Managing Government Records

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"Transitioning from paper-based records management to electronic records management where feasible" (Presidential Memorandum - Managing Government Records Sec. 3 (vi).)

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  Mandate Chief Records Officer for each agency

  Like what was done for FOIA, issue a directive for each agency requiring them to appoint a Chief Records Officer who is a peer of the CIO. This must be a full time position. This will help significantly to ensure that records management issues are considered when deploying new electronic systems. This position should require an individual who has the following skills: Records Management Information Technology Legal ...more »

  Like what was done for FOIA, issue a directive for each agency requiring them to appoint a Chief Records Officer who is a peer of the CIO. This must be a full time position. This will help significantly to ensure that records management issues are considered when deploying new electronic systems.

  This position should require an individual who has the following skills:

  Records Management

  Information Technology

  Legal (E-Discovery)

  Financial (Budgeting and Funding)

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  13 comments for Idea: Mandate Chief Records Officer for each agency

  Submitted by mmandel 1 year ago

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  Electronic Federal Record Center Equivalent

  President Obama stated, “The current federal records management system is based on an outdated approach involving paper and filing cabinets.” NARA suggested ideas about reducing unnecessary costs and burdens. Instead of each Agency spending staff resources and funds to develop and implement its own federally compliant electronic recordkeeping system, NARA should offer this as a service, like they do for our paper records ...more »

  President Obama stated, “The current federal records management system is based on an outdated approach involving paper and filing cabinets.” NARA suggested ideas about reducing unnecessary costs and burdens. Instead of each Agency spending staff resources and funds to develop and implement its own federally compliant electronic recordkeeping system, NARA should offer this as a service, like they do for our paper records via the Federal Records Center program. With today’s technologies and cloud storage capabilities, it makes economical and logical sense for NARA to provide a similar capability and service for our electronic records too.

  This Federal repository would enable Agencies to transfer inactive records to a compliant recordkeeping system where they can be professionally managed by NARA in accordance with federal rules. Agencies would have direct on-line access to their business records in the FRC repository and be able to search and retrieve them when they need them.

  The FRC repository could become an extension of the Agencies own business systems, i.e., their “archive” for less active business records. Using one of the many commercially available certified records management applications, NARA would be able to apply retention, perform disposition, manage litigation holds, and even provide automated tools or capabilities to support our eDiscovery needs.

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  5 comments for Idea: Electronic Federal Record Center Equivalent

  Submitted by lifecycle 1 year ago

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  Stand Up and Act RIM Professionals!

  If we, who identify as records and informant professionals, are given a chance, we will add greatly to the president’s reformation initiative. We must seize the day and be accountable partners in this great enterprise with President Obama. We must insist that our organizations take a leadership role in the presidential initiative. ARMA, NARA, and AIMM must all be responsible advocates for our profession. I am ...more »

  If we, who identify as records and informant professionals, are given a chance, we will add greatly to the president’s reformation initiative. We must seize the day and be accountable partners in this great enterprise with President Obama. We must insist that our organizations take a leadership role in the presidential initiative. ARMA, NARA, and AIMM must all be responsible advocates for our profession.

  I am an information governance professional, by way of compliance officer, by way of records manager. In this new age of electronic records reformation in the federal government, I should be a key player. So should everyone who is reading this blog.

  We as records and information professionals must stand up and act. The key should be to use our core tools. We have always used the records inventory (What is it?), the retention schedule (How should we manage it), and the file plan (Who is involved and Where is it?) to bring our masters information into compliance with whatever law or regulation was thrown at us. Electronic information and clouds and mobile devices are no different. We have to stop overanalyzing and go back to our core principles.

  A record is a record and a tool is a tool. We manage records (from the first identifiable bit if electronic information created in the course of business to a final formally dedicated record) regardless of the tool (clay tablet, paper, email, PDF, Word.doc, or big data in a cloud). The president’s memorandum and the reformation of federal records management will be a great success if we are allowed to use our tools as a part of the evolving policies and processes.

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  1 comment for Idea: Stand Up and Act RIM Professionals!

  Submitted by Community Member 1 year ago

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  Keep it seriously simple

  Keep it seriously simple: What is the least amount of records management support one may expect (ask, require or mandate) from electronic records creators? Perhaps that they fill out a very simple xml-based web form any time they create a record. I know what you're thinking: Another form, really? But consider this… Most of the fields in a "Lifecycle Tracking Form" may be filled out automatically based on a user's e-profile ...more »

  Keep it seriously simple:

  What is the least amount of records management support one may expect (ask, require or mandate) from electronic records creators? Perhaps that they fill out a very simple xml-based web form any time they create a record. I know what you're thinking: Another form, really? But consider this…

  Most of the fields in a "Lifecycle Tracking Form" may be filled out automatically based on a user's e-profile –name, title, agency/department, date. Others fields, such as classification level and –with a whole lot of research, writing, and backend programming by NARA and its clients- RM schedule/legal requirement can also be semi-automated in the form of drop-down menus targeted to records creators bearing particular agency profiles as noted above. As to keywords or subjects, I have absolutely no idea how to automate this, but I bet a smartypants programmer in this agency might.

  Clearly adding another form for government employees to fill out in the process of filling out a form is a tough sell. I try to imagine doing it myself and I wince! But now try to visualize being a records processor working the early to mid-range of the record lifecycle in which your primary responsibility is to sift through petabytes (exa, zetta…) of data to locate related documents without the aid of a standardized metatdata record? I'd be willing to bet that archivists within our PRA libraries will tell you it's a grind.

  So, let's be honest with ourselves and our clients. We all need to become records managers and we must be willing to work together (that is, speak the same metadata language). NARA can build seriously simple tools and staff agencies to help smooth the transition to a predominantly electronic records universe.

  Let's be leaders!

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  2 comments for Idea: Keep it seriously simple

  Submitted by Community Member 1 year ago

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  In the Cloud, Stupid

  Need I say more? Unfortunately, the answer in Government is probably yes. The whole idea of archiving in the days of inexpensive data storage and bandwith borders on the ridiculous.The fact that the number one idea on this site is appointing another human to head up another program at each agency simply highlights failed Government management techniques and outdated paradigms. There are MANY commercial, off the shelf ...more »

  Need I say more?

  Unfortunately, the answer in Government is probably yes. The whole idea of archiving in the days of inexpensive data storage and bandwith borders on the ridiculous.The fact that the number one idea on this site is appointing another human to head up another program at each agency simply highlights failed Government management techniques and outdated paradigms. There are MANY commercial, off the shelf solutions available to solve the this problem (EDM, BPM, etc). Google it. I hate to say it, but I think the recession, and resulting delay in boomer retirement are key factors preventing new ideas in Government as well as implementation of existing techolgies that will eventually power massive productivity gains.

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  8 comments for Idea: In the Cloud, Stupid

  Submitted by Community Member 1 year ago

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  Archiving and Migration solution

  Dear Sirs, My name is Max Inui at JVC Advanced Media. We have just launched a new Archiving and Migration solution on optical discs, DVD-R. DVDR technology is not a new technology but what we have launched has a completely new approach and the new concept. I appreciate if you could study the below. I am sure that the most of the preservation is done on the cloud but optical discs are suitable as off-line archiving for ...more »

  Dear Sirs,

  My name is Max Inui at JVC Advanced Media.

  We have just launched a new Archiving and Migration solution on optical discs, DVD-R. DVDR technology is not a new technology but what we have launched has a completely new approach and the new concept. I appreciate if you could study the below. I am sure that the most of the preservation is done on the cloud but optical discs are suitable as off-line archiving for a long time.

  1) Long term archiving on DVD-R

  Up to now, since there are no world wide standard, each manufactures have claimed their products’ longetivity without showing clear details of the test. As a result, there are many wrong understanding flooding in this market. The most important issue for optical archiving is initial occurrence of error rate. This is determined by quality of media and drive, not only media.

  2) ISO/IEC10995 DVD-R

  This ISO standard is the only one standard in the world defining the test method to estimate longetivity of DVDRs. Our product is tested by independent lab and certified. Each elements of the discs are tuned up for long term archiving capability. Our product is the only one that has been certified and complied to this standard.

  3) Archival Grade Drives

  As said, initial occurrence of error rate is extremely important for long term archiving and decided by media quality and drive quality. Up to now, none of optical disc manufacturers have talked about this but about only the quality of their discs. However, due to the importance of this issue, we have developed the drives specially tuned to secure the lowest error rate possible.

  In combination use of ISO DVD and the drive, the operation can fully meet ISO/IEC29121, which is an operation standard for ISO for long term archiving. This is really a key to retain important data for a long time safely.

  4) Error Checker

  The unit to check the error rate is developed as well. Because analyzing the error rate is the only way to understand the media condition = migration timing, which is invisible to users up to now. The unit can be used for initial error rate check shortly after writing process or periodical test for the discs already under storage.

  I believe that the solution will help your preservation project or even at your outsourcing partner/vendors.

  Best regards,

  Max Inui

  JVC Advanced Media USA

  630-237-2413

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  3 comments for Idea: Archiving and Migration solution

  Submitted by Max Inui 1 year ago

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