An electronic document and records management system, usually abbreviated EDRMS, is a document management system with records management added on top. The distinction sits entirely in that extra R, and it is worth understanding because it is the difference between a product a small practice can adopt in an afternoon and one that is implemented over months. Document management is about finding and trusting documents: metadata, versions, an audit trail. Records management is about controlling their whole life: how long each class of record is kept, what triggers the clock, what happens at the end, and being able to prove all of it to somebody who is inspecting you. This guide sets out what records management genuinely adds, where the requirement usually comes from, and how a small accounting practice should think about whether it applies.
What records management adds
Retention schedules that classify records and set how long each class is kept, disposal processes that are logged rather than ad hoc, and controls that prevent a record being altered or deleted outside that process. The National Archives publishes the discipline in its general form. The purpose is provability: not just that you kept things properly, but that you can demonstrate it.
Where the requirement usually comes from
Almost always from outside: a statutory regime, a regulator, a public-sector procurement requirement, or a large client's contract. It is rarely a conclusion a small business reaches on its own, and that is a useful test. If nobody has told you in writing that you need records management, you are probably looking at document management with a heavier label on it.
What it costs, beyond the licence
The classification scheme is the real cost. Somebody has to decide what classes of record the practice holds and what the retention period is for each, and that decision needs professional input and periodic review. A system with a retention engine and no maintained schedule behind it is worse than no system, because it automates disposal decisions nobody has checked.
Questions people ask about electronic document and records management system
Does an accounting practice need an EDRMS?
Most small practices do not. They need documents they can find and trust, and a written retention policy they apply themselves. If a regulator or a major client has specified records management in writing, that changes the answer, and the specification should drive the purchase rather than the other way round.
Can we get retention right without an EDRMS?
Yes. Write down what you hold, decide how long each type is kept, apply it on a schedule and record that you did. The IRS publishes guidance on record retention periods as one input. The discipline is what matters; the automation is a convenience that becomes a liability if the policy behind it is stale.
Is Tickmarko an EDRMS?
No, and it does not claim to be. It keeps documents as records with dates, versions and an export, and it deliberately does not impose a retention schedule or automate disposal, because the right schedule depends on your jurisdiction and professional body rather than on us.