Records and Information Management Resolutions for the New Year
New Year’s Resolutions can be hard to follow through with. However, when they involve your livelihood, employees and customers it’s easier to commit to them. The key is having specific goals in mind and clear methods for reaching those goals. In the spirit of the season, we offer several records and information management resolutions for the New Year.
Minimize paper clutter
Clutter impacts your productivity and morale. When documents pile up in work areas and offices, disorganization takes over. Finding important information takes the place of revenue-generating tasks, and you realize that ultimately, that time was wasted.
Paper clutter is also expensive, so if you can reduce the amount of file cabinets you need or repurpose offices currently used to store documents, you will reduce your overhead costs. Start by getting rid of documents that are cluttering your space. Some may have been stuffed away for years—well past the timeframe you’re required to keep them.
To avoid spending countless unproductive hours in front of your office shredder, consider using a professional shred service. It allows for documents to be securely tossed with less infringement on your valuable time. Shred collection containers are placed in your office, enabling business records to be disposed of without:
- removing paper clips and staples
- separating files into small portions
- hassling with shredding equipment
In order to avoid landing back at square one after your one-time shred, also consider taking advantage of a scheduled shred service. Locked shred collection containers stay in your office and are collected and emptied on a schedule specific to your business needs.
Make sure the documents you’re keeping are protected from disaster and theft by storing them offsite. This way, you minimize the risk of permanent information loss during a catastrophic event at your office building. With a professional record storage solution, your documents are protected in a purpose-built facility that uses barcode tracking technology for quick file retrieval and delivery at any time.
Integrate digital into your workflow
Another key to avoiding clutter is by reducing the amount of paper created to begin with. Desktop scanners can be incorporated into your workflow processes, enabling hardcopy files to be converted to digital images. For high-volume conversions, it is more cost-effective to utilize a document scanning service. Professional imaging technicians handle the following within your imaging project:
- document preparation
- file indexing
- quality control
Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software is used to enhance search capabilities, enabling information to be quickly found through simple keyword queries. Referencing digital images rather than hardcopy documents frees up precious office space and streamlines your workflow processes.
Choose a data protection solution
Your ability to recover critical data is linked with your business’ long-term success. In the blink of an eye, digital information can be stolen, compromised and corrupted—but with the right data protection solution, recovery is just as swift.
An Evaulting solution is ideal for businesses with limited IT infrastructure and resources. Backup is performed automatically and encrypted during transmission to the data center for protection. Recovery is also performed remotely, offering the capability of having data sent to any location or device.
For businesses backing up a large amount of data to a local server, tapes should be regularly rotated offsite with a tape rotation and storage service. With this solution, tapes are tracked with barcode technology and stored in a vault for protection and preservation. You may also want to consider a “hybrid” solution that incorporates both Evaulting and offline backup rotation and storage.
Good luck and all the best in 2015!
Pacific Records Management provides records and information management solutions for businesses throughout Fresno, Stockton, Sacramento, Modesto, and Napa and Solano Counties. For more information, please contact us by phone or complete the form on this page.