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 DID YOU KNOW?90% of senior executives involved in document management agree that managing documents throughout their lifecycle helps improve business performance, only 12% rate their organization as highly effective in this practice. Source: Oce Business Services Survey |
April 2008: In this issue
Dear Records Manager,Most organizations today operate in a multi-format environment, where the proliferation of both paper and electronic files is presenting a new set of problems beyond those traditionally faced by records managers. In response to this, we've got an excellent whitepaper this month with tips to help you deal with the so-called hybrid environment. This is a first rate resource, and will make a great addition to any RM library. This month we'd also like you to share your experiences in the hybrid environment with us by taking a quick moment to fill out our short survey. We'll report the findings in a future edition, and we will use them to bring you more helpful information on this topic, which looks set to top the list of records management challenges for some time! Your feedback is important to us, so if you have any thoughts on this issue, please let us know! Regards, 1. Taming the Two-Headed Beast: Tips for Managing Electronic and Paper Files in the Hybrid Environment
You aren't the only one. For many of us, the increasing emphasis on electronic records combined with the continued growth of paper files is creating a "two-headed" beast that presents new records management difficulties. To help you, we've put together five excellent and comprehensive tips to help you handle the challenges of the hybrid environment. If applied as part of a comprehensive records management solution, the techniques and tools discussed here can help your organization thrive in both the paper and electronic worlds, bringing the two together in one value add for your organization's business. Tips include:
This is an invaluable resource for anyone faced with the challenges of a multi-format records environment, and you can download it here! 2. Help Us Get a Better Picture of the Hybrid Environment!
As the volume of paper and electronic records looks set to continue to increase, so too do the challenges associated with the hybrid environment, and as such we hope to bring you further tips and best practices in the future. So what we'd like you to share with us is where your organization is with respect to the hybrid environment. The answers we get to the following questions will help us produce more helpful content, and we'll share the result in an upcoming OnRecord! 3. What Your Colleagues are Reading…
1. Paper Based File Retrieval Situation Assessment This RM resource is a tool to help you diagnose the cause of any existing file retrieval challenges you may be facing, and get you thinking about potential solutions and what those might look like for your organization. Get it here » 2. Enterprise Content Management vs. Records Management Software: What's the Difference? Organizations are increasingly turning to software solutions to help them manage their records content, and vendors have responded with a variety of solutions, often creating confusion. This article explains the difference between enterprise content management (ECM) and records management software (RMS), and offers tips to help you decide which one is right for you. Read it in full » 3. Electronic Folder Structure Needs Assessment This tool can help your organization design and name electronic folders to comply with laws and find information faster and more reliably. Depending on where your organization is in this development process, these assessment questions can be used as either a check-up on current practices or a checklist of opportunities to add value. Download it here » 4. OnRecord Q&A: We've Got the Answers
The response was great, and we thank all of our readers who submitted! Next month we will be looking at what's new in digital imaging, so if you have a question on that subject or any other, ask us! This month our guest OnRecord expert, TAB Consultant Brenda Vandermey, answers the following question from Melinda L., of Kanata, Ontario who writes: My main problem is dealing with files that are off-site but for which filing material shows up in my filing baskets. This means calling in a box from off-site, which is costly, to file material. The other option is to send the material to the off-site facility and have them file it for me which is an even bigger cost to us. Do you have any solutions? I am trying to keep 'still-active' files here, even though the majority of that year's files are off-site due to lack of space. Brenda Vandermey responds: There is no easy answer to this question. Remember, the records management program is accountable for all corporate records stored on-site as well as off-site records. It is essential that if these records are semi-active and are still used frequently that the filing is kept up to date, so you only really have the options you've outlined, either trust the off-site storage company to complete the filing for you, or retrieve the boxes as needed. Unfortunately, as you've said both of these options are going to cost you money. Something to consider though is that letting the storage company do the filing comes with a risk of misfiling, while retrieving your boxes to update has the advantage of keeping you in control and accountable for the records. You might also want to consider pooling your retrieval requests and updating several boxes at once. When you consider the consequences of not keeping files current, (i.e. misfiles, lost files, incomplete records and files etc.) then my opinion is that it is cost-justified to keep those active or semi-active files which are stored off-site up to date with the latest information. You mentioned that the root cause of this was space, so if you haven't already, you might want to consider the many storage options available, such as mobile cabinets or high density shelving, that can help you reduce your filing storage footprint. You should also check out our whitepaper - Space Planning in Records Management: Doing More with Less. Hope this helps! Got a question for our RM expert? Submit it to us and we'll answer it in a future issue of OnRecord. 5. Handle the Hybrid Environment with Software from Zasio
Versatile Enterprise™ V7 - The premier records management solution, with a proven track record of excellence and innovation. Powerful, versatile, and flexible - Versatile Enterprise is designed for every aspect of records management in an enterprise environment. Web, Imaging, and ERMS (electronic records management) solutions are available as add-on modules. Versatile Professional™ - Zasio's mid-range solution, Versatile Professional lets you index, track, and monitor the status and movement of your active and inactive files. Professional has all the powerful features of Versatile Express™ plus the added functionality of enhanced security, space management, and portable barcode support. It comes standard with a five-user license. Versatile Express™ - The easy-to-use records collection tool that can be used by anyone, anywhere to manage their records. Express is designed to simplify the process of collecting and maintaining physical records information. Versatile Express offers many powerful features at a price you won't believe. With Zasio's products, you can capture and control your documents from the time they are created through the very end of their life cycle, regardless of the form they take-electronic, e-mail, hard-copy, CD, boxed records-anything! TAB has records management software solutions for any size business, from file labeling programs to enterprise-scale records and information management systems. Check out all of TAB's software products here. For further information call us at 1-800-417-8010 or email us. 6. News: Why US Federal Agencies Struggle With E-mail ManagementA recent report from the Government Accountability Office reviewed four agencies and found that half of the senior officials were keeping their e-mail messages within their accounts, rather than on systems with recordkeeping capabilities. This is a policy no-no, but there are good reasons why government agencies face a huge problem with e-mail management which won't be unfamiliar to our readers! 7. News: How Digital Imaging Made Health Trust More EfficientWhen a UK health trust rolled out a wide ranging document scanning system, they became a shining example of how investing in RM technology can improve business processes and bring impressive cost savings.
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Are you finding managing electronic and paper records in the same environment to be a challenge? Do you have difficulty imposing control and enforcing requirements where both formats compete for official record status?
In this issue we've introduced the topic of the hybrid environment and given you some really good suggestions for how you can manage both paper and electronic records within your organization.
Here's a quick round-up of some of the most popular pieces from the last few issues of 
In the 
TAB is proud to offer a range of Zasio software for records management solutions. Zasio Enterprises offers several products to meet the varying needs of different types of organizations. Zasio's powerful suite of records management software lets you work the way you want to, no matter the size of your organization or the scope of your records management needs.