Document archiving is the preservation of inactive documents to a storage medium or off-site facility. An organization may include piles of data, which it may not need in day-to-day activities. They can archive the files to an outsourced facility to save for a specific time.
It can be the conventional process of archiving data, whereas the latest technology demands a digital solution that is why we now use mediums like DVDs, hard drives, and cloud servers for document archiving. An organization that may want to restrict access to sensitive data may also consider archiving it on secure servers. There could be numerous goals behind planning an archiving strategy.
Archiving helps saves a lot of disk space. It prevents the data that is dormant and is not in use. You can put the data back to use from the archive. In other words, the data is preserved for life and can be retrieved anytime you want.
Why document archiving is important?
Data is a precious asset of companies these days. To succeed in their business, every organization has to manage, hold, and process data carefully well. The business keeps on generating more data as it transcends on a journey of success. To keep things smooth, they need an effective strategy for document archiving. Let us find other reasons that make it important for an organization.
– Prevent Data Loss
Your official documents possess private and confidential data that you may never want an outsider to know or possess. Keep your documents readily available to every employee is a great risk of data theft or loss. With records management services, you can archive the data to a secure server with limited access to authorized personnel only. The data lies in encrypted servers, which ensure its safety from cyber crimes and attacks.
– Well-organized data
Data archiving is a complete mechanism for storing documents. It puts the data in order so that you can retrieve it by year, month, folder name, or its nature. The well-organized data helps you retrieve a file that can be difficult if maintained in different computers, drawers, or hard drives in your office premises.
– Save Space
The hard drive you are managing in the office may include any data you need in routine. Archiving your documents on the same drive may limit your space for the day-to-day backup needs. By moving it to an external storage medium, you can free up a lot of space and utilize it for the current and productive projects.
– Meet Legal Requirements
Document archiving is important for meeting legal requirements as well. A document that may prove a project, contract, or employee record is important to retain for legal compliance. Storing all such information is difficult for a specific period. You can archive them all for the required time, for example, five or ten years, and you will be able to defend any litigation.
– Retain business history
No one believes the existence of your business unless you have the records to prove it. There may be documents providing the date you incepted and started the business. Your company registration, and applications for trademarks and copyrights, all testify your business history. You can only retain it all if there is a document archiving strategy in place.
Final words
Document archiving can be done both physical and digital. If your organization deals in physical records primarily, you can archive it with records management services, or transform into digital form and store it on a cloud network. It is important for organizing the records and keeping them safe from theft or loss. It is also mandatory to retain records for meeting legal requirements.