Blog Archives

Classifying Safe Storage: Finding a Vault Service Right for Your Business

7/28/2017

Have you ever walked into your office or a storage room at your company and been overtaken by old documents, company memorabilia, or business critical documents? At one time, storing these possessions in an extra space, out of sight, was probably doable, but as time goes by and the company grows, you’ve probably added more and more data to this pile. Now imagine walking into this cluttered room after a fire or flood, everything is destroyed. If this is a picture that scares you, moving your critical data to an offsite facility can safeguard your documents and possessions.

Finding an offsite facility for your data should not be a tiresome task, but should be one that much consideration is put into. You want to ensure that your documents are safe, secure, and accessible. What would be the point in storing your documents offsite if the information that you need cannot be accessed when you need it?

R4 Services has been providing document management and vault services to large and small businesses in Chicago and the surrounding area since 1993. Since our start, we have made it a point to understand our clients’ needs. Being reliable, resourceful, responsive, and reasonable has allowed our business to thrive, as well as businesses across the Chicagoland area.

If you’re interested in touring our facility to ensure it is the right choice for you and your company, please contact us today.

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Record Management for Small and Home Businesses

7/21/2017

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For a big business, a record management system should be a no brainer. With the amount of data being produced, it’s not easy to keep track of everything that is going on, so a record management program can only be beneficial to the firm. But for small and home businesses, who often have a lower budget, putting a system in place often gets put on the backburner. Unfortunately, though, many don’t see the importance of record management until after a disaster strikes.

Whatever sets your business apart in the industry that you’re in, whether it be retail, technology, education or hospitality, you have a major asset. While your trademark asset is essential to your business, records are also a vital asset that are often overlooked. You are who you are because of the invoices, applications, tax invoices, and other documentations you have acquired in the formation and running of your business. As a smaller entity, you most likely have a limited amount of data and onsite space. While keeping your documents elsewhere is a means of security, it also provides you with the opportunity to free up hardware as well as physical space. Offsite storage at R4’s state of the art facility allows you 24/7 access to records while being secure from disaster.

Being a small or home based business does not mean you should compromise your record management system. A record management system will help improve and streamline your organization’s workflow and ensure that records are kept safe, secure, and up-to-date.

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What Should Be Shredded? Tips for Shredding Documents at Work and at Home

7/14/2017

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“One day I may need this.” We have all had that thought cross our mind as we sift through bank statements, letters, and other important documentation deciding what should stay and what should go. But what is worth saving and what is better off in the shredder? Check out our tips for work and home to keep you organized and safe from identity theft.

Home
Save. Any physical copies of anything related to state or federal matters, including certifications, licenses, or deeds. These are important forms of identification that are typically only valid in their original form and can be a lengthy process to replace. Keeping any proof of warranty for the duration you own the warranted product is essential to insure you receive proper service if the product breaks or malfunctions. A good rule of thumb is, keep anything that would be a hassle to replace causing you to sit on the phone with customer service for hours or go to a government office.

Shred. Tax audits and receipts, home sale, purchase, lease, or improvement documentation should be shredded after 6-7 years. Pay stubs, bank statements, medical bills, and records can be shredded after one year. Everything else, go ahead and shred. To keep your identity safe and secure, shred anything with your name, phone number, address on it, social security number, or banking information on it.

Work
Save. The same rules apply for work as they do at home, if the document is going to be hard to replace, keep it in a safe spot. There are a few extra documents you want to keep an eye out for like union agreements, procedure records, training manuals, bylaws, insurance records, accident reports, claims, legal and important correspondence, copyrights and trademarks, articles or incorporation, and actuarial reports.

Shred. It’s important that for the safety of your business and your employees that you shred employee application forms, ID badges, and records when they leave the business, financial information, branded, damaged or faulty goods, as well as supplier records or information. Some paperwork is best kept for a few years before shredding such as budgets and purchase orders. Use your best judgment.

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4 Reasons Why Having Web Access to Your Records & Information Assets Can Make your Business More Efficient

7/7/2017

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Many perks come from having your records and information digitized and on the web. Not only is it a great penny saver in the long term as it reduces storage cost, it will also help your business run more efficiently.

With web records, you can access documentation remotely. If your documents live online, you can log on to access them wherever there is internet and by anyone that is deemed an approved user with a password. For businesses with multiple locations, traveling employees, or simply work that needs to be done remotely, web access to your records can be a strong asset to your company.

The system is easily navigated. No more time spent rummaging through piles of unorganized paperwork. Digital documentation has special features that will allow you to create thumbnails on documents, making your files easy to navigate and pull upon request. With a quick search, you can locate the document that you need.

The tools on web access are great for annotating. You can add text boxes, make highlights, and strike through text. All of these edits and markings can be made without altering the original image.

With your documents on the web, you are saving space. That means if your documents are stored in-house, there’s more room for you and your business to spread out and focus on important tasks.

Efficiency can make your business stand out and save you time and money. Transferring your documents over to web access has proven to help offices all over run more smoothly and more efficiently.

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Solutions for ALL Businesses

Classifying Safe Storage: Finding a Vault Service Right for Your Business

Record Management for Small and Home Businesses

What Should Be Shredded? Tips for Shredding Documents at Work and at Home

4 Reasons Why Having Web Access to Your Records & Information Assets Can Make your Business More Efficient

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