Information Technology Reference
In-Depth Information
the.time.to.understand.those.rules.and.develop.a.system.to.
ensure.you.are.complying.with.them.
For. instance,. in. the. local. government. organization. for.
which.I.work,.we.have.state-mandated.records.retention.laws.
that.state.the.speciic.number.of.years.we.are.required.to.keep.
documents.such.as.contracts.for.purchases,.legislative.analy-
ses.or.decisions,.inancial.records,.network.logs,.and.so.forth..
Our.records.management.team.works.diligently.and.endlessly:
•. Interpreting. the. different. laws. and. regulations. that.
apply.to.each.part.of.our.organization
•. Training.staff.and.management.on.those.requirements
•. Assisting.departments.with.records.management.sys-
tems.and.designs
•. Consulting.on.development.of.organization-wide.sys-
tems.and.tools.for.the.eficient.management.of.data
Through.their.efforts.we.now.have.e-mail-based.archival.
tools. that. allow. us. to. select. which. e-mail. and. attachments.
need.to.be.saved.for.a.speciic.amount.of.time.based.on.their.
classiication.and.the.retention.rules.that.apply.
We.also.have.systems.in.place.for.storage.and.archiving.of.
other.documents.and.electronic.records.based.on.their.des-
ignated.records.retention.categories..We're.not.a.huge.orga-
nization,.but.this.is.still.a.pretty.dificult.challenge.at.times..
It. has. taken. a. long. time. and. a. great. deal. of. effort. on. their.
part.and.a.commitment.on.the.part.of.our.management.and.
executives.for.us.to.be.able.to.begin.to.get.a.handle.on.these.
requirements..It.was.and.is.made.harder.by.the.general.ten-
dency.toward.entropy.and.disorganization.that.is.inherent.in.
a.large,.dynamic,.and.diverse.organization.
I.want.to.be.clear.that.I.am.by.no.means.implying.this.is.
a.simple.or.trivial.exercise.to.complete..But.I.will.state.with.
conidence.that.to.whatever.degree.you.can.manage.your.ile.
systems.up.front.or.as.you.continue.your.business.or.personal.
management.processes,.you.will.be.greatly.enhancing.your.
ability. to. comply. with. records. retention. requirements.. This.
