Golden retrieval
- Article 15 of 26
- M-iD, March 2005
Developing a dependable document retention, retrieval and destruction strategy demands a measured, step-by-step approach
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If the organisation also has paper documents, the policy can stipulate which documents can be converted into electronic format and how to reference the paper documents within a physical records management system.
Any electronic records management system must usually, therefore, be able to manage both kinds of documents in order to provide a single view on both kinds of information - something essential to efficient retrieval.
Step five
With the initial policy drawn up, the team needs to implement it throughout the organisation, making clear the penalties for failing to stick with the processes. But the policy will need to remain fluid.
Bob Pitman, European business development manager at Hyland Software, says that there must be regular reviews of the processes as they are implemented as well as the policy itself. “You should review in anticipation of key events, such as when new standards come out of the FSA, or every time you create a new process or launch a new product,” he says. With many new regulations impending, such as the UK's forthcoming Companies Bill, no policy can remain static for very long either at the moment.
By ensuring both the policy and the systems have flexibility, the organisation can ensure it remains agile and responsive to changes.
The arrival of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act in the US has brought about the advent of software tools for documenting processes, so the possible overheads of adapting policies to new processes can be avoided to some extent through the adoption of these tools.
While developing a records retention, retrieval and destruction policy might seem a daunting task, by using existing processes and expertise, the scope of the problem can be reduced.
If implemented properly, such policies can save organisations money by cutting storage requirements and making processes more efficient. But most important of all, they can also save organisations from legal actions and the wrath of regulators.
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