An opportune time to prove RIM's value.

• Author: Wiler, Vicki
• Position: IN FOCUS: A Message from the Editor - Records and information management

While most of the world is preoccupied with faltering economies and big-time bailouts, records managers know that the need to properly manage and preserve records at this time in particular must remain--or become--a top priority. In these uncertain times, records and records programs serve as a vital insurance policy for all organizations, no matter their size or sector.

As just one example, there is a new trend among homeowners who have received foreclosure notices: They're refusing to leave their homes and demanding that their mortgage holders "produce the note," or show them the documents proving that the bank does, indeed, own the home. During the real-estate frenzy of the past decade, mortgages have been sold and resold at a head-spinning pace, and in many cases, the original records have been lost, destroyed, or stored in a far-off warehouse. So, in some cases, this tactic has delayed or even stopped foreclosure proceedings as judges have required mortgage companies to produce this information.

In this issue's feature article, "Facing the Economic Storm: How to Navigate RIM Programs Through Hard Times," Bruce W. Dearstyne, Ph.D., explains how records professionals can guide their program through today's challenges and toward an even more prominent standing within their organization. Dearstyne says records and information management (RIM) programs have some natural advantages during hard times. Shuttering corporate divisions calls for their records to be preserved and managed. Businesses may try to economize by looking at solutions that result in more electronic records that will need to be managed. Lastly, experts expect layoffs and closures to result in increased litigation and, thus, increased electronic discovery.

E-discovery in the post-bailout world--and how to limit its ever-increasing expense--is the focus of Hot Topic a special...