
forms and design programs must be covered in the companies budget, in terms of costs.
The company will have to make sure that its forms and designs are a unique standard
throughout the company and not different in separate sections of the companies total
make-up. If, by chance the presence of a universal form in a certain section of the
company is a disadvantage rather than an advantage, the forms and policies of other
companies may be looked at in order to correct the problem. When creating a form,
companies may use the same standard techniques before making changes to make the form
right for its company.
Some basic techniques are making sure that the form is easy to fill in, takes minimal
time to fill-in, it has a functional layout and it contains an attractive visual
appearance.
After using the basic standards of form design, the forms analysists', spend countless
hours making the design a unique standard for their company, while considering every
section of the company, so that the form will be useful to every member of the company.
Policies and Procedure Guidlines Page 2 of 14
Section 1.2: Tools and Aids For Forms and Design Effective date: March 6, 1997
Issued by: Approved by:
1.2 TOOLS AND AIDS FOR FORMS DESIGNING
Many companies use the same basic tools to design their forms. In the past when forms
were designed, many "traditional tools" were used to design forms. Some of those tools
include the following:
? pencils, erasers
? rulers, triangles
? tracing paper
? lettering and symbol templates
? cutting tools
? masking tape and cellophane tape
? correction fluid
? rubber cement
Now, because of new technology and easier ways to design forms, most of these tools are
obsolete. New computer hardware and software have provided many tools and accessories
which have allowed companies to train employees to design forms using these advanced
tools. Software packages such as Corel Draw, Microsoft Office, which includes Word,
Excel, Access and PowerPoint along with WordPerfect, PowerBuilder, Visual Basic and many
other software packages have made tasks easier to complete. Their amazing accurate and
precise design tools provide "picture-perfect" quality.
1.2.1 Computer Hardware and Software
? Pentium Computers
Today most designers use computers especially Pentium computers because of their
speed and performance.
Policies and Procedure Guidelines Page 3 of 14
Section 1.2: Tools and Aids For Forms and Design Effective date: March 6, 1997
Issued by: Approved by:
? Corel Draw
There are several different software packages that can be used to design the forms.
Many companies recommend Corel Draw. It is an excellent choice to use for designing
the form as you would want it on paper. There are excellent designing tools included
in the Corel Package which allows you to draw lines of any size, color or shape. It
also allows you to insert grids, graphics, graphs or images with different border
styles and sizes.
? Microsoft Word
After designing the physical appearance of the form with style and borders,
Microsoft Word will be used to fill in the form's information because of the various
fonts that are available. Also, Microsoft Word's ability to change font size, and
either, bold, underline or italicize wording, will be very useful in the creation of
the text that will appear in the form.
? Microsoft Excel
This section of Microsoft Office can be used by the designers to design grids and
graphs that might be needed to represent data in the form. Grids and tables may be
inserted into the form to hold data that the applicant may need to fill. Different
types of graphs such as pie charts, line graphs, column graphs and combination graphs
may be needed to represent a question in the form. For example, the applicant may
need to fill in what percentage he/she belongs to as compared to the rest of the
field represented by the graph.
? Microsoft Access
This section of Microsoft Office can be used to design databases. The designers
may want to include previously designed tables or create new tables to insert into
forms. They may also want to only include portions of tables in which they can create
queries so that the tables they insert includes only the information that they
specified.
Policies and Procedure Guidelines Page 4 of 14
Section 1.2: Tools and Aids For Forms and Design Effective date: March 6, 1997
Issued by: Approved by:
? Printers
An Epson III Laser Jet Color Printer can be used to print the forms. The laser
quality will provide the crisp and clear texture of lines and text, along with bright
colors to make the form more attractive and visually appealing. Although any laser
printer, will provide excellent quality, the color laser jets printers makes the forms
more attractive because of how the different colors distinguish between the different
sections of the form.
? Saving Forms
All the forms will that are designed by the company should be backed up on the hard
drive of the computers. The forms will be saved whether they were used or not, in
case of changes in the form's design or in case the company wants to improve on a
previously designed form. The forms will also be saved on floppy disks, just in case
of viruses, malfunctions in the computer or hard drive upgrading and formatting.
Policies and Procedure Guidelines Page 5 of 14
Section 1.3: Designing Procedures Effective date: March
6, 1997
Issued by: Approved by:
1.3 DESIGNING PROCEDURES
The two major objectives of this process is:
1) collecting information, which is its reason for existence
2) facilitating a format for the form, which is standard.
1.3.1 Facilitative Area
The forms are a very important aspect of a company because they provide the
information of each employee that the employers wish to know. Since most companies use
a standardized format, each company must contain its title and identify the type of
form that the applicant is filling out .
It is also useful to include the name of the department, date, codes and
instructions that may be necessary to complete the form.
? Identification
The title of the form will be placed at the top center of the form and in any case
where the form contains more than one invoice, it should include subtitles to
distinguish it from the rest of the forms. If the forms will be filed, it will be
helpful to place the title in the "visible area" of the form, which would be the area
visible on the form when it is in a filing cabinet or some other type of filing.
? Form Numbers
The forms will also include form numbers which will be placed in either of the lower
corners on each page of the form. This will prevent the form numbers from being
covered by staples and it won't interfere with the working area of the form. It will
also serve as an aid in stocking the forms in small quantities.
Policies and Procedure Guidelines Page 6 of 14
Section 1.3: Designing Procedures Effective date: March
6, 1997
Issued by: Approved by:
? Page Numbers
It is also very important to ensure that all the pages of the form contain page
numbers for various reasons. This will be helpful in identifying what page of the form
it is and help make it easier to sort out forms, especially if they contain more than
one page. The page numbers should be placed in the upper right hand corner of the
page so that when the form is opened the number of the page will be easier to see when
the pages are stapled in the upper left corner. (EX: Page 1 of **)
? Edition Date
The company should ensure that all the forms contain edition dates which show when
the form was made. The form should also show how long they will be valid before they
need to be updated again. The edition dates will be included with form numbers.
? Supersession Notice
This is simply a method of notifying users and workers in the supply room so that
they will know when a new form has been created has replaced the older version of the
form. It is also used when a newer version of the previous form has been revised.
This notice is usually printed in the bottom margin of the form. It should let the
user know if the form has been replaced and what the number of the new form is. If
more than one form is used to replace a single form, then a separate notice should
would be more appropriate to inform effective personnel of the change.
? Expiration Dates and Approval of Forms
If a form is to be used for only a limited of time, then it should contain
expiration dates and limit dates. These will let the users no when and how long the
form will be valid and when they should get another one.
Because many forms have to be approved by a company first before they are
distributed to users, they must allow room for the company to state its approval
number, signature or symbol, along with the date that the form was approved.
Policies and Procedure Guidelines Page 7 of 14
Section 1.3: Designing Procedures Effective date: March
6, 1997
Issued by: Approved by:
? Emblems and Symbols
After the forms are approved by the company, the designers must insert the company's
emblem or logo on the form. This will validate the form as property of that company
and act sort of like a patent so that it won't be used by any other companies.
? Comments and Suggestions
In order to have room for improvement on the forms, there should be enough space
for any comments or suggestions that the authorizing department wishes to leave when
approving the form. The form will have to be approved by the department before the
companies logo or seal can be placed on the form. and it will have to contain the
companies logo before the form will be valid.
Policies and Procedure Guidelines Page 8 of 14
Section 1.4: Instructions Effective
date: March 6, 1997
Issued by: Approved by:
1.4 INSTRUCTIONS
1.4.1 General Instructions
To ensure that the forms are easy to fill out, each form will contain instructions
for completing the form and what to do with the forms after completing them. The
instructions should be brief. The instructions that are located under the title of
the form will be basic, general instructions that tell the applicant what to do with
the form, why they are filling it out and who they should give it to when they are
finished. This should be read by the user before completing the form.
1.4.2 Lengthy Instructions
In any case where the form is lengthy and requires a lot of thought to fill it out,
an instruction booklet should be included with the form. These instructions are more
lengthy but explain more about filling out the form. They should try to answer any
questions that the applicant may have about his/her choices while completing the form.
These instructions will explain clearly how to fill out the form, including what is
mandatory to fill in and what sections are optional.
These instructions should be sort of like a written procedure that explains the form
in a sort of summary. The font size of the wording should be carefully designed to
make sure that the words are big enough and the lines should be double spaced to make
sure that the instructions are clear enough to read and understand.
An acceptable reading font size is around 12pt or 14 pt size. Times New Roman,
Arial or Courier are standard true type fonts that are clear and easy to read.
1.4.3 Section Instructions
There will also be instructions included in each section. These instructions will
explain clearly how to fill out each the section of the form. It will contain
information on whether or not the section needs to be filled out in order to
determine full completion of the form.
Policies and Procedure Guidelines Page 9 of 14
Section 1.5: Addressing and Mailing Effective date: March
6, 1997
Issued by: Approved by:
1.5 ADDRESSING AND MAILING
1.5.1 Self-Routing
On the bottom of the last page of the form or on the back of the last page, there
will be a space for the address of the employer and a space for the applicant to fill
in his/her address, along with extra space in case the form has to be sent to multiple
routes. This will make it easier for the forms to be transferred to the employer and
increase the capability of self - routing mail.
When addressing to a certain employer, job titles should be used instead of names
just in case changes in departments should occur due to promotions or lay-offs. This
will change the positions held by certain employees who are in control of certain
departments which means different responsibilities for these people.
1.5.2 E-Mailing and Faxing
Companies that have email will be at an advantage. They will be able to email a
copy of the form to the user and have them fill out the appropriate information and
then email the results back to the employer
For companies that don't have email, fax machines are also useful. They can simply
fax the forms to the employees or applicants. The employees can then fill it out and
then fax it or bring the form to the employer in person.
1.5.3 Personal MailBoxes
In most companies, employers and employees have their own personal mailboxes. By
including both the address of the employee and the employer, it is easier for
employees or users to transfer forms to the employer. In the event that the employer
may be out on a business trip, the applicants may simply drop the forms into the
employers mailboxes to meet deadlines.
Policies and Procedure Guidelines Page 10 of 14
Section 1.6: Form Layout Effective date:
March 6, 1997
Issued by: Approved by:
1.6 FORM LAYOUT
? Sheet Size
The forms should be designed on 8 1/2" x 11" carbon paper with a carbon sheet on
the back, so that the person filling out the form can keep a copy for him/herself.
The sections of the forms should be placed on both sides of the paper to save paper.
The information on the forms should not be crammed so that some important information
could possibly left out or so that it would make it harder to read the questions due
to poor spacing or small lettering.
? Margins
The form should have half inch margins on all sides so that the wording won't be too
close to the end of the page. This allows the user or reader to hold the paper without
covering any wording on the form.
? Spacing
The amount of horizontal and vertical spacing is determined by the amount of
headings and sub-headings, size and style of text and the amount of space left for
fill in answers.
? Box Format
The form will follow a box format which will increase space because the information
will go to each end of the page margin. It will have exceptional horizontal and
vertical spacing to enable easier reading.
? Borders and Bolding
The different sections of the form will be divided by solid black lines. The
headings and sub-headings will be bolded and larger than the question text in order to
improve the visual appearance of each section of the form.
Policies and Procedure Guidelines Page 11 of 14
Section 1.6: Form Layout Effective date:
March 6, 1997
Issued by: Approved by:
? Shading
Shading will also be used in the sections where no information is required to make
it easier for the applicant to know what sections he/she needs to fill in. This would
also be used to highlight sections that need to be filled in, but not by the
applicant. For example, some forms have sections that specify "for office use only"
meaning that they don't have to fill out any information in that section.
? Answer Spaces
There will be spaces indicated on the right side of the section that will be lined
aligned with one another. They will be used for filling in information that contain
only numbers or a letter code. In the case that the answers to the question requires
several lines in order to answer it, there will be more than enough space available to
appropriately answer the question. Therefore the information must be clear and widely
spaced so that it is very easy to fill out the forms.
Policies and Procedure Guidelines Page 12 of 14
Section 1.7: Breakdown of Form Arrangements Effective date: March 6, 1997
Issued by: Approved by:
1.7 BREAKDOWN OF FORM ARRANGEMENTS
The form should be set up in a way to make it easier for the applicants to fill in.
The sections of the forms will be organized so that all the related parts of the form
are placed one after the other to avoid reading back through the form. The form will
have headings and sub-heading which define which section of the form you are filling out
and help you understand what kind of information you should fill in.
1.7.1 Beginning
The personal information will be placed at the first of the form. This will
contain things such as the applicants name, address, phone number, and date of birth
.
1.7.2 Body
This will contain the basic purpose of the form. It will have the questions that
will be needed to complete the form, depending on what kind of form it is. For
example, if it was an application for applying for a job, the beginning would include
the items mentioned above in the beginning section. The body, would contain,
previous education, previous employment, the position you wish to apply for and
your references.
1.7.3 Ending
This section of the form will have spaces to fill in the address of the person you
wish to send it to, along with your own address. It will have several spaces in case
you wish to send it to more than one person.
Policies and Procedure Guidelines Page 13 of 14
Section 1.8: Revising an Existing Form Effective date: March 6,
1997
Issued by: Approved by:
1.8 REVISING AN EXISTING FORM
There are many things to consider when revising a form:
? Previous forms will be considered to be obsolete
? Previous editions of forms can be used until there are no more left. Companies can
use the older forms until there are no more left before presenting a new form.
? Existing stocks which include the form number and edition date can be used. The now
obsolete forms, will be replaced by new ones, but the form numbers and editions dates
will be transferred on to the new forms.
Policies and Procedure Guidelines Page 14 of 14
Section 1.9: Replacing Existing Forms with Different Numbers Effective date: March 6,
1997
Issued by: Approved by:
1.9 REPLACING EXISTING FORMS WITH DIFFERENT NUMBERS
? You first have to replace the form numbers and edition dates which are now
considered to be obsolete.
? Instead of replacing the number and dates right away, you can wait until there are no
more forms left and then make the changes to the new forms.
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