Objectives of a Comprehensive Records Management Program
An effective Records Management program should be designed to achieve the following objectives:
- Ensure that all needed business records are retained;
- Ensure that all records that are required to be retained by statute, regulation, or contract are retained for the appropriate and approved period of time;
- Ensure that all authorized users can access business records efficiently;
- Ensure that all business records can be read, used, and regarded as authentic once located;
- Establish litigation hold procedures to ensure that potentially responsive documents are not destroyed once litigation and/or government investigation is reasonably anticipated; and
- Establish procedures to ensure the timely destruction of appropriate documents as their respective retention periods expire.
Developing and implementing an effective records management program is a complicated, time-consuming task that requires a multi-faceted team of professionals committed to fully understanding the business and the types of records created by the company. At a minimum, the following individuals must be involved in the effort:
- Senior business personnel from key units within the organization who are knowledgeable of the types of documents that are created within the organization;
- Records retention specialists who possess the necessary skill sets for managing the process;
- Information Technology ("IT/IS") personnel who are familiar with the types of electronic documents the organization creates and receives, know where the electronic documents are stored and how to locate them, and understand the technological capabilities of the company;
- Lawyers and regulatory specialists who are familiar with the legal requirements for document retention.
Before beginning, the team should clearly define their individual roles and responsibilities within the project.
The goal of the team should be to develop a concise policy that clearly defines the record type, applicable retention period, and the source of the retention requirement (whether business, statutory, or regulatory). The team should document and retain records outlining how the program was developed and implemented, in order to be in a position to demonstrate it used “best efforts” to comply with document retention requirements.
The record retention needs of each department of a business vary greatly. This fact must be taken into account when creating a records management program. Different departments create and use records in unique ways and the program, in order to be effective, must accommodate these unique uses and needs.
Before implementing a document retention policy, an inventory of threatened and pending litigation and/or government investigations should be conducted. Steps must be taken, in consultation with counsel, to ensure that all potentially responsive documents are preserved. The stakes of spoliation are so high that extreme caution must be taken with respect to documents related to disputes, investigation, potential future litigation, and existing litigation.
After taking steps to ensure that the program meets all legal requirements, training of all employees should be conducted. The program should be well-publicized within the company and employees should be advised of where to direct questions.
All employees must comply with a Records Management program in order for it to be successful. The wide variety of employees that a business has should be accounted for in the planning and implementation of a strong Records Management program; consultants, contract personnel, and vendors all require clear instruction regarding records.
Records Management Categories
Litigation Holds
The duty to preserve materials arises when a party acquires notice or should know that the
materials are relevant to an existing litigation or investigation, or to reasonably
anticipated future litigation or investigation.
Emerging Technologies
Best practices for introducing new technologies suggests a great amount of due diligence.
Integrating new technologies, although seeming innocent and a good business benefit, creates
havoc on records management in the electronic age.