Every day, 2.5 quintillion bytes of data are created at record pace. As regulations and unlimited volumes of information increase at the same time, it is nowadays all the more compulsory for companies to have a records retention schedule.
However, many companies still cling to document retention periods that go beyond their purpose. Maintaining a document retention policy exposes your organisation to unnecessary risk and non-compliance with privacy laws.
Record retention schedule value
A records retention schedule is a systematic plan that sets out how long information should be retained, meeting legal and operational requirements, and guidelines on how to dispose of it. Businesses shall implement record retention schedules to maintain regulatory compliance and to ensure that disposal methods are legally defensible. In essence, the retention schedule is the basis for a robust RIM programme that manages records throughout their lifecycle.
By successfully implementing a document retention schedule, companies can benefit from:
- Control the exponential growth of entries
- Comply with regulatory and statutory requirements
- Find and retrieve documents quickly and efficiently
- Reduce litigation risks
- Here are some guidelines to help you implement an effective retention schedule for your business records:
How to implement a document retention schedule
- Set the universal retention schedule
The organisation should plan a universal retention schedule for all departments. The conservation schedule should be structured according to a classification scheme to group similar entries into broader categories for consistency and consistency. Record classes can include records, records, important records and archive records.
By organising your company’s information into categories, you can identify records of higher importance and determine the retention periods needed for compliance. Categorising records also makes it easier to find, access and destroy documents that have reached the end of their life cycle.
- To determine the retention periods for documents
The storage schedule is the length of time for storing information assets. How long you keep your records will depend on your business, industry, type of records and compliance requirements related to the data.
As each department of the organisation creates and manages different types of information formats, including paper and electronic, your retention period will also take into account your internal information governance and records management policies. Before determining retention periods, consult your attorney or tax professional to review your business circumstances so they can properly advise you of recordkeeping and federal and state retention requirements.
- Implement a recycling schedule
Once you have decided on the storage period for each type of document, you will want to make sure that they are permanently disposed of with a disposal schedule. To avoid identity theft and protect sensitive business information, be sure to destroy or shred business records securely. To ensure the highest level of security, choose to use an on-site shredding service with a certificate of destruction to detail the date and methods of document destruction.
In addition, look for an outsourced provider that offers a document management system to automatically calculate retention dates. The records management system calculates destruction dates based on the data entered, such as record classification codes, retention schedules and record creation dates.
- Review and update periodically
With the progression of regulations and legal requirements, it is recommended that conservation schedules and policies are periodically reviewed. Whenever a review takes place, be sure to consider any statutory changes that affect retention periods.
As your business processes and policies evolve, you may also want to reassess the use and retention times of different record categories. By adjusting the retention period to suit your current record groups, you can reduce storage costs, keep only relevant business information and discard obsolete documents.
For a cost-effective approach to long-term preservation and access to records, your company may also want to consider a digital repository solution. With a combination of record storage and on-demand scanning services, you can save space and securely store documents off-site with digital access when you need it.
- Time to release
When it comes to implementing a conservation schedule, it is important to remember that it is not just a one-off exercise. The retention schedule must be entered into your company’s infrastructure and coordinated with your document management programme.
Comprehensive training and continuing education for all staff to ensure their understanding of the conservation policy