Retention of telephone conversations and their file format

This is an interesting issue that I am looking to address. How long should telephone conversations be kept?

A data protection principle is that information should be kept for no longer than necessary.

RM principles suggest you maintain records dependent upon their content/function for as long as is required. These principles are format independent so you do not look to apply the same one size fits all rule to a "format". For instance we do not keep all emails for x period of time, if the email is a contractual arrangement - it is kept as a contract record. An email about arranging a lunch is not kept beyond the event, it can be deleted straight away.

The same should be applied to phone recordings but if it is not possible to do classify calls, what should be done? It looks like a one-size fits all approach will have to be taken - 1 year, 6 months, 30 days - what fits best?

File format is interesting as well, in this instance .WAV files are generated - wouldn't an MP3 be more open and accessible, particularly for those who do not operate Windows systems?

Standards for comment - Records Management are ISO/DIS 30300 (Fundamentals and vocabulary) and ISO/DIS 30301 (Requirements)

Two documents are available for review and comment by the RM community, well worth a look http://drafts.bsigroup.com/

They are 'Fundamentals and Vocabulary' and Requirements for "Management System for Records".

Corrupt Word Documents - Word 2003

I have been given a handful of corrupt word documents to see whether they can be repaired.

When opening them within Word 2003, they fail to open at all with no real useful suggestion by Word as to what to do next.

I discovered Word has a limited inbuilt recovery functionality which helped with all the corrupt files in question.

You need to select FILE/OPEN then single click on the file in question and then select "Open and Repair" from the dropdown menu of the Open dialog box in the bottom right corner.

Word 2003 will then attempt to open the file, repair errors and notify you of the them allowing you to resave the document. Note that there may be things missing or lost such as formatting in the recovery process.

Opening old Microsoft Office files from years ago

This is the first time I have hit upon the problem (in a professional business context) of opening an older file in a newer application.

Specifically the file is listed under its properties as "Microsoft Word 5.0/5.1 for Macintosh Document" and I am using Microsoft Word 2003 SP3

It appears that SP3 for Office 2003 and I believe as standard in Office 2007 will not open file types earlier than Office 97 versions by default.

So the message you get when opening such a file under this configuration is

"You are attempting to open a file that was created in an earlier version of Microsoft Office. This file type is blocked from opening in this version by your registry policy setting. "
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx/kb/922849

The fix was to correct the registry setting following the advice at MS support here
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/938810

And all is well - but clearly there is a business need to have access to files prior to 1997 both for historical, informational, reference purposes let alone the statutory obligations if applicable.

I am tempted now to make a new set files to sit alongside the originals in PDF format for future preservation.

One on One EDRMS training

I have worked in two organisations both using the same EDRM and have seen and delivered various means of training.

I have found that the most preferred method of training by users has been one on one, which allows the user to walk through the session at their own pace. However clearly this is the most resource intensive. Feedback has been very positive and each candidate has passed their post training assessments with little issue.

It has allowed me to customise the session to their particular role and needs, for instance showing references to their work and other points of interest.

I will continue performing training in this manner whilst time and resource allows, I am loathe to sacrifice this method but may consider very small groups (of 3 people) in a quasi-classroom/one on one style session. That way I should be able to still deliver the same customisation and training but to more individuals. It will all depend upon the numbers of new candidates over time.

CD/DVD storage and care

Looking after CDs and other electronic media is a new area for me and something I have started considering in my new role. After a little research here are my ideas and thoughts

• Check the longevity of the media as stipulated by the manufacturer, I found that this can vary. Generally 1 year seems to be the norm.

• Based upon this - have a renewal programme to renew the copies annually or as per the lifetime guarantee of the media

• Duplicate and disperse, keep another copy but somewhere different, preferably not even on the site you work. Which is just a good principle in RM anyway!

• Don't skimp on buying CDs/DVDs - you pay for what you get. Cheap media is likely to fail quicker and I have noticed more instances of bad burns on cheap media than on better quality (and more expensive) media.

• Avoid gluing labels on top of CDs for several reasons - this can unbalance the CD/DVD in the tray and cause read issues. Also the glue can potentially damage the disc over time.

• Find an appropriate storage case/wallet that does not scratch the discs!

• Tell staff how to handle media properly - no mucky fingers or leaving it outside its protective case!

Protecting your rights on the world wide web - buying web addresses

In my previous role I was responsible for the maintenance and registration of web addresses.

Here are my thoughts from what I learned:

Protecting your Rights in the Web Environment

Prevention is better than cure

1. Purchase as many domains as feasible and within budget – prioritise key names and products first

2. Think generic as well – for instance if you sell a particular type of chocolate bar – why not look for chocolatebars, choccybars etc? For example you will find that

• Lloyds TSB own insurance.co.uk
• British Gas own house.co.uk

3. Register common misspellings – and get some more traffic for peoples typos and mispellings? This may be helpful where your name is likely to cause some confusion e.g bconstructive, b-constructive or beconstructive?

4. Take the opportunity to register as many domain extensions as possible e.g. .org .info to name but a few.

5. Register the name of your brand or product as a trademark – as a separate workstream.

6. Purchase new domains as they become available

7. Consolidate domains into one log or inventory within the business. It is good practice for one company to have the responsibility for ensuring all domains for a group are re-registered. Do not lose track of renewals – expired registrations will end up back in the public domain and could be fatal

8. Active monitoring

9. Searches prior to registration

10. All is not lost with a registration that has already been taken – ask yourselves:

• Do you have prior rights in a name? E.g. a trademark or lots of brand equity and capital? Can you demonstrate this – provide examples of collateral or materials?
• Is the registration abusive? i.e. is the name being used to the detriment of your business? Is the content purporting to represent your activities or product?
• If you can answer yes and provide some susbtanial examples of this you may be able insitigate a dispute process with Nominet the UK domain registry (for .uk names)
• Why not first approach the owners and ask whether they might let it go? You might be surprised by the answer!