Sample Records Inventory Worksheet

This Records Inventory Worksheet documents the Finance department's record series across accounts receivable, expenditure records, general ledgers, journals, revenue, and stores/services. Each entry captures important inventory elements: series title and series description (for example, customer invoices, RMA requests, cash books, general ledgers, cash register audit rolls), media type (paper records and electronic records), file location and series location (Server A, Server B, file rooms such as 6A/6H, and offsite storage), reference status (daily, monthly, rarely), and volume measurement (document counts, linear feet, and storage in GB). These data field definitions support a records management program by establishing ownership of a record within the custodial office, clarifying records security policies, and highlighting vital records and duplicate records that may be redundant, obsolete, or trivial.

This worksheet is a practical records inventory workbook and a simple template suitable for an Excel workbook. It provides the foundation for a records schedule and records retention schedule, including retention requirements and retention duration based on legal, fiscal, administrative, and historical needs. With clear reference activity and series location mapping, organizations can set cutoff instructions, define retention period and retention eligibility, and plan records disposition.

The inventory also enables records appraisal, identification of inactive records for transfer to a records center or state archives, and preparation of disposition documentation, such as a request to dispose of records, records destruction authorization, records legally destroyed, and the date of disposal. It can support archival transfer via a memorandum of transfer, records center transfer list, container list template, box label standards, and a table of cubic foot equivalents or conversion table when converting linear feet to cubic feet.

Examples from this worksheet include daily-use general ledgers, petty cash receipts stored in room H6 and a storage unit, and cash register summaries on Server B with offsite storage, all of which benefit from a file plan to address poor filing systems and strengthen records governance. Privacy restrictions and information security classification can be noted for sensitive financial case files, while electronic storage locations on shared drives and electronic media carriers can be indexed in a records indexing database. The same inventory supports information system inventory, imaging information from planning, and electronic records storage method decisions for recordkeeping technologies.

Use cases include a state agency aligning with a records management policy and records governance laws, a company preparing an audit or records audit, or a program staff team organizing archival records and temporary records before a transfer to a state records center (SRC) or, if applicable, a national archives. Organizations can also map inventory steps, create an inventory plan and timetable, and maintain an inventory master document. If a jurisdiction requires a records retention schedule UTRRS or LGS-1 references, the inventory can map schedule item number, years covered, inclusive dates, and remarks section to guide records indexing instructions and reference codes (current, semicurrent, noncurrent).

Proposal Kit can streamline this effort with document assembly for a records management plan and related forms, automated line-item quoting for services like offsite storage or imaging, an AI Writer to build supporting documents, and an extensive template library for records management forms and tools. Its ease of use helps teams move from inventory to policy, schedule, and transfer documentation efficiently.

Beyond listing titles, locations, and volumes, a robust inventory effort benefits from a deliberate planning phase and defined records inventory steps. Teams set the inventory scope, appoint an inventory owner, and clarify record owners and accountability, including the custodian of record, records management coordinator, and records management assistant coordinator. Using a records inventory simple template with clear inventory worksheet columns and inventory columns, staff capture the records series title, records description, arrangement, media formats, annual accumulation, records volume on hand, and records volume bytes for an inventory of digital records.

They also note duplication, redundant, obsolete, and trivial items, record copy versus access copies, and vital records status. Finding aids and finding aids indexes tie to inventory maps, a map of the office, and an office floor plan, helping locate audiovisual records, microform, cartographic records, and bytes stored on shared drives.

Retention strategy follows a general retention and disposition schedule with retention requirements, legal, fiscal, administrative, and historical. Organizations document retention justification, records turnover cutoff, permanent retention, and archival retention when appropriate, and recognize that records retention schedules expire. References such as a state administrative manual, CALRIM, an LGS-1 retention schedule, and the records management act compliance framework may apply, as do Privacy Act, national security classification, and records access restrictions.

Agencies can align series inventory topics with a series inventory form, a records inventory data worksheet, and a records inventory worksheet STD. 70, supported by a records management handbook, model electronic records resolution, and model resolution LGS-1; at the federal level, coordination with the National Archives and Records Administration may be needed.

When shifting inactive government records to storage, staff may use records labeling, a records carton label, palletizing instructions, third-party storage procedures, and an inactive records database. Transfers and services can draw on records transfer REC-1, records reference REC-2, records withdrawal REC-10, records withdrawal authorization, records center reference request, and records transfer to archives, supported by a records plan, catalog of record systems, master catalog of record systems, records map, and a sample storage fee invoice.

Proposal Kit helps produce the inventory forms, records inventory template, series inventory form, records plan, sample inventories, series title examples, records indexing minutes, records indexing minutes database pages, an inventory timetable, and a records reference survey through document assembly. Its automated line-item quoting can model storage or imaging costs, and the AI Writer can write supporting summaries for record systems vendors, software evaluations, and agency records projects. This accelerates Records Inventory 101 tasks and keeps legal, fiscal, administrative, and historical requirements on track for business stakeholders.

For state agencies, records inventory steps should align with legal requirements and records maintenance standards, and start with a short orientation or training course, RMA 103, to establish common methods. Each division designates a records owner accountable for completeness and accuracy, then populates standardized records inventory columns and inventory worksheet columns to capture series title, years covered, media, inclusive dates, volume, and series location. Teams add targeted records, remarks for exceptions, privacy or security flags, and retention nuances. Using clear records series examples drawn from finance operations, such as accounts receivable invoices, salary records, general ledgers, and cash register audit rolls, helps staff apply consistent series inventory practices.

Quality controls make a records inventory important: spot checks, supervisor sign-offs, and periodic refresh cycles to reflect organizational change. A lightweight governance cadence reviews inventory data against the records retention schedule and updates procedures when regulations shift. This approach supports audits, disaster recovery planning, and staff turnover by ensuring anyone can find authoritative records quickly.

Proposal Kit can assist by assembling repeatable checklists, training agendas, and data-capture forms that mirror your records inventory columns and records remarks fields. Its AI Writer can generate role-specific instructions for the records owner and unit leads, while the template library offers adaptable examples to standardize how records series examples are documented and rolled out across departments.

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