Tuesday, January 6, 2015

Advantages and Disadvantages of Different Types of Records Management Systems



Alphabetical Records Management System

Advantages

  • Simple to understand.
  • Convenient for grouping correspondence by name, subject or location.

Disadvantages
  • Locating a name file, especially those with common names, takes time. 
  • Correspondence with same or similar names can be misplaced.



Geographical Records Management System

Advantages
  • Suitable for businesses with operations in different places. 
  • It is adaptable to an alphabetical system.

Disadvantages
  • Knowledge of Geography is important.
  • There is need for a card index of the correspondents. 



Subject Records Management System

Advantages
  • Correspondence relating to the same subject can be grouped together. 
  • It is adaptable to the alphabetical, geographical and numerical system. 
Disadvantages
  • It is not suitable for businesses that have large amounts of correspondence. 
  • It is difficult to decide under which title to file a given correspondence when it is not stated. 



Chronological Records Management System

Advantages
  • Suitable for documents or matters that require attention to follow up. 
  • Documents relating to the same time period are group ed together. 

Disadvantages
  • There is need for an alphabetical card index. 
  • Errors in writing dates on folders can cause papers to be misplaced. 



Numerical Records Management System

Advantages
  • Suitable for confidential records.
  • It is easy to locate a numbered file. 

Disadvantages
  • There is a need for alphabetical index cards to operate the system. 
  • It takes time to consult the index cards to identify a file number.  


Electronic Records Management System

Advantages
  • Documents can be retrieved very quickly.
  • Data is safeguarded by a password against unauthorized access

Disadvantages
  • Equipment is very expensive.
  • Back-up copies are required, as files can be accidentally deleted. 


Reference
Office Administration, Frank Ramtahal, Caribbean Education Publishers, 2007, pages 149-154

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