When an auditor, donor or manager asks, "Can you show me the evidence?", a well kept project can answer in minutes. A badly kept one cannot, and that can mean costs being refused or a project's reputation being damaged. Filing and documentation appear in assistant and officer adverts because they protect the organisation, and they protect you.
What counts as evidence
Projects keep many kinds of records:
- Attendance sheets, signed by participants, for trainings and meetings.
- Financial records: purchase requests, quotes, approvals, invoices, receipts, payment confirmations and delivery notes.
- Agreements: contracts, memoranda of understanding, consent forms.
- Reports and minutes.
- Photos and videos, taken with permission.
- Data: survey forms, registers, tracking sheets.
A simple folder system
Use the same structure for every project so anyone can find things. In Google Drive or any shared storage, a project folder might look like this:
- 01 Planning: charter, logframe, work plan, budget.
- 02 Activities: one subfolder per activity, named with the date first, for example "2026 05 28 Committee training", holding the attendance sheet, photos and activity report.