5 Reasons Why you need records management training
Updated: Sep 9, 2021
What is records management?
ARMA International, the leading records and information management industry association defines records management as the field of management that is responsible for establishing and implementing policies, systems, and procedures to capture, create, access, distribute, use, store, secure, retrieve, and ensure disposition of an organization's records and information.
Records management encompasses a broad spectrum of disciplines extending from training and instruction, secure storage and records destruction and IT security, to the development of legally defensible records retention schedules – all of which have become increasingly critical components to companies’ regulatory compliance strategy, and if implemented properly, can also bolster companies’ IT governance strategies and litigation-cost mitigation efforts. This post looks at 5 reasons why records management training is crucial to the continuity and effectiveness of your holistic and defensible records management program and to the development of your business, generally.
Why you need records management training
Records management training allows you develop an organized and defensible approach to the storing and destruction of records, the development of cost-saving IT best practices and savings and the creation of compliance-centered cross-departmental dialogue. The overall goal of effective records management training is to assist you to develop a systematic, efficient, usable and compliant approach to your business processes and legal compliance efforts.
Below are 5 benefits of effective records management training.
Knowledge and accountability – effective records management training engages staff members across multiple disciplines ranging from legal to marketing to IT and allows for the cross-pollination of ideas – for example, how to best merge the priorities of IT security and legal compliance or how to properly engage your marketing team towards a compliant approach.
Business efficiency – Team members who have undergone effective records management training will adapt better practices regarding the storage of data (both in hard copy and on their computers), and systems to delete or archive unneeded records, which will allow you to find and locate the true, business-critical records that you need and to minimize unneeded noise. The end result will be a savings in time, decreased storage costs and an increase in both cost and business operations efficiency.
Heightened legal and regulatory compliance – In today’s regulatory climate, companies must remain constantly ready to show auditors and regulators that they have created an internal environment that prioritizes effective recordkeeping practices – and, indeed, many laws require companies to keep or destroy records including the GDPR, CCPA and other important privacy laws.
Effective risk management and litigation-risk minimization – Proper records management practices, that are achieved through comprehensive training allow you to create a evidence trail highlighting an organization’s regulatory compliance decisions and efforts. Risks associated with less-tan stellar records management practices include disaster recovery issues, compliance issues, data breaches, public relations issues, reputation losses, security threats and legal discovery issues. Having effective tools in place bolsters the regulatory defensibility of your security efforts.
Streamlined business continuity and mergers and acquisitions – Records management questions increasingly take center stage when companies evaluate you as a suitable business partner or acquisition target – and regulatory compliance representations and warranties have increasingly taken center stage within transactional representations and warranties. Given the intertwined nature of data privacy and records management and the fact the cross-disciplinary nature of records management, having a well- managed, organized and legally defensible records management program in place increases your level of business credibility.
About the author: Phyllis Lynn Elin is a senior records management professional with decades of senior records management and, in particular, records management-training experience. Her staff at Knowledge Preservation, LLC stands ready to help your company reach its records management goals and to develop a holistic, streamlined and regulatorily-compliant approach to records and information management.
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