Principle of Retention

1. Principle of Retention By: Nellie Phillips, Records Supervisor Bristol Bay Native Corporation

2. the Principles® • Accountability • Integrity • Protection • Compliance • Availability • Retention • Disposition • Transparency

3. Principle of Retention • An organization shall retain its information for an appropriate time, taking into account all operational, legal, regulatory and fiscal requirements, and those of all relevant binding authorities.

4. Why Retention??? • There are many laws and regulations that govern records belonging to a corporation and the type of business they conduct. • Governing Agencies: Federal Government, State Government, Regulators, Department of Labor, etc. Library of Congress Professional Authorities NARA ISO AIIM ARMA NIRMA ANSI

5. Retention and the Record Lifecycle • Retention commences once a record begins the document lifecycle.

6. Types of Retention Requirements • Legal and Regulatory • Fiscal • Operational • Historical • Vital

7. Legal and Regulatory • Local, national, and international laws mandate the retention of records and information for a specific (generally, the minimum) period of time. • To comply with these extensive laws and regulations, an organization must conduct legal research in consultation with legal counsel to determine all retention requirements. Failure to comply may result in costly penalties and loss of legal rights.

8. Fiscal • Records and information that have financial or tax value must be retained to ensure the timely payment of obligations and the proper receipt of receivables, as well as to support the organization’s financial audits and tax returns. • Legal research and consultation with legal counsel must be completed to satisfy fiscal retention requirements.

9. Operational • An organization must determine how long records and information are needed to satisfy its business needs. This is usually determined by interviewing those most knowledgeable about the operational value of each record type.

10. Historical • Records and information that depict the history of an organization should be preserved for the life of that organization.

11. Vital • Vital Records enable an organization to return to business following the first 72 hours of a disaster. • Vital records are specific records which prove the organization's legal and financial status as well as to provide the ability to fulfill obligations. Protection methods ensure back-up and recovery solutions are in place.

12. What is a Retention Schedule? • A listing of record types (series) owned by an organization which governs how records are maintained and destroyed in accordance with applicable laws, regulations and business requirements. • The schedule identifies, for each record type, the classification and retention requirements including identification of a data owner.

13. Functions of a Retention Schedule • Policy Document – It is your statement of how long you intend to keep particular records, and perhaps some justification for the retention decision you’ve made. • A set of work instructions – A way of determining how long to retain a document and when to destroy them. • A Compliance Document – It demonstrates to outside parties that you are complying with any legal duties to keep particular records for particular lengths of time.

14. Retention and Ownership • When it comes to records management - Ownership is key in determining retention timeframes. • Data owners are responsible for the records under their purview. • Data Owners use the retention schedule to determine how long to maintain inactive records

15. Types of Retention Schedules • Departmental – The schedule is a listing of departments or business units of the organization, with the records managed by each unit listed. • Functional – Records are grouped into categories based upon the use of the record and the kind of information it contains. Regardless of where the records are located or who maintains them, records containing the same kind of information fall into the same category.

16. Retention Schedule Type Comparison Departmental • Records belonging to each department are grouped together on the retention schedule. • The schedule may be duplicative and result in inconsistent retention periods. Functional • Records are grouped together based on the records function regardless of the departments that use them • A departments records may be spread throughout the schedule based upon their functional use.

17. Be Proactive! Many organizations have suffered from the consequences of not having a legally responsive RIM Program. It is best to tackle the feet of Records Management as a normal course of business and ensuring an up to date Record Retention Schedule is maintained.

18. Conduct Risk Assessments • This determines the appropriate retention period for each type of record. • Retention decision makers must be aware that the presence or absence of records can be either helpful or harmful to the organization. • To minimize risks and costs associated with records retention, it is essential to immediately dispose of records after their retention period expires.

19. Final Thoughts • Why can’t I just keep everything forever? • The Retention Schedule should be enforced and actively updated and managed • Employees must be trained on how to use the Retention Schedule • Data Owners need to be educated on their retention responsibilities

20. I have an expert! Do you have a question?

21. Sources • About ARMA International and the Generally Accepted Recordkeeping Principles®ARMA International (www.arma.org) is a not-for-profit professional association and the authority on information governance. Formed in 1955, ARMA International is the oldest and largest association for the information management profession with a current international membership of more than 10,000. It provides education, publications, and information on the efficient maintenance, retrieval, and preservation of vital information created in public and private organizations in all sectors of the economy. It also publishes Information Management magazine, and the Generally Accepted Recordkeeping Principles®. More information about the Principles can be found at www.arma.org/principles. • “How to Develop a Retention Schedule” – John Montana, J.D. • “Records and Information Management Fundamentals of Professional Practice” – William Saffady • Acumen Information Services, Inc.