Importance of Archives

Every company generates new records on a daily basis. These records must be sorted, shared as organisation information and kept for future reference in order to be of any use to the company. So, what happens after 30 years of accumulated records? How do you determine what stays and what goes? How do you ensure your records are in place when you need them 5 years from now? The answer is efficient archives management.

Why organisations keep archives

• Administrative value – Archives contain records of past activities, lessons learned and background information on long term clients. These records are used to establish organisational precedence that is key in sustaining the business.
• Financial value- Many companies collapse because they have no documents tracking their financial matters. Where the money came from, who was in charge, allocation of the funds and use of them is important in controlling expenditure and safeguarding the overall bottom line.
• Legal value – Contracts contain obligations of an organisation to suppliers and various other organisations. These must be preserved as evidence of transactions on a legal front and compliance to government regulations. Failure to which the organisation may find itself on the wrong side of the law and face closure.
• Information value- Archives are unique and indispensable records of any organisation. The information they hold is key for the organisation, researchers and other relevant parties.