What is Records Management System?
Record Management System, also known as electronic records management, is a very important part of an organization’s document management policies. It helps organization to systematically manage records throughout its lifecycle, from creation to distribution to disposition.
What are the benefits of a Records Management System?
Records Management System has several benefits such as improving efficiency, better traceability, and ensuring regulatory compliance. Record management and retention allow companies to make sure their staff has complete access to accurate information in a timely and cost-effective manner. Following are the most important benefits of setting up a good records management program in your office:
1. Control the Generation and Growth of Records
Even though we are increasingly becoming reliant on electronic files, the amount of paper used in offices has not significantly reduced. If a record management system is adopted, an organization can control the creation of records or copies and retain only those records that are actually needed or are active. This controls the growth of records and thus reduces the storage space needed.
2. Effectively Retrieve and Dispose Records
The consequences of spending too much time searching for misfiled records can be quite severe; you may not only lose in terms of billable hours but also lose valuable customers. This is why it is important to invest in a well-designed filing system that can facilitate retrieving records and disposing of records past their end-of-life date.
Also Check: Record Retention
3. Assimilate New Records Management Technologies
Investing in record management software can prove to be helpful if a company has physical record management system in place. The new record management technology can be assimilated with existing records system to make the system stronger.
Also Check: Document Scanning and Digitization
4. Regulatory Compliance
With the government becoming stricter about compliance issues, it is necessary for companies to apply a good record management system and ensure they are in full compliance with laws and regulations. If any company fails to provide essential records during litigation or regulatory check, it may have to pay severe penalties or face legal consequences. The only way to ensure regulatory compliance is through advanced record management technology and a firm policy for records management and retention.
5. Minimize Litigation Risks
Implementing a record management system can reduce the risk associated with litigation and potential penalties. A well-planned and thoughtfully applied record management program can reduce the liabilities associated with document disposal.
6. Safeguard Important Information
Every company, public or private, needs a systematic program for protecting its important records and information from disaster or theft. Record management system preserves the integrity and confidentiality of important records and safeguards it as per set rules. This disallows unauthorized users from tampering with sensitive and important records.
7. Cut Costs, Save Time & Efforts
Handling Records takes up a lot of time and money in terms of storage space, printing, filing and staffing to maintain an organized record system. It also takes a lot of time and money to search or reproduce lost records in absence of organized system. Records management system can help save considerable expenses by reducing operating costs and improving efficiency of employees.
8. Better Management Decision Making
Making relevant data easily accessible allows companies to take decisions faster so that they can stay ahead of the competition or make an informed decision. Records management software makes useful data accessible and disposes off unwanted data, so that relevant data can be accessed faster. Indexing and retrieval capability allows managers and authorized executives to search and find files faster.
9. Preserve Company Knowledge
A company’s files are its knowledgebase, which forms an integral part of its future planning and decision-making. Every single record created in a business day is a potential background data for future management decisions and planning. These records document the activities of the company, which managers may use in future to research the workings of the company.
10. Keep Employees Motivated
Poorly managed records, an unorganized filing system, and frequent loss of important documents create a poor working environment, which has a direct effect on employees’ motivation level. Though you cannot put a quantifiable figure on the loss of motivation due to these circumstances, it is one of the most important reasons to establish a good record management system.
Also check: Automated Electronic Workflow
Records Management FAQs
Records lifecycle in records management refer to the journey of documents and information from its creation to its disposal.
Records lifecycle is flexible and varies from organization to organization. In Docsvault, the phases of records lifecycle are:
Create Records: Easily create different retention schedules for your electronic or physical records as per regulations.
Retrieve Records: This can include processes such as filing and retrieval of information. You can instantly search for records by name, record series, disposition date, metadata, hold types, and many other criteria
Circulate Records: Manage and monitor the circulation of physical and electronic documents distributed internally and externally for business decisions.
Dispose Records: Disposition involves destroying records or transferring them to another entity. Docsvault allows creating batches of records for disposition on a regular basis so you can establish proof of having consistent and properly disposed records during the normal course of business.
Records management is important because it ensures that important records are preserved and controlled throughout their lifecycle including compliance with set retention procedures. Using a document management system is the best way to guarantee records with historical, fiscal, risk management, and legal impact are accurately identified and preserved, and non-essential records are discarded as required by set rules.
The two major types of records are physical records and electronic records. Docsvault helps you manage the entire lifecycle of physical records including the circulation of records. You simply need to apply the retention policy for your digital and physical records and Docsvault will protect them from accidental and deliberate deletions.
An Archive and Delete Policy outlines the guidelines for retaining, storing, and disposing of digital documents. It ensures compliance with legal, regulatory, and organizational requirements.
The best document management software is Docsvault, a robust all-in-one document management solution to manage your physical and digital documents. Its document management and records management tools help to ensure accountability for managing records and processes of document creation that are required to conduct the business of the organization.
Factors such as legal requirements, business value, and historical significance are considered.
Retention periods vary depending on the type of document and specific regulations.
Docsvault’s Records Management is built-in feature available in Docsvault Enterprise & Ultimate editions. The Auto Retention function in Docsvault’s ‘Records Retention’ section entirely restructures the manual records retention schedule. Setting a retention strategy based on document metadata can assist companies to maintain and access records over lengthy periods of time.
Access to archived documents is typically restricted and requires specific authorization.
Documents that are no longer needed for business or legal purposes are candidates for deletion.
The Archive & Delete policy might permanently delete files or folders, or it might move them to the Recycle bin. If you select the delete policy that says ‘Delete with Recycle’, you can recover deleted items from the recycle bin. ‘Delete Permanently’ option will permanently deleting or remove data from Documents & Archive nodes.