NVRA CM Certified Master key terms

A formally approved document that lists record series and states how long each must be kept before disposition. It is the legal and operational basis for consistent, defensible destruction or transfer.

The minimum length of time a record series must be maintained to satisfy legal, regulatory, fiscal, or operational requirements. It is measured from a defined trigger event or from creation.

The event that starts the retention clock, such as case closure, contract expiration, fiscal year end, or employee separation. Choosing the correct trigger is critical to defensible retention calculations.

A retention approach where the clock starts at a specified event rather than at record creation. It requires systems or procedures that reliably capture the trigger date for each record.

A retention approach that measures the retention period from the record's creation or filing date. It is simpler to automate but can over-retain or under-retain records tied to later events.

The final action taken on records at the end of their retention period, typically destruction or transfer to an archive. It must be authorized, documented, and suspended when legal hold applies.

A directive that suspends routine disposition of records relevant to reasonably anticipated litigation, investigation, or audit. It overrides retention schedules until formally released.

The loss, alteration, or destruction of evidence that a party had a duty to preserve. It can lead to sanctions, adverse inference instructions, or other penalties against the organization.

The duty to keep potentially relevant evidence once litigation or an investigation is reasonably anticipated. It requires identifying custodians and data sources and halting routine deletion.

A person or system that has possession, control, or responsibility for records relevant to a matter. Custodians are typically interviewed or surveyed to locate and preserve evidence.

Documentation proving that records were destroyed at a specific time, by a specific method, under authorized procedures. It supports audit trails and defense against claims of improper destruction.

A group of records that are filed, used, and disposed of as a unit because they relate to the same activity or function. Retention schedules are organized by record series.

A high-level statement approved by senior leadership that establishes the organization's commitment, principles, and mandatory requirements for managing records. It authorizes the program and assigns accountability.

The coordinated set of policies, people, processes, and systems an organization uses to control records throughout their lifecycle. It typically covers creation, capture, classification, retention, and disposition.

An organization-wide framework for managing information as an asset, balancing value, risk, and compliance. Records management is a core discipline within it, alongside privacy, security, and data quality.

A cross-functional oversight body that sets priorities, resolves disputes, and approves policies and schedules for the records program. It typically includes legal, IT, compliance, and business representatives.

The professional responsible for designing, operating, and improving the records program, including schedules, training, audits, and disposition oversight. The role requires both compliance knowledge and change leadership skills.

A scheme that groups records by the business function and activity that produced them, rather than by organizational chart. It makes retention rules stable when departments reorganize.

A detailed structure describing how records are organized, named, indexed, and linked to retention rules within a repository. It translates the classification scheme into practical filing instructions.

A controlled vocabulary of terms arranged in a hierarchy or network, used to describe and categorize content. In records work it supports consistent classification, search, and retention assignment.

A systematic review that tests whether records practices conform to policy, schedule, and legal requirements. Findings drive corrective actions and provide evidence of program effectiveness to leadership and regulators.

Ongoing activities that track adherence to records obligations and detect gaps before they become violations. Methods include sampling, system reports, spot checks, and periodic program reviews.

Software that captures, classifies, stores, retrieves, and disposes of electronic records with audit trails and access controls. It enforces retention rules and can apply legal holds across repositories.

Structured data describing a record, such as creator, date, classification, retention code, and access rights. Reliable metadata makes records findable, trustworthy, and enforceable for retention and holds.

A tamper-evident log of actions taken on records and systems, including access, edits, and deletions. It supports accountability, investigations, and proof that disposition was properly authorized.

The rules, roles, and processes that determine how data is defined, owned, accessed, and used across the enterprise. It intersects with records management through ownership, quality, and lifecycle controls.

An inventory showing where information lives across systems, applications, and locations, including who owns it. It is essential for locating records for legal holds, privacy requests, and disposition.

A catalog of information collections, systems, and repositories with their owners, contents, and retention rules. It supports risk assessment, hold scoping, and storage cost management.

Data relating to an identified or identifiable individual, such as name, contact details, identifiers, or employment history. Its handling is governed by privacy laws and internal policy.

A structured review of a planned system or process that identifies privacy risks and mitigates them before launch. It documents necessity, proportionality, and safeguards for personal information.

An approach that builds privacy protections into systems and processes from the start rather than adding them later. It includes minimizing data collection, limiting access, and setting retention limits.

The property that information is not disclosed to unauthorized people, processes, or systems. It is protected through classification, access controls, encryption, and confidentiality agreements.

The mechanisms that decide who may view, change, or delete records, typically based on roles, attributes, or clearance. Effective access control enforces least privilege and supports segregation of duties.

A scheme that labels information by sensitivity, such as public, internal, confidential, or restricted. Labels drive handling rules for storage, transmission, sharing, and destruction.

A method of destroying records so that information cannot reasonably be reconstructed, such as cross-cut shredding, pulverizing, degaussing, or certified wiping. The method must match the medium and sensitivity.

The process of moving records from one storage medium or format to another to avoid obsolescence or degradation. It requires verification that content, metadata, and authenticity are preserved.

The condition in which a file format, application, or playback device is no longer supported, making records unreadable. It is managed through migration planning, format standards, and periodic testing.

Converting paper or other analog records into digital images or files, often with indexing and quality checks. The resulting images may serve as the official record only if legal and policy requirements are met.

A documented record of who handled, transferred, or stored evidence or records, and when. It demonstrates that materials were not altered or lost while under organizational control.

Records essential to continue operations, protect legal and financial rights, or reestablish the organization after a disruption. They receive special protection, backup, and recovery priority.

A documented strategy for maintaining or restoring critical operations during and after a disruption. It identifies vital records, alternate arrangements, and recovery time targets.

The maximum acceptable time to restore a process or system after a disruption. It drives backup design, staffing plans, and prioritization of vital records recovery.

The maximum acceptable amount of data loss measured in time, such as one hour or one day. It determines backup frequency and replication strategy for vital records.

The active, long-term management of digital records to keep them authentic and usable despite technology change. It includes format strategies, integrity checks, and persistent metadata.

The structured approach to helping people adopt new processes, systems, and behaviors. Records projects depend on it to shift habits toward consistent filing, retention, and disposition.

Identifying people and groups affected by a records initiative and involving them in decisions and communication. Strong engagement reduces resistance and surfaces operational constraints early.

A structured study of what records exist, where they are, how they are used, and how long they must be kept. It provides the evidence base for schedules and system requirements.

A document that authorizes a records project by defining its objectives, scope, sponsor, roles, and success measures. It aligns stakeholders and sets boundaries for change.