Chapter 2. Building the Foundation: Defining Records
Organizations must have a consistent method for determining if information is a record and therefore needs to be retained and managed according to special rules. Determining this can be complex, but as this chapter explores, there are several guidelines that organizations can use to help.
Determining If Information Is a Record
An organization does not have to retain all information that it creates or receives. However, internal policies, laws, regulations, standards, and best practices dictate that certain kinds of information—namely, records—be retained and managed in a specific way. Thus, it is obviously important that organizations have a method for identifying records.
In the digital world, there are many kinds of electronic documents, messages, notes, and various other kinds of digital files and other "stuff" that might or might not be considered a record. If all of this incredible volume of digital stuff had to be captured and managed, most businesses would be overwhelmed or even crushed beneath its weight. However, to make it even more difficult, getting rid of the wrong information can have severe legal consequences.
It quickly becomes apparent that an organization needs a way to determine which information it should retain as a record and which information can be discarded. In order to do this, organizations must first define and understand the function of records.
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