Hi all! Since I'm relatively new to the list, I'll take a minute to introduce myself. I work for a biotech company headquartered in Cambridge, MA. We have 5,000 plus employees worldwide, work in a highly regulated industry, and have no central RM function. Records and information management is ad hoc. Most departments do something (mostly keep stuff forever because they don't dare throw it away), but we have no corporate RM policy and no corporate Records Retention Schedule/File Plan. (No need to tell me how irresponsible this is.) I am currently in a local IT department, supporting our Biomedical Operations group. I'm not a records manager, but I'm the closest thing our department has to one, and I give thanks daily to ARMA (I joined in 2003) and the good people on this listserve. What wonderful, generous, and knowledgeable folks you are! You give me hope, as well as much practical advice. I have been working for several years now at the grass roots level (which is the way our company works) to try to get attention focused on the risks posed by our current laissez faire approach to RIM. It's been slow going, but I think we are finally starting to move, albeit at a snail's pace, in the right direction. What brings me out of my lurking mode is an upcoming opportunity to ask a question of our CEO. (The annual state of the company meeting is coming up, and we are being asked to submit questions ahead of time.) There are so many issues that we should be dealing with, of course, that my mind is swimming. What I want is one concise question that could potentially open the doors to further dialogue. It should contain just enough background to give some context to the question, and the question should be very focused. Even if I did have benchmarking information (which I know I need, but haven't yet found), this would not be the place for it. I have until January 3rd to submit my question. I would very much appreciate any suggestions you might have. My thanks in advance to you all, and best wishes for a happy holiday season. From the mild, snow-free Northeast... Suzanne Mrozak Associate Director Records and Document Management Services Genzyme Corporation 500 Kendall Street Cambridge, MA 02142 Telephone: 617-768-6549 List archives at http://lists.ufl.edu/archives/recmgmt-l.html Contact [log in to unmask] for assistance