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Last updated: : 31 August 2007
Note for file: A report on recordkeeping in the Australian Public Service
Case studies
‘Keeping our corporate memory’—National Archives of Australia
Key points
- Aims to achieve an entirely electronic environment
- Uses work process analysis for high-risk business activities to identify and manage records
- Focuses on managing both structured and unstructured records
- Emphasises recordkeeping training.
Agency profile
The National Archives of Australia was established under the Archives Act 1983. It is a budget funded executive agency within the Communications, Information Technology and the Arts portfolio. The Archives maintains records created by Australian Government agencies, which form the archival resources of the nation. The Archives responsibilities are to:
- play the leading role in the management of Commonwealth records
- make available to the public Commonwealth records more than 30 years old, with certain exemptions
- encourage and facilitate the use of the archival resources of the Australian Government
- provide leadership in developing and coordinating the preservation and use of the archival resources of Australia.
Keeping our corporate memory
The Archives needs to create records if it is to fulfil its role as manager of archives from Australian Government agencies. This case study focuses specifically on the administrative and business records that the Archives creates as part of its legislative requirements.
Information Management Framework
The Archives uses an Information Management Strategic Framework that recognises the nature of information as a key corporate asset. This framework contains a set of principles and broad strategies to guide and inform information management activities, the aim being to:
- improve the Archives’ collection, use and management of information to support the quality services it provides its key audiences
- improve efficiency and productivity
- reduce risks associated with poor delivery of information and ensure compliance with statutory requirements.
Internal records management environment
Decentralised records management system responsibilities
The Archives implemented a decentralised information and records management model in February 2007, coordinated by an Information Management Policy Committee. The Committee, with senior representatives from each branch, aims to:
- ensure that the Archives pursues an agency-wide integrated, coherent and cost-effective strategic approach to information management
- coordinate and oversee the development of suitable policies relating to information management in the NAA
- advise relevant directors on strategies and tactics to facilitate the better management of information within the Archives
- promote internally the value of well managed information to National Archives staff.
Staff from the Archives’ Government Information Management Branch support the committee. Responsibilities for different elements of records management within the Archives are:
- Government Information Management: EDRMS system ownership, policy direction and recordkeeping advice and procedural development
- Communications and Technology: EDRMS administration
- People and Corporate Support: paper files and mail services and the National Archives’ library
- Communications and Marketing: the National Archives’ intranet.
Recordkeeping Policy
The Archives’ Recordkeeping Policy supports the Information Management Strategic Framework by establishing an organisational position on the creation and management of records to support its business functions. The policy applies to all Archives’ staff, its operations, all records that support business activities and business applications used to create and maintain records. The policy:
- identifies legislation and standards the Archives is committed to following
- defines which systems should be used to save records, and where they should not be saved
- lists processes that the Archives’ recordkeeping systems are expected to perform
- identifies the requisite characteristics in designing recordkeeping systems
- sets out responsibilities for all staff in key positions, and areas responsible for records management
- details broad directions for all staff in creating a record and including it in an approved recordkeeping system
Every new staff member receives a copy of the policy document which is also available on the intranet and the public website. It is promoted in induction sessions with its key messages incorporated into EDRMS training sessions and documentation. Recordkeeping and records management responsibilities have been included in individual performance agreements.
Recordkeeping procedures
The Archives regards email as a high-risk area of recordkeeping and has developed a guide to the identification of emails that should be saved into the EDRMS, when to save them, responsibilities for saving email thread discussions, naming guidance and disposal advice.
There are also procedural documents that cover the creation and management of records relating to:
- contract, project and risk management
- web development activities and
- in-confidence records
The policy addresses file and document nomenclature. There are also procedures for the high-risk core function of disposal authorisation, with instructions on records creation and management.
Record formats created by the Archives
Operating in an electronic records environment
The Archives aims to maintain born digital records within an electronic environment. Currently, the practice of printing a record and placing it on a paper file is used only for a limited category of records e.g. national security classified records and reference cases. The creation of records in paper format requires authorisation.
Managing structured and unstructured electronic records
The Archives creates both structured and unstructured electronic records. Unstructured data is that not managed in structured databases. It is narrative and contextually organised. To be managed as a record, it needs to be captured into a system with recordkeeping functionality. Structured data is collated and managed in e.g., business information system databases. Its predictive and repetitive format means that it requires a different management approach to unstructured data.
Management of unstructured electronic records
The Archives primary recordkeeping system is an electronic document records management system (EDRMS). It was implemented in 1998 with a major system upgrade carried out in May 2006. The system, available to all staff, is used to store corporate administrative records, including word documents, email, PowerPoint presentations, spreadsheets and scanned documents.
The EDRMS also captures digitally-imaged surrogates of original paper-based records. The originals are destroyed after the quality of the scan is checked—except for certain categories of records where it has been decided to keep paper documents. The decision on the retention of paper records followed guidelines in the General Disposal Authority (GDA) for source records that have been copied, converted or migrated. This authority also covers scanned records approved for destruction. Staff can refer to these procedures.
The Archives encourages and trains staff in the use of the version control functionality so they create their working documents in the system and don’t use shared areas or hard drives to draft documents.
The Archives’ business classification scheme (BCS) has been incorporated into the system and functions and activities are used to name electronic containers. A daily quality check is carried out on the names of files to ensure use of the appropriate function and activity sets.
No disposal has yet been carried out on records in the EDRMS, but containers are closed after five years to prevent the attachment of new documents and provide a disposal trigger.
Management of structured electronic records
The Archives operates a number of linked databases and software applications that capture and manage records. These include RecordSearch, which captures and maintains records on the Archives’ core functions, finance and personnel management systems. RecordSearch was developed and released in the mid 1990s with additional modules added over time. It’s planned to review RecordSearch’s recordkeeping functionality because this had not been part of the original detailed analysis carried out for the purpose of automating the process.
The Archives is currently implementing e-commerce and content management systems, with the latter linked to the EDRMS for capturing and managing records.
Web based records
EDRMS staff currently manage the development of web content with the authorisation process managed according to established procedures. Snapshots of the website are taken every six months or whenever there is a major upgrade. Snapshots could not be saved into the first version of the EDRMS, but the system upgrade in May 2006 now allows this and previous snapshots will be captured retrospectively. The AGLS metadata set is applied to web content.
The Archives is currently transferring the management of the website to a content management system. While this system has limited records management functionality, its capability has been boosted by integration with the EDRMS.
Staff training
The Archives highly values staff training to ensure that records are created and captured into authorised recordkeeping systems, particularly the EDRMS. EDRMS training has been run on a regular basis since the introduction of the system, with four formal sessions held each year in Canberra for new staff or those seeking to update their knowledge. State offices are visited annually for training. In Canberra, staff that need training between formal sessions receive one-on-one tuition. The Archives’ dedicated training officer advises on good recordkeeping practices and procedures (e.g. advice on titling and what records to create), and delivers training on IT desktop software applications and recordkeeping messages.
Support material to help staff use the system includes:
- an EDRMS Manual, which includes system use and recordkeeping advice
- an e-learning package, which is particularly helpful for state office staff with no ready access to a trainer
- help-sheets covering common records management issues e.g. creating files, capturing documents and emails and searching.
Internal Audit
Regular feedback is provided to the Audit Committee against recommendations made in the ANAO Audit Report on Recordkeeping (No. 7 2003–04).
Records improvement projects
In 2002 the Archives undertook a post implementation review of the EDRMS by using methodology outlined in the Designing and Implementing Record Keeping Systems (DIRKS) Manual. The outcomes of this project guided the work of the Information Management Section for several years.
The Archives has completed DIRKS Steps A (analysis of the organisational context), B (analysis of business activities) and C (identification of recordkeeping requirements). The resulting functions based Records Authority is currently being assessed.
Step B involved a risk analysis of all core business activities, with the Work Process Standard AS 5090 used to undertake a detailed transactional analysis for recordkeeping purposes for two high-risk activities—disposal authorisation and record access examination activities. The analysis identified individual steps in performing the business activity, indicating at what point records should be created and in what formats. Procedures for these activities will be reviewed to ensure adherence to recordkeeping requirements identified in the analysis.
Future projects and directions
Over the next five years the Archives plans to:
- develop an information architecture, that identifies records and where they are stored
- review and improve the recordkeeping functionality of RecordSearch
- identify strategies for addressing staff use of unauthorised storage spaces for creating and keeping their records
- apply the Archives’ disposal authority to both legacy paper records and records in the EDRMS
- develop and test a preservation plan.
For further information on recordkeeping practices in the National Archives of Australia please contact:
Colleen McEwen
Director, Information Policy & Taskforce Response
Phone: 02 6212 3732
