How to Archive Documents

Document archiving is an important aspect of document management. Many businesses are required to store documents for a long period of time, to meet GDPR guidelines and retention periods.

If a business does not follow good document archiving processes, they may run into legal problems including large fines,. In this guide, we’ll explain; 

What is document archiving?

Document archiving for industries

Three types of document archiving

The benefits of document archiving

How does the paper document archiving process work?

What are document archiving best practices?

What is document archiving?

Document archiving is a system for storing and managing old documents so they can be found and used later. There are several key aspects of this; 

• Organised Storage: It's a structured way to store and manage old or unused documents.

• Easy to Find: Make sure you can easily find and use documents when you need them.

• Secure Information: It helps keep important information safe.

• Fewer Problems: Reduces issues caused by messy or lost documents.

Documents that aren’t typically needed for day to day use, or may be required by businesses in a few months or years time, are those that are ideal to be archived. This can vary depending on the type of business.

Industries that benefit the most from document archiving

Legal

In the legal profession, archiving documents is crucial for managing different records, including contracts, agreements, client correspondence, legal opinions, case documents, licenses and permits. It ensures strict compliance with legal and regulatory requirements, provides historical reference for past cases and decisions, and maintains accurate records for current and past client. This helps legal professionals operate efficiently and reduce potential risks.

Financial

In the financial sector, keeping a record of important documents like invoices, receipts, and tax forms is important. They allow financial businesses to comply with regulations, provide accurate financial planning and keep a business running even if something unexpected happens. These documents can also be used as proof during audits and tax checks, showing a clear history of financial activities.

HR

HR departments need to archive many documents, these include job applications, work agreements, performance reviews, records of any disciplinary actions, payroll information, training records and exit interviews.

Archiving these documents correctly is important, it helps the company stay compiant, especially with employment and data privacy laws. It also helps resolve disagreements with employees when prior information is needed. Most importantly, it keeps sensitive HR data private. Good record-keeping stops data leaks, protects both employees and the company to ensures HR works smoothly and legally.

Hospitals

Hospitals and other healthcare providers must keep all their documents organised. This includes patient files, medical histories, consent forms, and other important papers. Keeping these records well-organised is very important for good patient care and safety. It helps doctors see a patient's full medical history, which is key for making important treatment choices.

Good document keeping is also necessary to follow rules set by like the Care Quality Commission (CQC). This makes sure patients get the safest and best care. It also protects healthcare providers legally if there are claims of wrongdoing and shows they follow medical standards. By keeping detailed records, healthcare providers can keep patient information safe, meet legal requirements, and provide ongoing quality care.

Education

For schools and educational organisations document archiving systems are a necessity, they serve as a record of vital information such as; academic achievements, student disciplinary actions, staff information and enrollment forms.

Document archiving ensures compliance with educational standards and regulatory requirements. It also provides significant legal protection for both students and staff members. In situations such as student disputes, disciplinary appeals, or even more serious legal challenges, the availability of well-maintained and easily accessible archives can contain crucial information.

Good document archiving is crucial for businesses and offices to run smoothly and follow rules. Offices deal with many types of records, like client deals, sales agreements, project files, and supplier contracts.

Strong document archiving makes work more efficient because it allows quick access to information and reduces the time employees spend looking for documents. It also helps manage knowledge, saving important expertise for current and future employees to reach business goals. Additionally, good archiving practices ensure that a business can prove it follows rules during audits or legal checks that need specific documents. Lastly, it helps clear up limited office space, making it better for the main business activities.

Three types of document archiving 

1. Traditional hard copy storage

This option is more traditional – you simply archive your paper files by filing them away in a secure filing cabinet or you can choose to use an off-site storage provider to create space.

An off-site storage facility is the better option for storing hard copies long-term or for files that are not needed often. A secure facility ensures your files don’t fall into the wrong hands and are protected from fire or flood damage. This is a popular option for large businesses that need to maintain a paper trail of non-mission-critical documents. 

2. Digital storage

If your business is looking to go paper-lite, this is the option for you. Document scanning  and uploading  them  into a digital archive can be a great option for any business looking to be kinder to the environment and keep their archived documents easy to reach. Once files are scanned, they can be  confidentially shredded  to avoid duplicates of information and keep records secure.

Shredall SDS Group can handle the entire process for you, from scanning all your records to shredding them and provide document management software so you can easily access your scanned files.

There are many advantages to this option, including saving office space, working remotely, and keeping your documents secure. However, this option isn’t for every organisation as many prefer to retain physical copies and don’t like trusting their entire document archiving system to a software like a DMS (Document Management Software).

3.  Hybrid archiving

Hybrid archiving gives you the best of both, storing hard copies yet allowing you to archive documents digitally  when needed. Additionally a company could store their paper documents off-site in a secure storage facility but   digitally scan  certain documents, which can be sent straight to their desktop, making it an ideal document archiving solution.

This is ideal for organisations that want to store large numbers of documents off-site, but still occasionally need access to them.

The benefits of archiving documents

 Document archiving protects businesses from risk, ensures compliance with regulations and improves efficiency by storing documents in a way to make retrieval easy. However the benefits differ depending on whether you want physical or digital archiving.

The benefits of document archiving extend far beyond simply preserving paper. It protects your organisation from risk, and helps enhance efficiency for all of your staff. 

How does the  document archiving process work? 

There is a simple process to archiving your paper documents; the seven bullet points below give you a clear overview of the process from start to finish.

1. Assess & plan 

Begin by aiming to understand the current status of your documents, identify archiving goals and roles, and create a retention schedule for different document types.

2. Purge & sort

Next, discard unnecessary documents, categorise remaining ones for storage based on importance and access needs in the team. 

3. Digitise

Either manually scan your documents into PDFs for storage, or use a document scanning service that will do the job for you.  

4. Organise & index

Label and categorise the digital archive files with logical file names and metadata (keywords) for easy retrieval.

5. Choose your storage solution

Based on your budget and needs, now choose between off-site storage, cloud storage, or internal servers to host your archived documents. 

6. Secure your documents

Then, when you’ve transferred your documents, set access controls and backup routines to ensure that your files are secure.

7. Monitor & review

Finally, regularly assess archive efficiency, update retention schedules, and adjust processes as needed.

 We recommend automating this process as much as possible using Document Management Software for smoother and more efficient archiving.

What are document archiving best practices?

Now that you understand your options in terms of storing files, here are some best practices on how to archive  documents.

1. Organise your files

Once you choose your method for archival, the most important tip we can give is to keep on top of your files and have a system in place to manage your archives effectively. Only archive documents if you have a good reason to do so, for instance if they have a retention period. It’s advised to have a company document retention policy so non-essential documentation isn’t retained for no reason.

Anything that doesn’t need to be kept as hard copies needs to be securely destroyed. We recommend investing in a service from a professional shredding provider who will supply you with a Certificate of Data Destruction once the documents have been destroyed.

2. Ensure retention periods meet legal requirements

It is vital that you don’t hold documents for longer than necessary. There’s legal requirements or industry regulations that are set out to advise on how long to keep certain paper documents. A failure to hold documents within the retention guidelines could result in a substantial fine.

3. Use off-site storage

Holding large amounts of documents in filing cabinets in an office can take up a lot of space. It can also result in employees spending a considerable amount of time looking for records.

Storing your documents off-site not only creates space but allows you to focus on other more important tasks, allowing a professional company to manage your documents for you. Off-site storage also ensures that files are not damaged during the agreed retention periods as they are stored in a safe and secure environment. Paper documents are at a high risk of damage and theft, so this is the most secure option.

Shredall SDS Group’s storage facility has 24-hour CCTV coverage, climate control and fire/flood protection.

4. Ensure documents can easily be retrieved

The last thing you want to stress about is not being able to find a document or not being able to retrieve a record in a timely manner. It is essential to consider the issue of document retrieval before you implement a document archiving system.

Investing in an off-site document archiving service means you don’t need to stress about document retrieval. This is taken care of by your service provider, where a document can be physically delivered to you or sent to your computer for quick retrieval.

5. Digitise paper documents

Our final tip is to digitise your paper documents, especially if you are working from home. Choosing to make digital copies of your important documents will allow you to access these within seconds, share them easily with colleagues and add password protection for extra security.

We highly recommend using a secure document scanning service to digitise your documents. There are many benefits to this like saving your business money on purchasing scanning equipment. Equally, companies like Shredall SDS Group provide document management software that can make it easy to search for a particular document.

Safely archive your documents with us

If you’re looking for a company to help you get started with the document archiving process, we can help. At Shredall SDS Group, we have decades of experience in document scanning and document storage, helping companies across the UK archive their paper documents and streamline their business operations for good.

Whether you need secure business storage, document indexing services, or a helpful Document Management Software, we have the service to help you. Get in touch with us today to speak about your requirements.

Link to Shredall SDS Group’s related blog: 4 Trends in Document Shredding & Destruction