I would like to introduce you to my colleague, Peggy Milovina Meyer. Peggy is an expert in records management. Prior to starting her own business, she worked in a variety of roles at Hewlett Packard. Most recently, Peggy has been focusing on helping companies large and small set up systems to organize their paper and electronic records. As year-end approaches, it’s a great time to consider adopting an HR records management system for your business. In this guest blog, Peggy shares some of her best practices.
Companies today, regardless of number of employees, must comply with increasingly stricter employee records requirements. Throughout an employee’s time with a company, numerous documents are created – evaluations, benefit forms, job application, resume, confidentiality agreement, to name a few. It is easy to see how records management presents significant challenges to HR personnel. This article presents the top five generally-accepted best practices for effective management of HR records.
Policy
Don’t overlook the importance of a policy. A policy provides guidance to those responsible for handling records, taking any guesswork out of what needs to be done, to what, and when. A policy is an excellent education tool as well as being part of a sound foundation for risk avoidance and business process control.
Processes and Guidelines
Once a policy is in place, guidelines and processes that support its purpose should be documented. Guidelines are important for HR because they provide details not outlined in the policy regarding the many legal requirements governing how these records must be handled. For example, a policy may state that records must be stored with approved vendors, while the guidelines will list approved vendors and the approval process. Processes provide step-by-step instructions ensuring policies and guidelines are met. Documented processes allow businesses to monitor processes for effectiveness, and can contribute to operations cost reduction.
File Structure
Creating a file structure aids in ensuring records are organized, stored, and only accessed by authorized personnel. File structures should be simple, and set up to ensure similar records with the same access restrictions and retention periods are filed together. Even if records are related, those with different retention and access requirements should be filed separately to avoid inappropriate access or destruction.
Privacy and Security
Businesses bear the responsibility for managing risk for employee records, no matter the location or format of those records. HR records that contain private, sensitive data like social security number, date of birth, phone number, or address, require a rigorous and consistent approach to security and access controls. Business owners must be able to demonstrate employee records are adequately protected and can only be accessed by authorized personnel.
Education and Audit
Policy, guidelines and processes do no good if employees are not made aware of them and their own responsibility in complying with them. Creating an education plan that covers these topics is important to a successful records management program. Consider including this material in new employee orientation as well as in a recurring refresh for all employees.
No program will be effective without periodic checks to determine how well employees understand and follow processes. Performing annual audits and correcting issues promptly can be very effective in managing risk.
Combined, these best practices will help a business effectively manage their HR records, and can be used to accomplish the same in any other organization. For more information, please contact Peggy Milovina Meyer, Records and Information Management Solutions at peggymilovina@yahoo.com.