Records and Information Management - 4th Edition by William Saffady (Paperback)

About the Book

This is the "go to" book for newly appointed records managers, as well as experienced records and information management (RIM) professionals who want a review of specific topics. The approach here is practical rather than theoretical and emphasizes best practices and published standards.

Book Synopsis

This is the "go to" book for newly appointed records managers, as well as experienced records and information management (RIM) professionals who want a review of specific topics. The approach here is practical rather than theoretical and emphasizes best practices and published standards.

Review Quotes

Bringing together his knowledge of regulatory environments, operational requirements, information technologies, and his practical experience of records work, William Saffady has written a thorough, clear and pragmatic book that will be a valuable guide to practitioners and students of records and information management.

In order for information to be useful it must be available at the point of need. In discussing records and information management (RIM), Saffady covers how to collect data, determine retention policies, and manage nondigital and digital documents, all while maintaining effective privacy and security protocols. Saffady approaches each of these topics practically, rather than theoretically, with a primary goal of helping RIM professionals perform their duties. Throughout he provides best practices, and he shares commonly accepted standards of information management when applicable. The lengthy section on legally mandated record keeping requirements will be particularly helpful to new professionals and RIM students. Aids include summaries of major points in every chapter and endnotes for additional reading; persistent identifiers provide easy access for readers of the text's digital format. Tables, images, and sidebars help to break up the text. From the classroom perspective, the book would benefit from basic teaching tools--e.g., end-of-chapter assignments, discussion questions, ancillaries (test bank, presentation slides, etc.). This fourth edition of Records and Information Management (first edition, 2004) has been updated and expanded to include a global perspective. Recommended. Graduate students, researchers, faculty, professionals.

Records and Information Management: Fundamentals of Professional Practice, Fourth Edition by William Saffady is just what I need for teaching my records management course. The updated version addresses many of the contemporary issues in our field in a professional and thorough manner. Moving forward this will be a required text.

This is my go-to book recommendation for university students and new professionals in the field of Records and Information Management. The text is written from a practical standpoint, based in sound theory, and provides the reader with a wealth of useful information. Saffady's book should be on the shelf of every records manager.

With this new edition, Records and Information Management continues to be a leading resource on record and information management practices. Because it reviews the salient components of records management programs, this text will be of great benefit to students and seasoned professionals looking for guidance or a refresher to assist them in their careers.

About the Author

William Saffady is a records management and information governance consultant and researcher based in New York City. He is the author of over three dozen books and many articles on information governance, records management, record retention, document storage and retrieval technologies, library automation, and other information management topics. Saffady received his Ph.D, and M.S.L.S. degrees from Wayne State University. Before establishing his full-time consulting practice, he was a professor of library and information science at the State University of New York at Albany, Long Island University, Pratt Institute, and Vanderbilt University. Saffady is a fellow of ARMA International, and he is profiled in the Encyclopedia of Archival Writers, 1515-2015, a reference work published by Rowman & Littlefield in 2019.