Editing Records management (section)

== Key records management terminology ==
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Not all documents are records. A ''record'' is a document consciously (consciously means that the creator intentionally keeps it) retained as evidence of an action. Records management systems generally distinguish between records and non-records (convenience copies, rough drafts, duplicates), which do not need formal management. Many systems, especially for electronic records, require documents to be formally ''declared as a record'' so they can be managed. Once declared, a record cannot be changed and can only be disposed of within the rules of the system.

Records may be covered by ''access controls'' to regulate who can access them and under what circumstances. Physical controls may be used to keep confidential records secure – personnel files, for instance, which hold sensitive personal data, may be held in a locked cabinet with a control log to track access. Digital records systems may include role-based access controls, allowing permissions (to view, change and/or delete) to be allocated to staff depending on their role in the organization. An ''audit trail'' showing all access and changes can be maintained to ensure the integrity of the records.

Just as the records of the organization come in a variety of formats, the storage of records can vary throughout the organization. File maintenance may be carried out by the owner, designee, a records repository, or clerk. Records may be managed in a centralized location, such as a records center or repository, or the control of records may be decentralized across various departments and locations within the entity. Records may be formally and discretely identified by coding and housed in folders specifically designed for optimum protection and storage capacity, or they may be casually identified and filed with no apparent indexing. Organizations that manage records casually find it difficult to access and retrieve information when needed. The inefficiency of filing maintenance and storage systems can prove to be costly in terms of wasted space and resources expended searching for records.

An ''inactive record'' is a record that is no longer needed to conduct current business but is being preserved until it meets the end of its [[retention period]], such as when a project ends, a product line is retired, or the end of a fiscal reporting period is reached. These records may hold business, legal, fiscal, or historical value for the entity in the future and, therefore, are required to be maintained for a short or permanent duration. Records are managed according to the retention schedule. Once the life of a record has been satisfied according to its predetermined period and there are no legal holds pending, it is authorized for final disposition, which may include destruction, transfer, or permanent preservation.

A ''[[disaster recovery plan]]'' is a written and approved course of action to take after a disaster strikes that details how an organization will restore critical business functions and reclaim damaged or threatened records.

An ''active record'' is a record needed to perform current operations, subject to frequent use, and usually located near the user. In the past, 'records management' was sometimes used to refer only to the management of records which were no longer in everyday use but still needed to be kept – "semi-current" or "inactive" records, often stored in basements or offsite. More modern usage tends to refer to the entire "[[Records life-cycle|lifecycle]]" of records – from the point of creation right through until their eventual disposal.

The format and media of records is generally irrelevant for the purposes of records management from the perspective that records must be identified and managed, regardless of their form. The ISO considers management of both physical and electronic records.<ref name="ISO15489"/> Also, section DL1.105 of the [[United States Department of Defense]] standard [[Design Criteria Standard for Electronic Records Management Software Applications|DoD 5015.02-STD]] (2007) defines Records Management as "the planning, controlling, directing, organizing, training, promoting, and other managerial activities involving the life cycle of information, including creation, maintenance (use, storage, retrieval), and disposal, regardless of media".<ref name="DODStd5015.2">{{cite web|title=United States Department of Defense Standard 5015.02 (DoD Std 5012.02), Electronic Records Management Software Applications Design Criteria Standard |publisher=United States Department of Defense – US DOD |author=Assistant Secretary of Defence for Networks and Information Integration, Department of Defence Chief Information Officer |date=April 25, 2007 |url=http://jitc.fhu.disa.mil/cgi/rma/downloads/p50152stdapr07.pdf |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130222000753/https://jitc.fhu.disa.mil/cgi/rma/downloads/p50152stdapr07.pdf |archive-date=2013-02-22 }}</ref>