Do your employees know which documents to send away for shredding and which ones to keep?
Ordering Bag-N-Shred confidential shredding bags is a great first step in managing your business's destruction of sensitive corporate documents. However, do your employees know which documents are suitable to be destroyed and which are not? It's critical to your business security and privacy that your staff are trained in the protocols of secure document destruction.
Under law, some records must be retained for a set period of time.
It's important to decide which resources and records will still be required for future use and reference, and which can be safely destroyed. Under Australian law, many documents must be kept for a set period of time. How long do you need to keep your hard copy documents? Ultimately, the length of time depends on your type of business, but here's a general guide on the length of time you need to keep records in Australia.
Training your staff on document security is not only useful for ensuring that something crucial isn't accidentally and permanently destroyed. But it also empowers them to clear out old and redundant files with confidence without being reminded. Once they know which documents to keep, which to scan, and which to destroy, everyone saves time and money.
PRO TIP: A list of DOs and Don'ts with time windows.
A good tactic is start with a clear list of DOs and Don'ts with accompanying time windows and/or due dates. A simple Excel sheet and/or reminder dates in Outlook is a great way to start.
Perhaps there are outdated records being used that actually contradict current and up to date documents. In an effort to go paperless, you may even find that you have identical digital records that are now faster and easier to access when required. In the event that you come across something that hasn't already been recreated or copied as a digital record - now is the perfect opportunity!
Help your people to understand the importance of document destruction and security.
Having everyone on the same page will encourage your staff to think for themselves. Include your company's official document security guidelines or security policy within your employee manual and orientation training. Encourage employees to be more environmentally aware and bring your attention to additional paper clutter you may have not originally considered.
Do you have a batch of confidential documents that need shredding? Bag-N-Shred is an easy and environmentally friendly way to shred paperwork. It's affordable (only $19.90 for up to 5 kgs of documents-that's about 2 reams of standard office paper).
Sign up to order your first confidential shredding bag here.