Reference no: EM132371712
Discussion -1 comment with a reference and 100 words limit
A document retention program entails the systematic identification, categorization, maintenance, review, retention, and destruction of documents received or created in the course of business. The existence of a valid and reasonable document policy shall be likely viewed to be a mitigating element in litigation when files are disposed of pursuant to it, while nonexistence of a retention policy shall be an annoying factor qua a party (Elisabeth, Ronald & Michael, 2013). A document retention policy will contain guidelines exactly how to identify documents that need to be managed, how long certain documents ought to be retained, how and when those documents ought to be disposed of in case no longer needed, and exactly how should be accessed or retrieved when they are essential.
A well reasoned and validly documented retention policy leaves little room with regard to any negative speculation relevant to deposition of a document. It will stand when tested on the anvil of judicial review. The courts would likely value a self-speaking retention policy that could speak plus make clear for itself just before anyone moves to assail it. The courts might hesitate to go by means of the process of searching for or allowing parole proof in order to determine issues of validity plus reasonableness of the retention plan. There exists an extremely thin line between the choice of the destruction of the document and that associated with its retention, and each condition is not such as watertight compartments.
For creating valid document management plus retention policy, the subsequent crucial role-playing issues have to be discussed
• The scope, creation, storing and temperament of the document (Elisabeth et al., 2013)
• Types associated with documents to be held or tossed, discoverable paperwork, and sort of documents
• Formation of document management plus retention policy, its, the key players, its assessment, and the reasonable concern of litigation for keeping out documents
References
Elisabeth J. Umble, Ronald R. Haft &M.MichaelUmble, (2013), A Study on Retention Strategy's followed by Education Institutions in Retaining Qualified Employees. DOI: S0377-2217(02)00547-7.
Discussion -2 comment with a reference and 100 words limit
Paper document
The paper document involves the hardcopy format of an organization's data. The retention of the paper document is therefore assembled on a periodic basis, for example, compiling the documents per financial year of the organization. Assembled documents should be stored in a manner that will be easy to retrieve the documents when needed (Gomaa, 2016). This may include storing in files that are marked according to the documents and then stored in boxes that contain financial year marks for the easy retrieval process.
In order to reduce the burden of stored paper documents, the sorting process should be done so as to ensure only important documents are stored and the ones that have no importance disposed of by either burning or shredding the papers. In addition, the papers should be stored in dry places so as to ensure the safety of the documents.
Electronic document
The electronic record is very important for the organization due to the number of documents that are processed through the organization's IT infrastructure. Therefore, electronic documents are to be stored in the organization's database that is stored in the contacted cloud service provider for offsite storage. The data should be refreshed in a determined period of time at such intervals of five years.
The destruction of electronic documents should consider the legal guidelines to ensure that the destruction of some documents will not lead to legal issues. This may include insurance documents and important contractual documents. Finally, the qualified IT expert should be contracted to oversee the destruction of the electronic documents to prevent privacy and security risks (Smallwood, 2014).
References
Gomaa, M. I. (2016). Electronic And Paper Document Retention And Auditors' Responsibilities. Review of Business Information Systems (RBIS), 20(1), 5-12.
Smallwood, R. F. (2014). Information Governance: Concepts, Strategies, and Best Practices. Hoboken: John Wiley & Sons.