What is physical records management, and why is it useful? Physical records management is the process of managing important files and records from the moment they are created, maintained, and destroyed. Keeping track of them and handling them with care and monitoring where they are being accessed, whether externally or internally. This process contains three specific tasks: identifying, classifying and storing. Each process is crucial to keeping the record organized in a way that will allow people to access the files with ease and keep track of them. Many companies and organizations deal with a high volume or record that they must contain and keep for their clients, customers and patients. The importance of organizing and managing an organization’s records is vital to maintain the information needed. There are many different forms of records that may need to be managed such as financial records, legal records, historical records and financial records. The types of management records usually receive are these 5 steps:
- Creation (the creation of the record)
- Distribution (where the record will end up and who it will be received by)
- Usage (when the record will be used, how the record will be used, who will use the record and where the record will be used)
- Maintenance (how the record will be maintained and updated if need be)
- Disposal (when and how the record will be disposed when and if it is time to get rid of it)
All of these steps will be directly a result of whether the record is being handled internally or externally. Doing this physically may be extremely time consuming and also cost a lot of money to train people on how to perform this task correctly. Hiring employees and having to dedicate different employees to different steps in physical records management may be a large payroll cost within a company, this is where software comes in handy.
Physical Records Management Software
Finding the right software for an organization will make or break a records management process. It is important to consider the different records an organization has, how often they will use them and whether they will be used internally or externally. When choosing a software program to do the work for the company (or at least most of it) hiring people that are comfortable with the software is extremely important for the success of the software and process. Implementing on-site training is a great way to ensure that employees can handle the software and use it with ease. Having a software program to manage the records of a business can not only save a company a lot of money, but also reduce the number of employees and hours that they would spend trying to manage the records physically. In today’s day and age, technology has eliminated the need for most tedious tasks such as record management. Before software like this existed people would spend hours after work trying to maintain records and over work themselves into exhaustion. Physical Records Management Software is crucial to being productive in the workplace and creating a format where records are easily located within seconds. No more digging through filing cabinets or the misplace of certain documents. Type in a word and it will show up before you can blink your eyes.
Technology such as records management software can truly change the workday at an office that handles many records. When a company or an organization decides that obtaining a records management software would be beneficial to the overall being of the company, they will quickly see an increase in productivity in the workplace as well as a decrease in file loss and mismanagement of records stored in cabinets.