My hat comes off to you Ma'am.  If you need advice on any of the RIM
"competencies".... This is the place to get it.  There are a number of
"old hands" on this listserve...  And if I can help in any way, let me
know.

GT

Graham Kitchen
Corporate Records Manager
Unified Western Grocers
5200 Sheila Street
Commerce, California 90040
Telephone:  (323)264-5200 Extension 4560
Cell:  (323)243-1865
email:  [log in to unmask]  

> -----Original Message-----
> From: Records Management Program 
> [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Lura Harrison
> Sent: Thursday, April 20, 2006 10:21 AM
> To: [log in to unmask]
> Subject: Re: Should Mail be Part of Records Management?
> 
> <True... and if you're a company of 50-100 with one person who is the
> receptionist, file room manager, mail service, copy room, etc., that
> that's the "corporate culture" you live in.  Records and Information
> Managers and their "departments" come in all shapes and sizes... some
> organizations don't even HAVE Records Management as a 
> function on their
> org charts (GASP!!!) >
> 
> I work in an agency of 65 people, and although I am not the
> Receptionist, I do back up that position, along with opening, 
> stamping,
> and delivering the mail daily, doing the check log and deposit daily,
> and I back up the supply officer when she goes on vacation. I work in
> Admin, and Records Management is not on the org chart. When I 
> took this
> job "Records Officer" was part of the description, but only a 
> small part
> of the job. I get condescending looks when I suggest that I just do
> Records Management. 
> 
> In my agency folks are responsible for making sure they put their mail
> in the file it belongs.
> 
> I'm an ARMA member and I can't wait to see what the RIM competencies
> turn out to be, because I want to focus on Records Management.
> 
> The more I learn about what a records manager/officer is 
> supposed to do,
> the more desperate I feel. I'm still quite new, and would 
> like to focus
> on Records Management and make it a more important function here in my
> agency, with the help of ARMA and all the classes being 
> offered, and the
> support of our State Records Management Office of course!
> 
> This is really a great subject!
> 
> Lura Harrison
> Seattle, WA
> 
> 
> 
> 
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Records Management Program [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On
> Behalf Of Larry Medina
> Sent: Thursday, April 20, 2006 9:09 AM
> To: [log in to unmask]
> Subject: Re: [RM] Should Mail be Part of Records Management?
> 
> On 4/20/06, Graham Kitchen <[log in to unmask]> wrote:
> >
> > Wow!! This simple question has set of a real fire storm.
> 
> 
> Well said, and I think I'd like to add a bit of qualifying information
> about the question, why it was asked and what the intent was. 
> As many of
> you know, ARMA is in the process of developing a set of RIM 
> Competencies
> and this issue came up in that Project. Just like not all RIMs are
> responsible for microfilming, imaging, library services or archives
> management, they're not ALL responsible for mailroom 
> operations.... but
> some are.
> 
> But I think we are forgetting that Records Management is managing the
> > information from creation/collection to final disposition.  This 
> > includes Mail Management on the collection end, Forms Management on 
> > the creation end (and along with this Procedures 
> Management, because 
> > when you do the analysis on the form you know the procedure 
> > requirement), and if imaging at the collection point has 
> been found to
> 
> > be the most logical point, then so be it.  If  this works for your
> organization.... great.
> > If not... don't do it.
> 
> 
> This pretty much sums up the "why" it was asked... there is RIM and
> there is RIM, and depending on the size of your organization, your RIM
> Program, organizational alignment, functions you provide and
> responsibilities associated with RIM for your situation, there is no
> perfect answer.
> 
> The intent was to determine (from a broad spectrum of RIM
> Practitioners/Professionals) WHAT IS REALLY happening in the current
> situation in RIM.  And I can tell from the responses received 
> thus far,
> as much as many of the newer RIMs may want to distance themselves from
> the function as much as possible, those of us who are a bit "longer in
> the tooth" in this field know that it was once considered an integral
> component, as much as forms management and policy and procedure
> distribution were.
> 
> If you look at all the classic texts related to RIM, it's 
> there.... and
> as indicated in one post yesterday, if you take the ICRM exam, it's
> there...
> and there in some pretty heavy detail. That said, neither of these are
> indicators that IT SHOULD REMAIN THERE.  I'm sure there are plenty of
> opinions that it should be removed, and as soon as possible, but maybe
> more importantly, it should be brought current to address issues of
> capture/scanning of incoming mail, assisting in the development of
> e-mail storage and retention policies, developing 
> classification systems
> for indexing of e-mail (by content) to determine appropriate retention
> periods and other aspects of "managing incoming information sources"
> rather than mail management and mailroom operations.
> 
> There are very few absolutes in Records
> > Management.
> 
> 
> ABSOLUTELY!! =)
> 
> It depends on budget, personalities and corporate culture. You have to
> >  take what works for you and your organization and run with it.
> >
> 
> True... and if you're a company of 50-100 with one person who is the
> receptionist, file room manager, mail service, copy room, etc., that
> that's the "corporate culture" you live in.  Records and Information
> Managers and their "departments" come in all shapes and sizes... some
> organizations don't even HAVE Records Management as a 
> function on their
> org charts (GASP!!!)
> 
> But for those that do, it would be nice to know if you are responsible
> for the handling of incoming and/or outgoing mail and if you are, what
> skills/knowledge do you feel is required to appropriately operate that
> function?  And, do you feel that this is a "competency" that should
> exist in an RIM's toolkit.
> 
> Larry
> --
> Larry Medina
> Danville, CA
> RIM Professional since 1972
> 
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