Records management best practices are essential for organizations to maintain their legal and regulatory compliance. In the US, this record management approach is primarily the responsibility of industries such as financial services, healthcare, and insurance. They also help organizations to manage their records lifecycle more efficiently by organizing them, labeling them, storing them, and disposing of them.
My list of records management best practices and tips
The records management best practices are:
- Define business need and goals
- Establish a process for identifying records
- Review and update policies and procedures
- Create a records maintenance schedule
- Identify the records management team
- Setting up a workflow that is easy to use
- Establish a secure location for storing records
- Record, track, and monitor records
- Ensure employees have access to updated policies
- Train employees
- Follow up on the latest RM trends
1- Define business need and goals
Defining business needs and goals is a foundational step in effective records management. By clearly understanding the organization’s objectives, you can tailor your records management plan to support specific business processes, comply with regulations, and make informed decisions.
This clarity helps identify which records are essential to retain, for how long, and the level of security required. It also ensures that records management efforts are aligned with the overall business strategy, preventing unnecessary costs and inefficiencies. Ultimately, a well-defined business need and goal framework provides a roadmap for effective records management that drives value and supports organizational success.
2- Establish a process for identifying records
The process of identifying and documenting records is a crucial step in the records management process and considered one of the top records management best practices. The types of records that should be included vary depending on the type of archive, but generally, records should be included if they are created as evidence of an event or are created by a government body and document the activities, decisions, or operations of that government body.
The records management risks are high, and the process is a complex system, with many steps and processes. The first step in this process is to identify all of the records that should be included in an archive.
3- Review and update policies and procedures
It is important to review and update records management policies and procedures in order to maintain the integrity, confidentiality, governance, and availability of records. For example, all records should be identified and stored in a designated area that is part of the established records maintenance policy.
In our experience, the records manager should be held accountable to create and update these procedures whenever a change is introduced.
4- Create a records maintenance schedule
To avoid the potential costs and risks associated with the loss of records, a retention schedule should be created. It specifies how long to keep specific records and is typically determined by three factors: management, business, and legal.
Management: For personnel records, a schedule may be set at one year.
Business: A schedule for financial records may specify different periods depending on the type of document that is being retained, with financial accounting and tax documents typically requiring longer-than-personal-files periods to comply with IRS regulations.
5. Identify the records management team
Records management benefits are enormous and identifying the records management team is a key success factor in any business. The team is tasked with the responsibility of keeping track of records and ensuring that they are stored securely until they are no longer needed. In some cases, this can include shredding or purging the content in order to maintain data storage limits.
6- Setting up a workflow that is easy to use
A user-friendly workflow is considered one of the top records management best practices. A streamlined process that is easy to understand and follow encourages employees to participate actively in managing their records. This not only improves compliance but also enhances efficiency and reduces errors.
A well-designed workflow guides employees through the entire lifecycle of a record, from creation to disposal. By simplifying tasks and providing clear instructions, organizations can ensure that records are properly classified, stored, and retrieved when needed.
7- Establish a secure location for storing records
Establishing a secure location for storing records is one of the top records management best practices because it ensures the protection of sensitive and critical information from unauthorized access, loss, or damage. A secure storage environment, whether physical or digital, safeguards records against data breaches, theft, or accidental destruction, which could lead to legal consequences, financial losses, or damage to organizational reputation.
Additionally, secure storage ensures compliance with regulatory requirements, which often mandate specific security protocols for sensitive information. By prioritizing secure storage, organizations can maintain the integrity, confidentiality, and availability of their records, thus supporting effective decision-making and operational continuity.
8- Record, track, and monitor records
Records are constantly moving in and out of storage, as well as between colleagues and departments. Without a comprehensive classification and monitoring system in place, RM would be extremely challenging.
Keeping records of what the organization does on a day-to-day basis helps document the activities, decisions, and processes that they follow. Without these records, the organization can’t measure its success or know what’s going wrong. Tracking and monitoring records are vital to any company’s success and future.
9- Ensure employees have access to updated policies
Keeping employees informed about new policies and procedures is an important task for any organization. Policies will vary from one organization to the next, so it is up to management to ensure that all employees have access to updated policies on their organization’s website.
10- Train employees
Managing documents and records can be a time-consuming task for managers. This is because there are a lot of processes that have to be followed and it’s not always easy to remember them all. In order to alleviate the burden on your managers, create a guide for employees on how to manage their own documents.
The best RM software is the most essential piece of technology in any organization. It enables an organization to remain organized, efficient, and productive by providing a central repository for important documents, such as contracts, policies, and procedures.
This is one of the most important records management best practices and usually organizations don’t give it is value.
11- Follow up on the latest trends
It is very critical for organizations that are serious about RM to keep on following up on the records management trends in order to stay valid and future proof their implementation.
A good records management plan is important for any organization to maintain a strong and healthy culture. It ensures that the records are properly managed, organized, and protected from any damages.
It states the organization’s records management policy. This includes the process of record creation, maintenance, storage, and disposition. The procedure has to be approved by top management and also needs to mention when a change in termination or disposal of any record is allowed. There have to be due dates for the disposal of certain types of records.