Another Lost & Found Reminder

On a couple of occasions recently, someone has come to the Allen Info Desk or gone to the HUB Information Desk to retrieve a flash drive which they had lost.  Each person said they had received a call from Information Desk staff stating that we had the flash drive and that they could pick it up at the Info Desk before 2:00pm (that day or the next) or at the HUB Info Desk.

So far so good, right?

Unfortunately, in both instances the item was not logged into the Lost & Found Log and the flash drives could not be found.  Since there was no entry in the Log documenting the flash drive, it's ownership and the contact made, it ended up being frustrating both for the person who lost it and for the Info Desk staff person trying to assist them.

I'm not sure that I recommend this, but if you go to the trouble to look on a flash drive to try and ascertain it's ownership, and if you then proceed to contact the person, you absolutely must log this into the Lost & Found Log and lock the item in the cabinet.  If the person comes to claim the drive, then you absolutely must have them sign the log entry for this item.

I know I sound dictatorial with my double use of ' 'absolutely' above; but we keep being a little too loose about how we handle lost and found; and I'm trying to impress on all of you how important it is to think the process all the way through and to use the log appropriately.

Please let me know if have any questions about any of this.  We'll talk about lost and found and flash drives in particular at next Monday's staff meeting.

- Adam