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About Charlie Sodano
So who is this eOrganizedWorld Guy?
After getting my PhD in chemistry, I spent the first part of my working career as a research scientist. About 20 years ago my employer recognized that I had a talent for matching technology to practical business applications. Most of the successful matches that I came up with involved infusing computer technology applications into standard business practices. What I have learned over the years is that there are many ways that business is conducted that are dictated by how a small group of people prefer to interact. Quite often, these processes are very inefficient and if resolved would result in huge gains in productivity. The funny thing is that there are usually many very good technical solutions available but the biggest barrier is the natural resistance to change. Every project I have worked on always solicited the response, “Why are we changing? The old way worked well enough.” Even after some of these people agreed that the new process would probably be superior, they still resisted.
My past employer allowed me to participate in many internal and external global conferences concerning information management. It was through these experiences that I found that most companies, organizations and individuals kept and maintained very poor record systems that jeopardized their livelihood. It is shocking to see behavior, even in very large established companies that shovels valuable information into unorganized and inaccessible bins, thereby neglecting their intellectual and legal value.
I know a lot of people who work for record storage companies. The majority of their clients rarely destroy or recall anything. Many records are kept “forever”. This often includes files from terminated employees that contain office supplies and magazines. I guess it’s a time capsule. Obviously most of the storage cost is a waste.
Sign up for my EZine and get tips on how you can set up workable retention schedules and destroy unneeded records.
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