1. E MAIL The Husky Harness UW Email Best Practices Training

2. WHY SHOULD I CARE ABOUT MY EMAIL? It’s a record Emails may contain evidence of official University actions, decisions, approvals or transactions. It can be requested in Public Records Requests, Audit, and Litigation Each UW employee is individually responsible for handling and maintaining records (including University email and other electronic records) in accordance with University policy and requirements.

3. DOES THE “ E ” IN EMAIL STAND FOR …. ….Electronic?

4. N OPE. E = E VIDENCE ! Email is subject to Public Records Requests, Audit and Litigation. If its recorded,If its a record it’s a record.you are liable for it.

5. PENALTIES FOR NON-COMPLIANCE Public Records Requests $100.00 per day per item PAWS v. UW (expensive!) Litigation-Case Law A corporation is sued for fraud. It fails to preserve the appropriate records that will prove its case. Plaintiff awarded $1.6 billion. Coleman Holdings v. Morgan Stanley An employee sues a corporation. The defendant fails to preserve the appropriate records that will prove its case. Plaintiff wins $29.3 million. Zubulake v. USB Warburg Microsoft spends an average of $20 million per litigation

6. H OW LONG DO I HAVE TO KEEP MY EMAIL ? It depends on the type of information included within the email. Two types of email:  Transitory  Valued: Treasured! Esteemed! Precious!

7. TRANSITORY EMAILS Most of your emails. Retention is limited to office use. Emails that assist you in your job but have no “value” from an administrative, legal, or fiscal viewpoint The information is temporary or passing Can be deleted as soon as the reference purpose has been met.

8. EXAMPLES OF TRANSITORY EMAILS Preliminary drafts Example: Working Papers Routine requests and/or replies for information Example: Disposition Notification for box disposal received by your department. Reference or informational emails The announcement of the new email policy Meeting set-up/accept requests Announcements, reservations, confirmations, itineraries, form letter thank you notes Acknowledgements Duplicates Document Errors (superficial corrections)

9. TRANSITORY EMAILS If you are cc’ed on an email and do not need to take action DELETE If you are cc’ed on an email and need to take action DELETE after action taken Any emails that you receive as information or do not directly apply to you (including the whole string) DELETE

10. I S ALL MY EMAIL TRANSITORY ? No Most of it is Delete when no longer needed All other email must be retained for a designated amount of time Includes messages sent and received

11. T HE OTHER TYPE : E MAIL WITH VALUE Has Value Administrative Fiscal Legal Historical/Archival The value is based on the content not the format More permanent in nature Must be retained per a UW records retention schedule

12. W HAT NEEDS TO BE KEPT The content in the following categories must be maintained for specific retention periods: Policy Procedure Approvals

13. W HAT NEEDS TO BE KEPT (C ONTINUED ) Instruction regarding the implementation of substantive decisions regarding matters of University business. Legal or audit issues, Approvals for purchases or other actions to be taken, Final reports or recommendations, Documentation of departmental/office actions, decisions, operations and responsibilities, Confirmations of items ordered online with a Procard or CTA, Receipts for purchases made electronically.

14. W HERE D O I FIND THE RETENTION PERIOD ? For transitory email: As soon as its use has been fulfilled, delete. General Schedule, section 4 http://f2.washington.edu/fm/recmgt/retentionschedul es/gs/general/uwgs4 For email that has to be retained: It’s what’s inside not outside that counts. General Schedule http://f2.washington.edu/fm/recmgt/retentionschedul es/gs/general Departmental Schedule http://f2.washington.edu/fm/recmgt/retention/search

15. E XAMPLE : L OCATING AN ITEM ON THE GENERAL SCHEDULE ProCard approvals Section 7 of the General Schedule: Research and Grant/Contract Records Paper or Electronic, the retention is the same:

16. D O I HAVE TO PRINT MY EMAIL ? Transitory email? No, delete when reference purpose served Email of Value? Don’t print Don’t save to desktop Keep the email in electronic format If its just the attachment can save as a PDF to shared drive Not crazy about PST files Either choice results in the same outcome: Employees are responsible for making sure their email and paper records remain accessible and readable for the full retention period—along with the metadata of the email

17. A ACH ! I HAVE RECORDS EVERYWHERE ! H ELP !

18. H OW DO I MANAGE MY EMAIL ? The KISS method Keep It Simple, Sweetie

19. C HOOSE ONE, CHOOSE THEM ALL Actively Delete Manage by folders Search Sort Tag Touch it once But most of all: KEEP IT SIMPLE!

20. H OW DO I DELETE MY EMAIL ? Regardless of the email “client” you use, there are two steps to deletion Mark the email for deletion It is now gone from your folder; however, it is still in your deleted items. It is still auditable, and available for public record requests. Delete the email (second step is SO important) Once you have completed the second step, the email is gone. It cannot be retrieved. Similar to being physically shredded. Delete on a regular schedule End of week End of month

21. M ANAGE BY FOLDERS Create folders based on your needs Project Subject, Employee, Client Standing meeting Create subfolders for more detailed information Budget 01-4470 74-4470

22. FOLDER TITLES Clear, concise, and relate directly to the emails that will reside in the folder Many times, the title can be taken directly from the email subject line Note: One subject per email Once the project or function is completed, note the retention period in the folder title

23. S EARCH, S ORT AND T AG Locate and group specific messages that have characteristics in common.common. Same topictopic Same personperson Budget/transaction approvals Meeting minutes Use “Categorize” to Color Code emails Keep the whole “conversation” together Both sent and received are in the same location

24. W OW. W HERE D O I BEGIN ? Start today. Pick one topic, folder, or issue and begin the process. Use search function to group like items Start creating folders Start deleting Take these steps and you will begin building the habit of managing your email inbox.

25. H OW BIG IS YOUR INBOX ?

26. T HE FOUR D ’ S Delete it Information found elsewhere? Delete! Do it If it takes 2 minutes or less, then do it NOW! 30% of all email can be addressed in this manner. Delegate Identify the most appropriate person to respond to the email. Delegate and delete. Defer it If it will take longer than 2 minutes, flag or color code it for easy identification of pending issues. Place on your “to do” list by dragging over to your “tasks” list.

27. AND A ‘ F ’ FOR GOOD MEASURE File it Create folders that apply to the function of your office: Projects Transactions Standing meetings Budgets Employees Place all email requiring retention in the appropriate folder. When subject is closed, identify retention date on folder title.

28. E XAMPLE : F ILING E MAILS Emails documenting employee work problems Considered part of Grievance Files or Complaint Files Attorney-client privilege emails File with other emails based on subject, not confidentiality.

29. WHAT ELSE CAN I DO TO MANAGE MY EMAIL? Do you need it? Consider other modes of communication which might be more efficient or effective. Is it necessary to create and send "information only" emails? Is it necessary to distribute this information to all of the listed recipients? Limit your cc's to those people who need the information. Avoid replying to email messages you receive unless a reply is actually required. Be objective Subject to public information requests and may be accessed during litigation or audits. Create each email as if it were being published on the front page of the Seattle Times. One subject per message Limit the content in each email message to one subject. If there are several unrelated subjects to discuss, send individual emails for each subject. The messages will be easier to track, find, use, and eventually delete.

30. ANYTHING ELSE? YES! Subject line—use it to control the chaos! Use subjects lines that are clear, concise, and closely articulate the purpose or action requested in your email When replying to email, try to avoid including a long email “thread” in your response. Not all of it will have a retention period, forcing you to retain more data than necessary. Stick to the subject when forwarding Review the original subject headings and make sure it applies to the response that you are sending. Outlook can be set to not include the original message in your reply. At the top of your email inbox click Tools -> Options -> Email options. You can choose to change the automatic response to "Do not include original message" when reply or forwarding messages.

31. I’M A MANAGER, WHAT ELSE DO I NEED TO KNOW? Schedule a quarterly or yearly records cleanup time for your office. Include an item in your new employee checklist to orient them to records responsibilities. Establish an office procedure for setting up email accounts that allows access to email by others in the office in case of absence. Establish general email protocols which ensure everyone in the office is managing their email in the same way.

32. WHAT ABOUT FORMER EMPLOYEES? Supervisors or administrators are responsible for managing records associated with a separated employee in accordance with UW policies and procedures. Before the employee leaves, determine which emails should be retained and which should be deleted. Arrangements should be made to transfer the email that must be retained to another employee.

33. W HY SHOULD I CARE ? You’ve managed paper, and the same rules apply to email. Penalties from bad public record requests Audit problems Litigation Costs As an UW employee, you are required to maintain your records.

34. 1 GIG = 167 BOXES OF RECORDS 70 BOXES

35. P LUS 70 BOXES

36. N OW THAT IS ALL A LOT OF RECORDS ! PLUS 26 MORE BOXES = 167

37. Y OU CAN DO THIS 70 to 80 percent of your email is transitory. Delete it Create folders for the remaining 20 percent. Remember the Ds and 1 F Delete it Do it Delegate it Defer it File it But most of all, Keep It Simple Sweetie (KISS)!

38. QUESTIONS? Barbara Benson 543-7950 bbenson@uw.edu