Iron Mountain is a mountain in the San Gabriel Mountains of Los Angeles County, California. Sometimes referenced as Iron Mountain #1 or Big Iron, the 8,007 ft (2,441 m) peak was originally called Sheep Mountain by the early miners in San Gabriel Canyon because of the large bands of bighorn sheep that roamed the slopes. The United States Geological Survey, which mapped the San Gabriels in the 1890s, ignored the local designation and gave it its present name. According to Will Thrall, there was once a USFS plan to change the name back to Sheep Mountain in 1940. The mountain is at the heart of a federally-designated wilderness area, called the "Sheep Mountain Wilderness" in reference to the original name.
While this mountain is far lower in elevation than other Southern California summits, it is the most difficult mountain to claim in the entire region. There are no water sources on the mountain, unless one finds snow. There are no maintained trails, the summit is seldom visited, and the climb is of about 6000 vertical feet, much of it at a 30 to 50 degree angle on loose soil, decomposed rock, or through brush. Some approaches to the summit require high degrees of rock-climbing skill. One route over the ridgeline from nearby Mt. San Antonio is long, difficult, and dangerous. The south mountain slopes in summer are directly exposed to the sun. Some climbers stay at the ruins of the Allison Mine about 3900 vertical feet below the summit. There are no facilities of any kind on the mountain.
Recent business scandals and new regulations demand
greater focus on risk management and corporate controls.
Total records management compliance is no longer
optional - it's required. Can you be certain your records
management program is legally-credible, current, and
compliant? Is your organization at risk? In short, how
does your records management program measure up?
COMPREHENSIVE, AFFORDABLE ANALYSIS
Iron Mountain's Records Management Program Gap
Analysis gauges the state of your organization's program
and identifies areas of risk. Our thorough analysis:
· Provides a snapshot of the overall 'health' of your
program
· Reveals areas of risk
· Identifies the gaps in your program
· Compares your program to records management best
practices
· Recommends program changes in order of priority
With this one engagement, our industry experts can get
you started on the road to consistent, compliant records
management.
PROVEN METHODOLOGY
Our Gap Analysis report evaluates all elements of your
current records management program, including your
records retention practices, policies and procedures,
employee compliance, e-mail usage and retention policies,
and program enforcement.
OUR THREE-PHASED APPROACH ENCOMPASSES:
Phase I — Data Collection.We design a customized electronic
survey to gather employee knowledge and perceptions
of your records management program. We also collect
all of your existing records management supporting
materials, such as policy and procedure documents,
records retention schedule, e-mail policy, and training
materials.
Phase II — Surveys.We conduct a series of in-person, follow-
up surveys with the initial respondents. These sessions
allow respondents to clarify or elaborate on their
survey responses.
Phase III — Analysis and Action Plan Development. We
then compile and analyze the survey responses and your
supporting documentation. Results are compared to criteria
found in international records management standards
and Iron Mountain best practices based on our significant
experience with similar clients.
Our conclusions and a recommended action plan are
included in the Gap Analysis report. The action plan
addresses all of the gaps and risks we uncover. It communicates
what needs to be accomplished to reach compliance.
Comparison to Industry Standards: to compare your
organization's records management practices and
materials to ISO standard 15489 and Iron Mountain's
Consulting Services' best practices. Our ratings identify
the elements of risk for each component of your
records management program.
Recommendations for Improvement: to transform
your records management program into a fully compliant
program. Our recommendations are based on:
· Regulatory compliance considerations
· Litigation risk management strategies
· Cost
· Industry best practices
· Process advantages
We include specific tools, technologies, and approaches
your organization can use to implement the Gap
Analysis program recommendations. We provide you
with a prioritized road map for implementing a consistent,
compliant program.
To navigate your way through the maze of regulations
governing how organisations manage their records,
a view from higher ground is essential. Iron Mountain
takes this perspective to help you to see across complex
interrelationships between different record types, business
functions and governing legislation. Using our range
of records management and disaster recovery support
services, Iron Mountain brings order to your records
management programme in an increasingly
complicated world.
Since 1951, Iron Mountain has helped over 235,000
companies to take this view to meet the records
management challenges they face. This guide outlines
what you need to know about records classification and
retention. As you will see in the tables and advice within
this guide, the reasons for compliant records management
are more compelling and vital than ever before.
Records are eligible for destruction when
an organisation no longer needs the
records and is no longer required by law to
keep them. However, some records will be
archived permanently due to their historical
value to the company.
A retention schedule recognises the
different types of information that are
created in or received by an organisation,
and lists the required retention period and
reason for the records’ retention.
Using a retention schedule ensures that
information is only kept for as long as
needed, which saves costs by preventing
the storage of redundant information.
The scheduled destruction of information
minimises business risk and the chance
of costly litigation caused either by retaining
information beyond the legal requirement or
destroying it accidentally ahead of its legal
retention period. Both the Data Protection
Act 1998 and the Freedom of Information
Act 2000 require good information
management and retention schedules in
order to be able to find the requested
information and to ensure the information is
not kept for longer than necessary.
Establishing a comprehensive records
management programme offers both
immediate and long-term benefits to
companies, including:
• Controlling the volume of records –
Implementing a records retention schedule
and destroying unnecessary records can
reduce the space now occupied by records
by as much as 40%. Managing the number
of records that are created internally will
reduce the costs of organising, maintaining
and disposing of records.
• Improving access to information – When
appropriate systems and procedures are in
place, an organisation can respond faster to
business challenges, provide better customer
service and make more informed decisions.
• Reducing litigation risks – A records
management programme, as part of a
company’s larger risk management strategy,
provides insurance against the threat of
litigation, government investigation or audit.
This insulates the company from potential
risk associated with the premature disposal
of information. A well designed programme
ensures that a company can easily retrieve
the information it needs to plan a proper
defence if legal problems do occur.
• Ensuring regulatory compliance –
Organisations must adhere to a multitude of
European, national and industry regulations
concerning the maintenance and retention
of records. A records management
programme determines which records must
While this mountain is far lower in elevation than other Southern California summits, it is the most difficult mountain to claim in the entire region. There are no water sources on the mountain, unless one finds snow. There are no maintained trails, the summit is seldom visited, and the climb is of about 6000 vertical feet, much of it at a 30 to 50 degree angle on loose soil, decomposed rock, or through brush. Some approaches to the summit require high degrees of rock-climbing skill. One route over the ridgeline from nearby Mt. San Antonio is long, difficult, and dangerous. The south mountain slopes in summer are directly exposed to the sun. Some climbers stay at the ruins of the Allison Mine about 3900 vertical feet below the summit. There are no facilities of any kind on the mountain.
Recent business scandals and new regulations demand
greater focus on risk management and corporate controls.
Total records management compliance is no longer
optional - it's required. Can you be certain your records
management program is legally-credible, current, and
compliant? Is your organization at risk? In short, how
does your records management program measure up?
COMPREHENSIVE, AFFORDABLE ANALYSIS
Iron Mountain's Records Management Program Gap
Analysis gauges the state of your organization's program
and identifies areas of risk. Our thorough analysis:
· Provides a snapshot of the overall 'health' of your
program
· Reveals areas of risk
· Identifies the gaps in your program
· Compares your program to records management best
practices
· Recommends program changes in order of priority
With this one engagement, our industry experts can get
you started on the road to consistent, compliant records
management.
PROVEN METHODOLOGY
Our Gap Analysis report evaluates all elements of your
current records management program, including your
records retention practices, policies and procedures,
employee compliance, e-mail usage and retention policies,
and program enforcement.
OUR THREE-PHASED APPROACH ENCOMPASSES:
Phase I — Data Collection.We design a customized electronic
survey to gather employee knowledge and perceptions
of your records management program. We also collect
all of your existing records management supporting
materials, such as policy and procedure documents,
records retention schedule, e-mail policy, and training
materials.
Phase II — Surveys.We conduct a series of in-person, follow-
up surveys with the initial respondents. These sessions
allow respondents to clarify or elaborate on their
survey responses.
Phase III — Analysis and Action Plan Development. We
then compile and analyze the survey responses and your
supporting documentation. Results are compared to criteria
found in international records management standards
and Iron Mountain best practices based on our significant
experience with similar clients.
Our conclusions and a recommended action plan are
included in the Gap Analysis report. The action plan
addresses all of the gaps and risks we uncover. It communicates
what needs to be accomplished to reach compliance.
Comparison to Industry Standards: to compare your
organization's records management practices and
materials to ISO standard 15489 and Iron Mountain's
Consulting Services' best practices. Our ratings identify
the elements of risk for each component of your
records management program.
Recommendations for Improvement: to transform
your records management program into a fully compliant
program. Our recommendations are based on:
· Regulatory compliance considerations
· Litigation risk management strategies
· Cost
· Industry best practices
· Process advantages
We include specific tools, technologies, and approaches
your organization can use to implement the Gap
Analysis program recommendations. We provide you
with a prioritized road map for implementing a consistent,
compliant program.
To navigate your way through the maze of regulations
governing how organisations manage their records,
a view from higher ground is essential. Iron Mountain
takes this perspective to help you to see across complex
interrelationships between different record types, business
functions and governing legislation. Using our range
of records management and disaster recovery support
services, Iron Mountain brings order to your records
management programme in an increasingly
complicated world.
Since 1951, Iron Mountain has helped over 235,000
companies to take this view to meet the records
management challenges they face. This guide outlines
what you need to know about records classification and
retention. As you will see in the tables and advice within
this guide, the reasons for compliant records management
are more compelling and vital than ever before.
Records are eligible for destruction when
an organisation no longer needs the
records and is no longer required by law to
keep them. However, some records will be
archived permanently due to their historical
value to the company.
A retention schedule recognises the
different types of information that are
created in or received by an organisation,
and lists the required retention period and
reason for the records’ retention.
Using a retention schedule ensures that
information is only kept for as long as
needed, which saves costs by preventing
the storage of redundant information.
The scheduled destruction of information
minimises business risk and the chance
of costly litigation caused either by retaining
information beyond the legal requirement or
destroying it accidentally ahead of its legal
retention period. Both the Data Protection
Act 1998 and the Freedom of Information
Act 2000 require good information
management and retention schedules in
order to be able to find the requested
information and to ensure the information is
not kept for longer than necessary.
Establishing a comprehensive records
management programme offers both
immediate and long-term benefits to
companies, including:
• Controlling the volume of records –
Implementing a records retention schedule
and destroying unnecessary records can
reduce the space now occupied by records
by as much as 40%. Managing the number
of records that are created internally will
reduce the costs of organising, maintaining
and disposing of records.
• Improving access to information – When
appropriate systems and procedures are in
place, an organisation can respond faster to
business challenges, provide better customer
service and make more informed decisions.
• Reducing litigation risks – A records
management programme, as part of a
company’s larger risk management strategy,
provides insurance against the threat of
litigation, government investigation or audit.
This insulates the company from potential
risk associated with the premature disposal
of information. A well designed programme
ensures that a company can easily retrieve
the information it needs to plan a proper
defence if legal problems do occur.
• Ensuring regulatory compliance –
Organisations must adhere to a multitude of
European, national and industry regulations
concerning the maintenance and retention
of records. A records management
programme determines which records must