Record Manager Interview Preparation Guide

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A functional listing specifying different types of organizational records that must be retained and for how long. It is not the form in which the record exists that determined how long it must be retained, but the substance of that record’s content.

Vital records are those absolutely necessary for a unit, department, or the entire organization to operate. Given that most employees are creating and receiving records, some of which may qualify as vital, he or she should be able to recognize which records are vital and properly store and protect them.

Records are the outputs that detail each and every business and administrative transaction of the University and contain information about our students, members of staff and all our external contacts. They are the essential resource for the University's effective continuation. They also form the University's collective memory that must be available beyond the memory or working life of any single member of staff.

A document in itself is a type of record, but so is the information that describes the document when it forms a separate entity. For example, an entry in a library catalogue (whether on card or in a computer database) which records the author, title and location of the book, is as much a record as the book itself.

A records Retention & Disposal Schedule is an essential component of an efficient and effective records management system. Properly developed and consistently implemented, a Records Retention & Disposal Schedule protects the interests of the organisation and its stakeholders by ensuring that business records are kept for as long as they are needed to meet operational needs and to comply with legal requirements, and are then disposed of securely.

I strongly believe that managers have a responsibility to manage, to lead and to drive through the organisations goals and missions. They also have a responsibility to implement change within their team. A manager must be a positive role model and should always expect high standards from his or her staff. Although being a manager can be tough at times, it is also highly rewarding if done correctly. It is essential that a team believes in their manager manager’s aspirations and it is the manager’s responsibility to maintain levels of enthusiasm and motivation. This can be achieved by keeping regular contact with all team members and holding regular briefings and appraisals.

In its simplest and most straightforward form, a record is data, information, knowledge, and/or expertise recorded or received in any medium because there is a chance it will be needed in the future, the disposition of which is determined by the organization’s approved record schedule.

The person in the organization designated as the organization’s records manager should draft a records-sharing policy that is approved by the organization’s top management for sharing records with those outside the organization.

Yes. A great number of industries, such as banks, health care providers, pharmaceutical developers, manufactures, and many more, have their own record-keeping requirements.

The person in the organization designated as the organization’s records manager should be able to answer such questions; if not, seek the answer from a lawyer responsible for the legal matters of the organization.

Poor records management is not of itself a breach of the Act, but the Act did stress that good records management is essential to the process of responding to requests. The Act sets out strict timetables for compliance with a request, so it makes sense to have systems in place that help to ensure such timetables are adhered to with minimum effort.

If the University fails to satisfy an enquiry either in what it supplies or how it deals with the enquirer, then appeals can be made to the Information Commissioner who can impose requirements on the University. Good records management will assist in avoiding such circumstances arising.

Find an item on the organization’s record schedule that specifies how long that record must be retained and after that period has expired, follow the disposition method specified in the schedule.

Report it to one’s own manager, the person in the organization designated as the organization’s records manager, and/or the lawyer responsible for the legal matters of the organization.

The Data Protection Act applies to personal information relating to living individuals. The gathering, storage and processing of that data has to conform with a number of principles including its gathering and retention for specific purposes, the secure retention of the data, the ability to recover it when a Data Subject submits a request, and ensuring that it is kept for no longer than is necessary for the purpose for which it is held. Good records management policies and procedures will ensure that there is compliance with the Act.

My members of staff would say that I am an effective leader who injects enthusiasm and motivation in to the team. They would also say that I am results driven and that, whilst I am fair, I also expect a hard day’s work from everyone.

This is a very common question that is asked in almost every interview. I love this question because it gives you the opportunity to sell yourself. Discuss what makes you standout from the crowd and show them how you can help advance their company. Remember to be specific. This is where all the company research you have done comes into play. You should have an idea as to why the company is hiring or looking to hire someone for that position. What problem do they have that they are looking for people to help them solve? And once you can establish this, you are to show them how you can solve this problem for them.

The person in the organization designated as the organization’s records manager should be notified so that an item covering those kinds of records can be drafted, approved, and added to the schedule.

It is only with an understanding and appreciation of many of the details of the organization’s operations that a professional records manager can help the organization’s employees make the quality of the data, information, knowledge, and expertise in those records as accurate and as complete as possible. Further, with this knowledge of its operations, the records manager will likely spot potential trouble about which he or she can seek legal advice.

One could lose one job if one’s poor record keeping puts the company in significant jeopardy, or one could be subject to civil or criminal penalties if the information one has recorded is used to support and prove such legal actions.

Without institution-wide records management procedures, each College, School, Department or Unit of the University would continue to follow their own practices. Whilst each set of practices may seem to be based upon a common sense approach, an uncoordinated approach to managing the University's records could lead to:

☛ Failure to comply with legislation
☛ Risks to institutional accountability
☛ Inefficient use of staff time
☛ Poorly informed decision-making
☛ Loss of institutional memory

By following the procedures and guidelines issued centrally, the benefits likely to be achieved include the following:

☛ Needed documents and information can be easily accessible:
A standard method of describing and arranging records across the University will assist in document and information identification and retrieval for purposes from audits and legislative compliance, to reuse of management information.

☛ Reduced need for excessive equipment for storing records:
An appropriate Retention and Disposal Schedule will set out standard time periods for which University records should be retained. By destroying records no longer required, the need for equipment for the storage of paper or electronic records is reduced.

☛ The University's cultural history is safeguarded:
The Retention and Disposal schedules also enable vital records required for longer time periods, and those of archival value, to be identified and safeguarded.

☛ Increased productivity and reduced time spent searching for needed documents:
Administrative and clerical staff spend a significant amount of their time searching for information or documents created within their own office or elsewhere within the University and a clear set of RM procedures will improve the efficiency of that process.

Accountability throughout the Records Life Cycle:

Records testify to the authority behind the decision making processes of the University and provide audit trails when both internal and external audits are required.

No. The principles underlying records management - creation, retention, identification, and retrieval of records - apply equally to both electronic and paper records. This means that procedures for e-mail and information held on shared and personal hard drives have to be as robust and detailed as those for other records.

☛ What are the benefits of records management?
☛ What are the components of an effective records management program?
☛ What are the reasons for storing records off-site at a records warehouse?
☛ One reason is that warehouse space is cheaper than office space.
☛ Under what circumstances should records be microfilmed?
☛ Microfilm is used for records that are vital and require long term retention typically 10 or more years.
☛ What types of records would be ideal candidates for optical imaging?
☛ What is the purpose of a records retention schedule?
☛ What types of records would be considered as vital records for an organization?
☛ What are records?
☛ What are the legal implications associated with a records management program?
☛ What steps are involved in determining the retention period for records?
☛ Name the factors to consider in determing the appropriate retention period for records.
☛ Name the risks of having an ineffective records management program.
☛ What actions can you take to facilitate the retrieval of records?
☛ Tell us about your experience in managing off-site records storage?
☛ Have you managed off-site records storage or did you use a contract facility?
☛ What are the critical service requirements in using a contract facility for off-site records storage?

☛ By the very nature of Retention & Disposal Schedules it is essential that records are dated and that they are filed or stored in some manner that identifies the date or (at a minimum) the year of creation. The Schedules will then advise as to how many 'years' after that date the records should be retained for before disposal. For example:
☛ Current academic year + 5 years OR Life of course + 1 year
☛ There can be some confusion as to whether ‘year’ relates to the UK fiscal year, the University financial year, the ‘academic’ year or the calendar year. Some record sequences relate directly to an academic year whether that starts on 25 September or 28 September or 1 October (depending on which date is a Monday).
☛ In the event of the schedule stating that the (academic year) records can be disposed of after (for example) three years it is advisable to take this to be ‘after the end of the calendar year, three years after the end of the academic year’.
☛ For example, a record created on 5 November 2005 in the academic year 2005/06 with a 'Current academic year + 3 years' retention period could be considered for disposal after 31 December 2009.

Most records will never be needed again; the unanswerable question is which ones will be needed sometime in the future. When one of the organization’s top executives or managers has a vague recollection of having seen a record that he or she now desperately needs—particularly to defend or protect the organization—and you are the one to produce it, hopefully you will be considered a hero and eventually promoted and/or financially rewarded.

The sharing of an employee’s tacit knowledge with those outside the organization should be covered in the organization’s policy about sharing the organization’s data, information, knowledge, and expertise with those outside the company.

One can work to be a prime example of a great record keeper. Setting this example will encourage coworkers and peers to see that effective record keeping is possible, not that difficult, and significantly beneficial when one or others need the data, information, knowledge, and/or expertise in one’s records. Equally important, one should work to continually record new information, knowledge, and expertise that one learns, or observes in others, while working.