Newsletter

January 2008

How Long Should You Keep Business Records?

By Pamela Mims, PilesIntoFiles.com

Are your filing cabinets bursting at the seams? Then it is time to weed through your files, retire outdated documents, and put them into storage. Good organization and records management of your documents and files will keep you on top of your business. More importantly, it will keep your company in compliance with legal and regulatory requirements.

Records Retention Schedule

Permanently

7 Years

3 Years

1 Year

Stock and bond certificates

General ledgers

Profit and loss statements

Audit reports

Minutes from board of directors meetings

Bank statements

Credit and collection correspondence

Uncollectible accounts

Expense reports

Accident reports, injury claims, and settlements

Cash slips

Budget worksheets

Commission reports

Petty cash records

Expired insurance policies

Sales and service correspondence

Requisitions

Lease records

Sales and marketing correspondence

Employee travel information

If you would like a more detailed "Records Retention Schedule" for the office and home, request a copy from Pam, at info@pilesintofiles.com.

Storage of Documents and Files

Retain in your office your most critical records for daily operations, along with your prior year's records. The rest can be stored away in file storage boxes (with lids); be sure to number the boxes. With your word-processor, compose a list of the titles of all the files that are in the box, identified by number; then place a hardcopy of this file list inside the box and keep another copy in your current file drawer.

Discard Outdated Records

Discard documents that are outdated or otherwise no longer needed. Be sure that you shred documents with any personal information!

About the Author

Pamela Mims is a professional organizer specializing in small office and law firm filing-system set-up and paper workflow systems. You may visit her Web site, www.PilesIntoFiles.com, for more information or e-mail Pam, info@pilesintofile.

"When so great a wave of change crashes into the society and the economy, traditional managers -- accustomed to operating in safe waters -- are vulnerable to being thrown overboard. The habits of a lifetime, the very habits that helped them succeed, now become counter-productive.

"And the same is true for organizations. The very services, procedures and organizational forms that helped them succeed in the past often prove their undoing. Indeed, the first rule of survival is clear: Nothing is more dangerous than yesterday's success."

-- Alvin Toffler