When people think about business records often they are referring to the paper files that have been a feature of office management for a long time.
Most records are created electronically now and keeping a paper copy simply duplicates what already exists.
So where does that leave New Zealand businesses in relation to their record keeping and files? Until 2002 New Zealand businesses needed to keep paper copies as the legally valid record of business activities. However the Electronics Transactions Act 2002 states that “A legal requirement to retain information that is in paper or other non-electronic form is met by retaining an electronic form of the information if (a) the electronic form provides a reliable means of assuring the maintenance of the integrity of the information; and (b) the information is readily accessible so as to be usable for subsequent reference.” If these conditions are met, there is no need to retain the paper or other non-electronic (eg photo) form of information.
Well – legally you don’t need to keep stacks of paper files any more. However how you keep your business files is a business decision not a only legal one, though you do have to consider any legal requirements. Importantly from a business perspective, you need to be sure you can store your electronic information securely and be able to find it again easily.
So before you bin or shred all your paper files, you need to make sure that:
- You already have an electronic copy of all historical files you need to keep – for business and legal purposes
- You have your electronic files stored securely on your computer system and have a backup somewhere else – on a computer system in another location or using a cloud based service
- You have a system and set of processes in place so you can find your electronic information quickly and easily when you need it.
Having a long list of documents sitting on your C: Drive or in My Documents isn’t going to cut it – not for fast access to the report or spreadsheet you want Right Now!
Neither is it going to work keeping documents that have been sent to you by someone else sitting in your hundreds or thousands of emails (no matter how much Google tells you how easy it is to find what you’re looking for in your gmail inbox – more on that another day).
These “systems” are OK if you don’t mind spending valuable time trying to find information.
However if you want to use your time productively, I highly recommend you use a system to organise your electronic files. For more information check out www.terrace.co.nz and download my free ebook.