<Rather than insurance based upon loss and monetary value could an
organization take the line of duplicating the records and dispersing
them at another site.>
Well said. Dispersal in one form or another is key to a vital records
program. Storing one's only copy of a vital record (whether hard media
or electronic) on-site or off-site does not protect the record.
Duplication (copying, mirroring, back-up taping, whatever) and dispersal
(storage, electronic vaulting, etc.) is the only way the records will be
protected from loss. Monetary compensation, even if an organization can
achieve something close to full value, does not replace the information
and will rarely be enough to keep a company from folding if the
information loss is catastrophic.
For those who may be interested, a copy of the U.S. standard ANSI/ARMA
5-2000 "Vital Records: Identifying, Managing, and Recovering
Business-Critical Records" can be obtained from the ARMA International
bookstore
(http://www.arma.org/bookstore/productdetail2.cfm?ProductID=1272) for
about 16 pounds (plus shipping) for non-members. The standard was
developed to be as minimally U.S. centric as possible, so it can be
considered a good resource internationally.
Ginny Jones
(Virginia A. Jones, CRM, FAI)
Records Manager
Information Technology Division
Newport News Dept. of Public Utilities
Newport News, VA
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