Information Technology Reference
In-Depth Information
is.logically.segregated.and.easily.managed..As.long.as.it.is.a.
part.of.your.accepted.business.practices.to.maintain.a.regu-
larly.monitored.and.carefully.managed.ile.system.such.as.is.
outlined.in.our.example,.you.are.likely.to.have.achieved.the.
goal.of.eficient.and.easily.accessible.data.
If.that.has.not.been.the.case,.it's.never.too.late.to.spend.
the. time. considering. how. things. should. look. and. reorga-
nizing.your.data.into.the.properly.labeled.and.segregated.
ile.system.
In.one.organization.I.worked.with.we.had.a.quarterly.meet-
ing.wherein.we.would.gather.and.look.through.our.ile.sys-
tems.together,.clean.out.the.redundant.or.unnecessary.iles,.
and.move.or.reorganize.iles.as.appropriate..It.was.often.the.
case.that.we.would.ind.a.series.of.iles.or.folders.labeled.with.
a.similar.date.or.title.and.realize.they.could.all.be.consolidated.
into.a.single.folder.with.that.name..That.exercise.was.both.a.
great.team.builder.and.a.wonderful.way.to.better.manage.our.
ile.systems..I.highly.recommend.it.
6.4.2 Management of Data over Time
When.we.consider.the.management.of.data.over.time,.we.are.
most.often.concerned.with.records.retention.rules.and.regula-
tions..Depending.on.the.organization.you.work.with,.or.your.
personal.business.practices,.there.will.be.differing.rules.that.
apply.to.you.for.how.long.you.are.required.to.store.electronic.
information..Each.state.and.some.local.governments.will.also.
have.speciic.records.retention.laws.that.relate.to.records.held.
by. government. entities.. The. federal. government. also. has.
records.regulations.speciic.to.government.and.to.some.types.
of.businesses.such.as.the.inancial.sector.
Actually.outlining.all.of.the.speciic.rules,.laws,.and.regu-
lations.would.require.an.encyclopedia.collection,.and.by.the.
time.you.inished.you.would.have.to.start.over.again.because.
it. would. have. all. changed.. So,. we. won't. even. try. to. do. so.
here.. However,. it. is. a. very. important. business. requirement.
for.any.organization,.or.even.for.you.as.an.individual,.to.take.
