Professionalism - Always seek a trustworthy professional to look after your documents.
One of the major benefits of off-site document management, after all, is security.
Certain documents need to be stored for a long time - several years or even a lifetime in some cases.
Get to know your records management firm.
The lowest bidder for the job may not always be the best choice.
Look for a trustworthy, competitive firm offering the best services for your budget.
Certification -There are a number of certifications within the document management field.
Look for firms with one or more of the following: Professional training courses and certifications Certified Records Manager (CRM) credential Facility - A perspective record storage facility should be clean, orderly, and well-kept.
The building itself should be sturdy, in good repair, and have a security system installed.
If your town has a "bad part of town", consider storing your documents at a facility in the good part of town.
Your documents may be stored for some time, so do not be afraid to stop by and inspect the warehouse prior to storing your documents off-site.
They are your documents, after all.
You are paying for your documents' safe keeping.
An honest, professional document management facility will have nothing to hide.
Accessibility - A good record management firm will know exactly where your documents are, and be able to deliver them to your business in a timely manner.
After all, what good is keeping records if you cannot access them when needed? Most good record management firms will be able to deliver stored files to your office the next day.
Sometimes, however, the next day is not quite fast enough.
Ideally, records management firms should also be able to ship out items on an "urgent" basis.
Depending on the distance between your office and your off-site record storage facility, certain storage firms may be able to do this very fast.
The best record management firms may even be able to have your records delivered to your office in just a few hours if necessary.
Incredible! Management Tools - Any good records management firm will maintain an inventory of your files stored off-site.
Ideally, a records management firm will have an online system where you can track and manage your records over the internet.
These systems are able to track in real time, giving the user unprecedented access to his files.
Couple this advanced management software with a prompt delivery service, and you will truly find yourself in archive heaven!