Establishing an RM programme

This article is from the August 2003 issue of Update.

Records management (RM) is a key function for any organisation. However, for an RM programme to succeed, it must be closely aligned to the needs of the organisation, and in particular to the organisation’s strategic and policy objectives. The international standard on RM (ISO 15489-1:2001)1 provides a practical design and implementation methodology which supports the introduction of sustainable RM systems to meet organisational requirements.

The methodology has eight components:

preliminary investigation;

analysis of business activity;

identification of requirements for records;

assessment of existing systems;

identification of strategies for satisfying records requirements;

design of a records system;

implementation of a records system;

post-implementation review.

The ISO standard emphasises that:

this methodology is valid both for the establishment of an RM programme as a whole, and for the development of particular systems within it;

the methodology need not be linear: the tasks can be undertaken iteratively or gradually.

The methodology has its origins in a workshop given by David Bearman at Monash University, Australia, in 1993. This workshop was influential in the development of Australian thinking on RM, and an extended version of the methodology appeared in the Australian RM standard AS 4390.3-19962 before its publication (in slightly revised form) in ISO 15489-1.

Detailed guidelines originally based on the AS 4390.3 version of the methodology were published in the exposure draft of the Designing and Implementing Recordkeeping Systems (Dirks) manual, issued jointly by the National Archives of Australia and the State Records Authority of New South Wales in 2000. Since then separate versions of Dirks have been developed by the two institutions. The National Archives version, Dirks: a strategic approach to managing business information,3 sets out a rigorous approach which demands substantial resources for full implementation; the State Records version4 is intended to be scalable and includes advice on the use of Dirks in specific processes such as software selection and introduction. These guidelines were designed primarily for Australian public sector organisations but offer useful advice applicable to all sectors. The British Standards Institution has also published guidelines based on the ISO methodology: PD 0025-2:2002, Effective Records Management: practical implementation of BS ISO 15489-1.5

These issues are important for records managers because different types of organisation require different approaches. Some of the information can be obtained from desk research, but this will need to be supplemented by contacting individuals or groups of stakeholders, and by personal observation.

Analysis of business activity
Building on the preliminary investigation, a more detailed analysis can be made of the organisation’s structures, functions, processes and activities. Systems analysis techniques can be used to gain an understanding of the functions and processes which the organisation undertakes, and to show the relationships between records and the organisational systems which create and use them. This helps to ensure that RM systems are designed to support the functions and activities, and thus ultimately the objectives, of the organisation.

Typically, the information is gathered through a combination of desk research, interviews and observation. It is then analysed and interpreted to create a logical model of the organisational systems and subsystems where records are created and employed.

Identification of requirements for records
The preliminary investigation and the analysis of functions and processes provide essential background information about factors which influence or determine requirements for the creation and maintenance of records. Such requirements will vary from one function or process to another. Some will be explicitly stated in legislation or regulations but others are likely to be implicit in the business, accountability or cultural needs of the organisation or the wider community. If the organisation has a formal compliance programme, measures may already be in place to ensure that relevant laws, regulations and standards are observed; but account must also be taken of the other needs of internal and external stakeholders, including the organisation’s staff and customers.

As the RM programme develops, judgments must also be made on the extent to which the organisation will seek to meet each particular requirement. As well as identifying stakeholders’ needs for records of particular processes, it is necessary to assess the costs which the organisation will incur in meeting those needs and the possible consequences if the needs are not met. Sometimes it may be decided that the cost of creating or capturing records of a process cannot be justified, since the risk attaching to their absence is low; or that records of a process will be captured but the costs of long-term retention or maximum security provision are unwarranted. In other cases the need for records may be judged to be critical: if the risk attaching to their absence or defectiveness is high, requirements for records will be met in full.

Assessment of existing systems
Records managers rarely work in virgin territory. Occasionally they may have the opportunity to design systems for newly established functional areas, or even for a new organisation, but more often their work is concerned with the records of functions and processes which have been in operation for some time. In this situation they must take account of the existing records as well as plan for the management of those created in the future.

The key tool for gaining control of these legacy records is the records survey. A survey seeks to assess both the records themselves and the systems used to manage them in the past. Observation and measuring are the primary methods employed, but managers and key staff members should be interviewed before records are inspected, to determine the nature of their work and the types of records they create or use. A survey provides the opportunity to learn how the organisation’s functions, structures and environment have affected the creation and maintenance of its existing records. It also provides the opportunity to discover how far the existing systems match up to the requirements that have been identified.

Strategies for satisfying records requirements
Strategies to satisfy the requirements that have been identified may include adopting policies, standards, guidelines, procedures and practices; such strategies can be applied separately or in combination (ISO 15489-1:2001, clause 8.4). The strategies chosen must suit the environment, culture and technical capabilities of the organisation, and will guide the design and implementation of the programme.

Organisational culture is an important factor in selecting appropriate strategies. For example, in recent years most organisations have encouraged employees to focus on outcomes and productivity. This has sometimes created a culture where capture and maintenance of records is perceived as unimportant. If operational staff appear to lack motivation to capture or maintain records systematically, policies and guidelines must be supplemented by other strategies. Promotional or training strategies are likely to have a major role.

Strategies in a paper environment will include the use of agreed procedures (such as procedures for capturing and classifying records and for transferring them to alternative storage). Additional strategies must then be selected to ensure that the procedures are followed. In some organisations, it may be appropriate to rely on assigning responsibility for these tasks to RM staff or other designated postholders. Where day-to-day responsibility is to rest with operational staff, supervisory checks or regular monitoring may be needed to enforce compliance. In electronic environments similar choices must be made, but there is an additional option of using system functionality to ensure that RM requirements are met.

As decisions are made on records requirements and strategies, an RM policy should be developed, setting out the aim, scope and objectives of the RM programme. The goal of the policy ‘should be the creation and management of authentic, reliable and useable records, capable of supporting business functions and activities for as long as they are required... The policy should be adopted and endorsed at the highest decision-making level and promulgated throughout the organisation’ (ISO 15489-1:2001, clause 6.2).

Senior management support is vital. It is essential to involve the chief executive or management board from the start, so that they support the programme, endorse the policy and provide resources.

Responsibilities for RM must also be defined at this stage. Primary responsibility should be assigned to a records manager, who may be supported by other staff. Consideration must be given to the location of the RM service within the organisational structure. It may be an independent unit or a part of a larger department such as information services, facilities management, legal services or central administration. Decisions on these matters should be incorporated into the policy document, together with statements on the RM responsibilities of operational staff and IT specialists.

Since RM must be adopted across functional and departmental boundaries, and needs formal links with other business functions such as IT and compliance management, a policy group can be established to contribute to the further development of the RM policy and act as a forum for communication between records experts and operational managers. Members of the group are likely to include business unit managers and senior computing, information management, financial, legal and corporate governance specialists.

Designing systems
When appropriate strategies have been agreed, RM systems can be designed in detail. Designs should be based on the requirements and strategies that have been identified and must take account of the size and resources of the organisation, and the extent to which its operations are concentrated on one site or geographically dispersed. At an operational level, systems must be designed so that they comply with regulatory or best practice requirements for health and safety in the workplace.

A single, organisation-wide RM system may be feasible in a small organisation, but in larger organisations separate systems will probably be needed in different functional areas. While common models should be used where appropriate, it is also important that each system is designed to match the needs of the relevant business processes and activities. When technological solutions are to be employed for records capture, relevant functionality should be built into operational systems as far as possible. If operational staff are to be asked to follow specific procedures, instructions can be incorporated into guidelines which have wider scope: for example, RM rules about the capture of email messages can be included in corporate guidelines on email use, or instructions for managing records of a particular business process included in procedural manuals relating to the process concerned.

Retrieval mechanisms for records may be designed to stand alone or may be integrated with business process tools or corporate information systems. While their evidential qualities differentiate records from other information sources, many users want to use records simply to gain access to their information content. If structured information from records is used beyond the process where the records are created, it may be appropriate to design RM systems so that they can support the copying of the relevant data to a dedicated information environment such as a statistical or decision-support application. Alternatively, if wide-ranging use is made of information obtained by direct consultation of the records themselves, records systems may be designed to share an interface with library systems, corporate databases or information products published on an intranet. Particularly in larger organisations, records or metadata maintained electronically may be accessed through a corporate information portal. However, the advantages of shared access to information must be balanced against the need to design systems which protect the evidential value of records by preserving their functional context and integrity.

Planning and managing implementation
When the prerequisites are in place, decisions must be made about priorities for implementation. New systems may have to be introduced in stages, allowing time for piloting and testing each component before full implementation. Existing systems may have to be partly or wholly restructured: while it is sometimes possible to implement a new system independently of any need to resolve problems inherited from past practice, more usually existing arrangements must be integrated into the new design.

Priorities will vary according to local circumstances, but in general it is unwise to attempt the implementation of new systems for electronic records until paper systems are in good order. Business managers sometimes assume that the introduction of IT is all that is needed to solve problems of managing paper records, but if the paper records are in disarray automation may simply transfer the problem to a different medium.

The introduction of new systems for managing records will have an impact on all members of staff who create or use them. Training staff in the new systems is essential, but the issue extends beyond training into wider areas of change management. Records managers have a delicate task to perform in working with staff who are often very possessive about ‘their’ records and may be apprehensive or unsympathetic when RM systems are devised and standards imposed.

While the introduction of any corporate system of RM brings a loss of personal control over records, additional culture change issues often arise with electronic RM:

some individuals may only feel comfortable with keeping records on paper, because of its obvious visibility and its independence from computer technology;

some may accept the introduction of corporate systems for paper records, but resist it where electronic records are concerned because of an assumption that computer storage is essentially personal;

many people find that an electronic records management system imposes more discipline than the paper systems they were used to, particularly if it changes the way that they use standard office software;

others become so committed to using electronic systems that they forget paper resources altogether.

The starting point is usually promoting an awareness of records as a corporate resource and an understanding that, whether on paper or in electronic form, they are not merely for personal use. Culture change often includes motivating staff to recognise the importance of good RM, as well as building confidence in the new systems. The organisation’s RM policy should be notified to all staff, together with a directive for its implementation. By itself, however, this will not be sufficient. Records managers have to develop ‘a corporate culture in which employees take the documentation of their activities seriously’.6 Staff must feel ownership of the new systems and it is essential that they participate as fully as possible in the change process. A communications strategy should be adopted, with workshops, demonstrations, meetings and interviews held as necessary.

Post-implementation review
After implementation, the programme and each of its components must be reviewed and evaluated. The purpose of such reviews is to monitor progress and measure success, so that senior management can be informed of results, and revisions to the programme can be made as necessary. Review and evaluation will also be ongoing processes. Policies and procedures should be examined regularly to ensure that they still meet the organisation’s requirements. Targets may be set and performance measured against them.

Monitoring developments and responding to change are part of the management of an effective programme. Records managers must be ready to react to changes to the functions and activities which the organisation performs. They may need to introduce systems when new functions are established or modify existing systems in response to changes in the way that functions are carried out. Existing systems may also need revision to meet other changes in requirements for records. These may be triggered by new internal control measures, changes in organisational culture or evolving business needs. In the wider environment, legal or regulatory changes may require the creation of new types of record or the alteration of existing retention periods or access rights. Whenever there is a need for significant modification of the programme components, some or all of the design and implementation methodology recommended in ISO 15489-1:2001 may be applied. Appropriate elements from the methodology should be selected to ensure that the changes are managed systematically.

References
1 ISO 15489-1 :2001 Information and Documentation — Records Management. Part 1. General. International Standards Organisation.
2 AS 4390-1996 Records Management. Standards Australia.
3 National Archives of Australia (2001) Dirks: a strategic approach to managing business information. Available at www.naa.gov.au/recordkeeping/dirks/dirksman/dirks.html
4 State Records Authority of New South Wales (2003) Dirks Manual. Consultation draft available at www.records.nsw.gov.au/publicsector/Dirks/final/toc.html
5 PD 0025-2:2002 Effective Records Management: practical implementation of BS ISO 15489-1. British Standards Institution.
6 D. Bearman. ‘Archival strategies.’ American Archivist, 58 (4), 1995, pp. 380-413. Also available at www.archimuse.com/publishing/archival_strategies/ [broken link removed on 14 April 2005].

Geoffrey Yeo (g.yeo@ucl.ac.uk) is a Lecturer in Archives and Records Management and Programme Director for the Certificate/Diploma/MA in Archives and Records Management and in Records and Archive Administration (International) at UCL.

This article is largely derived from Chapter 8 of Managing Records by Elizabeth Shepherd and Geoffrey Yeo, newly published by Facet Publishing (2003). Other chapters give detailed advice on establishing and running a programme for the management of paper and electronic records in a contemporary organisation.