Multiple legal requirements in one fileplan?

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anusk

Hi all!!
I'm analyzing the possibility of using Alfresco as Record Management in a large company. How can alfresco handle multiple legal requirements of different regions/countries?
I thought in multiple fileplans, but I red Records Management only allows one fileplan. Can I set different documents lifecycle depending on the region?

Kind regards,
Ana

eholt

Ana,

The records management functions operate on what Alfresco RM calls the Records Category, which is two hierarchy levels below the file plan and one below the records series.  Inside each records category, you can have as many records folders as you want, each of which can contain as many records as you want.

Based on your question on how Alfresco would handle multiple legal requirements from different regions, there are a couple ways to handle this.  From a records management perspective, many records managers would say that you should select either the longest retention period defined by the regions you do business in or that you can make a calculated risk of a lower retention period that still satisfies the vast majority of the regions you operate in.  Legal counsel and/or strategic planning people should especially be in the decision-making process if you're going the calculated risk route.  Either way, you'll end up with one retention period for every region you operate in, and Alfresco will handle that as intended.  Program the Records Category to act appropriately and it will cut off the records as instructed for every folder you put in.

If that is not a viable route and you still want to create different retentions for each region/country, you could create separate Records Categories for each retention period you need to retain them for i.e. "Country A-5 years", "Region B-8 years", etc. and then deposit your records appropriately to the matching region's records category.  As long as you setup your records categories correctly and deposit the correct region's records to the correct folder, Alfresco will manage it for you. 

I hope this helps.