Document register

A new policy file needs more than a filename. The Document Controller gives it a document number and name, selects the governing organization and category, and assigns an owner. The category can carry a policy reference and effective dates. The document record carries its classification, access policy, revision and retention date. Together these details give the team a place to decide which content is in force and who must answer questions about it.

Suppose a revised procedure arrives from a department. The controller first checks whether it belongs to an existing controlled document. If it does, the next source item belongs under that document as a version. Creating another parent record for the same procedure would split the review and retention story. If it is genuinely new, the controller registers it before requesting review.

• Identity. The number, name and organization distinguish the controlled record from similarly named files.
• Ownership. An owner is a person who can answer questions and coordinate a corrected revision.
• Control. Status, classification, access policy and retention date guide review and later use.

Agree how the organization assigns document numbers, which categories are active, and which person owns each category of work. Decide what classification and access policy text means to readers and reviewers. The document record stores those values; access enforcement must be configured against the agreed roles and tested before staff rely on it. Also agree who may move a draft into review and who decides publication.

Choose a representative policy document for the pilot. Register its organization and owner, attach a source-linked version and send the revision to independent review. Keep the version’s source reference recognizable so a reviewer can inspect the correct material. The overview page helps a controller watch the status distribution and unresolved actions across documents.

Take a draft procedure with a revised attachment. The Document Controller verifies its parent document and category, records the new version, and checks that the owner’s name is correct. The Document Reviewer then works from the selected revision rather than a separate copy of the file. If the reviewer returns it, the owner can see the reason and coordinate the next version. The published state should refer to an approved revision, while earlier version records remain available to authorized staff.

Before closing the case, inspect the document’s status history and retention date. A change in ownership should change future responsibility without erasing who acted on an earlier revision.

• Document register — Find a controlled document by number, owner and current state.
• Publication board — Check which documents are awaiting review or publication.
• Draft documents — Prepare newly registered content for its first review.

Follow the revision and review process and the publication process.