Doing it Larry's way, which I totally agree with, is difficult if not impossible for some ERM systems.

Sent from my Verizon Wireless 4G LTE DROID

Larry Medina <[log in to unmask]> wrote:

>Something for consideration here and it's a key factor that comes into play
>for us as the Records Management Program.
>
>While we set and write the policy and procedures and manage the retention
>schedule, when it comes to running the Records Center, we are a SERVICE
>PROVIDER. At no time in the life cycle do the records belong to us- we only
>provide space for storage of the information assets that belong to our
>client organizations.
>
>Seeing as we aren't the owners, we don't have the right to simply dispose
>of them because the retention has been met. And no, we don't see it as our
>"duty" or "responsibility" to automatically do this- we see our
>responsibility being the notification to organizations that records THEY
>OWN being close to meeting their retention period and requesting them to
>provide approval for the destruction, by returning a written
>acknowledgement.
>
>We provide first notice 30 days in advance, follow up 30 days later and
>once more 30 days later, if we haven't received a response, we elevate the
>notification to someone who will ensure we receive a reply.... because we
>tell them if we don't get a response in 14 days, we will deliver the
>records to their office for their further handling.
>
>I've never felt that just because we have an approved retention schedule it
>gives us the "authority" to discard records entrusted to our care.
>Organizations restructure, business issues and priorities change and
>although Federal records *DO* have a pretty clearly prescribed retention
>schedule, it is a MINIMUM retention period... many times there are business
>needs that could exceed those required retention periods.  We calculate
>these into the scheduled retention period, and we review the schedule every
>6 months for changes from NARA or our parent Agency, and every two years
>with business organizations, but that doesn't carve anything in stone.
>
>To put this on a more personal level, think about the stories you routinely
>read about people who collected baseball cards opr comic books as a kid and
>20 years after they moved out, they go home and ask their parent "Whatever
>happened to that cigar box/shoebox of baseball cards I had?" or "Do you
>know where my box of comic books is?" and they're told "Oh Honey, I threw
>that junk out about 2 years after you moved out!"....  They had no idea of
>the intrinsic or historic (potential) value of those "records" and because
>they had custody, they felt they could simply discard them without asking
>the owner.
>
>Maybe it's because my parents never did this to me that I don't do this to
>my client's records.
>
>Larry
>[log in to unmask]
>
>-- 
>*Lawrence J. Medina
>Danville, CA
>RIM Professional since 1972*
>
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