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Records Management – When Does a Document Become a Record?

The reply is straightforward: “A document becomes a record when the description of the document’s content can be found on the company’s official records retention schedule.” To be extra exact, “A original document becomes an official record when the content of a document matches words and phrases on the company’s official records retention schedule.” Note {that a} copy of an official document is named an unofficial document.

Note the phrases, “original,” “official,” and “copy.” Ah, for the robust choices of a data supervisor. Now you can begin to see the challenges of being a data supervisor. For instance, if the official document (authentic) is destroyed or deleted, the copy turns into the official document and have to be correctly protected and saved. But what if the unique is destroyed and there have been 10 copies produced. One of these 10 copies is the unique, however which one? In the best state of affairs, the data supervisor retains monitor of all digital and bodily paperwork and data. Ideally, the data supervisor should be capable of contact these people that possess recognized copies when the unique is destroyed.

Complicated? Yes, it’s. And I do know of NO data supervisor who has ever been in a position to efficiently observe the paper trial of a doc from creation to make use of and to disposition. Now it’s potential to regulate these paperwork and data tightly if the data supervisor has a big workers, if the corporate is small, and if the funds are limitless. If anybody has an excellent answer, please go to my web site and e mail me.

Is there solution to declare a doc a document? Of course, many individuals will name a doc a document when the content material has authorized, fiscal, operational, historic, or enterprise worth, however that is too obscure for me. With this methodology, too many data managers generally tend to declare all paperwork as data and be achieved with it. And lo and behold, now why there are sometimes 1000’s upon 1000’s “extra” data being saved offsite and even onsite. Why you ask? Because now when the file cupboards get full, all paperwork, data, and unofficial data are saved offsite. If you agree with the primary methodology {that a} doc is barely thought-about a document when it may be discovered on the data retention schedule, then the one document that ought to concern you is the official, authentic doc. All others needs to be given a brief life and destroyed.

Conclusion: Documents solely change into data after they meet two key traits: (1) content material matches descriptions on the corporate’s official data retention schedule; and (2) the paperwork are originals. All different paperwork are copies and may be destroyed when they’re not referenced incessantly.

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