“It is inside, not on top!”

Adèle van der MerweCSIR Information Serviceavdmerwe@csir.co.ca

Understanding the terminology

• A record:– A record is anything providing permanent and final

evidence of, or information about, past events

• A document:– A physical or digital entity which records all or part

of a work or several works

• Electronic Document Management:– A system that allows an enterprise and its users to

create a document of capture a hard copy in electronic for, store, edit and otherwise electronically manage documents, irrelevant of its format”

XP Desktop with 600 Mb hard drive

Pentium 4 with 60 Gb hard drive

Inside – not on top!

Poor planning = garbage in, garbage out. Information first, technology second!

Roadmap

• Management and preservation• Experimental data/laboratory results• Actual value vs. perceived value• Policies and procedures• Quality control• Perfect incumbent• Technological developments• Organizational ogre

Management vs Preservation

“BARRY IS A FINE EXMAPLE OF THE SUCCESS OF OUR ELECTRONIC DOCUMENT MANAGEMENT SYSTEM”

Management: organisational process..strategies, objectives, resources…

Preservation: ensuring stabilisation, protection against deterioration, restoration of damaged documents.

Acts:

1. Promotion of Access to Information Act (#2 of 2000)

2. Electronic Communications and Transactions Act (#25 of 2000)

3. National Archives and Record Service of South Africa Act (#46 of 1996)

4. Etc…

• Access– Questions

• Who, what and how

– Management• Red-tape, confidentiality, control

• Preservation– Questions

• What, how and software

– Management• Backups, risk management, restoration

• Explicit knowledge vs tacit knowledge

Management vs Preservation

Experimental data & laboratory results

Experimental data & laboratory results

Experimental data & laboratory results

• Value– Objectivity, accuracy, logic, growth,

patents etc. • Managing

– Date and time stamp, completeness, non-repudiation, single access

• Challenges– Software, needs assessment

Actual vs perceived value

• Value of “explicit knowledge”– Difficult to calculate

• Value of “intellectual property”– Gadets/widget – easy to determine

• Guidelines for setting price– Handling fees: storage, maintaining etc.– Weight: contents, timeliness, non-repudiation, etc.– Market: willing to pay vs willing to accept

• Are red-tape and costs going to kill us?– Open access vs sales, confidentiality

Actual vs perceived value

Policies and procedures

• Whose responsibility is it?– Registry (active records)– Archive (“dead” records)– Library (Information)– EDMS (documents)

• What to avoid!– Tunnel vision, assumptions

• Who should test/evaluate it?– Current users, challenging clients,

Policies and procedures

Quality control

Quality control

• Real value vs perceived savings– Penny wise or pound foolish?

• Ad-hoc or continuous– What are you missing?– Long term benefits

Perfect incumbent• Mythical or real?

– Qualified, affordable, loyal

• Characteristics required• How do we keep “The

Perfect Incumbent”?– Environment,

reimbursement, recognition, challenges

Experienced records manager

Innovative &

IT background

Knowledge of the organization

Perfect incumbent is willing to adapt!

Technological Development

Technological Development

• Saviour or Nemesis?• Possibilities

– Open Source database• DSpace

– Document and Record Management software• Hummingbird

– Record Management software• TRIM Captura

– Information retrieval software• Collexis

The organization ogre

Heavy handed

approach!

The “Knight in shining armour”

Supportive, considerat

e and brave!

The magical kingdom “Success!”

Conclusion -

It is inside, not on top!• Contents first

– Decide on what should go in and how it will be used

• Technology second– Identify the best tool for the job

• Take responsibility and decide if you want to be:

Frustrated and angry?

Challenged and exhilarated?