Managing government records is a complicated task. Records managers at governmental agencies must design and execute a complicated array of processes to ensure creation, use, storage, and disposition of records follow all applicable laws and regulations. Now, agencies must also shift into electronic records management for virtually all permanent and temporary records, forcing agencies to update and, in some cases, completely revise their records management rules and protocols.
Complicating matters, it can sometimes be difficult to tell how well these new records management processes are working. To help, here are four hallmarks of effective electronic records management programs, based on guidance published by the U.S. National Archives and Records Administration.
1: Policies
All federal agencies must develop policies that inform employees about their responsibilities when it comes to the management of records. Policies need to address a wide variety of topics, starting with record creation and continuing through the scheduling, management, and final disposition of those records.
Policies are the connective tissue between the rules, protocols, and processes that govern records management in the federal government and the federal employees who must implement those processes on a daily basis. Policies serve as educators, guides, and guardrails as records management processes are implemented and executed in the wild. A good set of policies will make sure everyone is operating on the same page and knows what to do and when to do it with respect to the records they create and use in the execution of their duties.
2: Systems
One of the most important steps that federal agencies should take to effectively manage their electronic records is integrating them into their IT systems. To that end, during the selection, development, and implementation phase of Electronic Records Management (ERM) systems, make sure the ERM offers all the capabilities you need to meet your obligations and objectives. For more information, read our article, “How to Evaluate Electronic Records Management Systems.”
Ultimately, solid coordination between records management processes and technology systems is what enables agencies to take maximum advantage of the electronic format, e.g., creating the opportunity to automate otherwise laborious manual effort.
3: Access
Transitioning to electronic records management should yield a net benefit in records accessibility. Having the ability to permanently store and retrieve records from anywhere at any time with ease helps organizations extract more value from the records they generate and use.
However, agencies need to enforce strict controls to prevent unauthorized access and use of these records. That requires both policies and systems that define who can access what records when and under what circumstances. They also need to be able to proactively protect against intrusion into the system that stores or manages the records and against unauthorized alteration, or destruction, of records contained within. This can be very challenging to enforce but is critical to success.
4: Disposition
All federal agencies must be able to follow the instructions in their respective records schedules when it comes to transferring their electronic records to the custody of the NARA. In other words, agencies must be able to operate with NARA-approved records schedule and, when appropriate, successfully transfer or accession permanent electronic records to NARA in acceptable formats with required metadata.
For more information on how to understand and measure success in electronic records management, read NARA’s paper “Criteria for Successfully Managing Permanent Electronic Records.”
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