Course Outline

1. CREATING A RECORD AND RECORDS MANAGEMENT  

• How a record does comes into being and how is it authenticated? Records management is a process of ensuring the proper creation, maintenance, use and disposal of records to achieve efficient, transparent and accountable governance-Discussion 
• Defining electronic record as a record that can be manipulated, transmitted or processed by a computer, written on magnetic or optical medium including magnetic tapes, cassettes, CD ROMs, hard disks and diskettes, recorded in binary code accessed using computer software and hardware easily manipulated (that is, updated, or deleted  
• Record - Record is the original electronic object captured in the system in accordance with agency business rules 
• Records include:  Reports; Graphics; Electronic files; Charts; Records; Contracts; Drafts and redrafts; Calendars; Network access records; and or Documents of any kind 
• Essential records management capabilities: assigning unique identifiers to individual records, providing safeguards against unauthorized changes being made to those records, and creating an unbreakable audit trail for reasons of accountability and e-discovery 
• Unauthorized changes are prevented by implementing airtight manual procedures or using software applications (such as encryption or digital signature) to keep a document from being modified after it has been declared as a record.  
• Audit trails guarantee an enforceable chain of custody by making it possible to know what a record said at a particular point in time, how its content evolved to that point, and who was involved with it   

2. SOUND RECORDS MANAGEMENT PROGRAMME FRAMEWORK  

• Sound records management: Managed in terms of organisational records management programme governed by an organisational records management policy 
• Sound records policy and procedure should cover: Creation of records (including prohibitions on what not to have on the system); Retention and security (including back-up storage media); Retrieval (and authenticity); and When and how to destroy. 
• Explain Electronic document management system (EDMS) software program that manages the creation, storage and control of documents electronically 
• Security control. Explain this function which controls which users have access to which information. Any system used must be able to protect organisational records as defined by the organisation.  
• Designation and version control. The EDMS should allow users to add documents to the system and designate a document as an official government record, automatically assign the correct version designation 
• Metadata capture and use: Sound records management should allow capturing and use the metadata appropriate for your agency  

3. ELECTRONIC DOCUMENT MANAGEMENT SYSTEMS  

• Allow users to access and manage files in a central repository, Have feature that allows retention rules to be applied, Have security features, Cost, Currently of data records 
• Printing Electronic Records: Still a tried and true method. It’s been happening successfully for decades, Allows group access where some electronic methods do not, Allows file both electronic and paper in one place, Metadata is lost in most cases when printing 
• Storage of Inactive Records: Online: Keep on server in alternate directories. EDMS includes application of retention rules. Near-line: Vendors provide electronic vaults, Offline: Removable media, paper 
• Security: Physical and virtual protection, Biometric, Password protect PCs, folders, network access, Reasons not to disseminate protected, sensitive or confidential records via email without encryption. Keep removable media in locked cabinet/desk drawer 
• Policy and guidelines in Hardware maintenance and the safeguarding of information records during repairs and on destruction on hardware pieces 
• Precautions in Email Usage: Email is not a records series, but rather a means of communication. It should be retained according to content. A majority of email is probably not a record. Email can proliferate like crazy.  

4. MANAGING ELECTRONIC MAIL AND ELECTRONIC RECORDS  

• What is electronic records and their characteristics, Determine retention and disposition requirements for email and electronic records 
• Provide practical suggestions for maintenance, storage and retrieval, also the consideration of policies on hardware destruction 
• The Value of a Record, Historic –permanent Historic retention, Administrative/Fiscal –applied after legal – can Admin increase office retention, and Legal – base minimum for Legal all retention 
• Electronic Record Characteristics, Most records we create today are born digital. “Invisible”, Multiple, often disparate, formats, Ever-changing technologies, Easily disseminated and propagated and Metadata 
• Retention, Fundamental RIM principles apply, “Storage is cheap” is not an answer to proper retention, Email/electronic records are not record Categories, analyzed, retained and disposed of according to their content and approved records retention schedules
• Records need to be accessible for the entire retention period. A migration plan may be necessary for longer-term records. In what form should they be retained?, Native format is best for active/inactive records. 
• Directory Structures: Directories can be based on subject, document type, project, Consider server space for department records, including email, Create inactive records folders based on retention.  

5. MANAGING DATABASES AND ELECTRONIC RECORDS  

• Require special analysis and scheduling, Data repositories with no real application systems or interface: Microsoft Access DBS, Serve individual or department. May include tables, queries, forms, reports.  
• Imaging: Imaging should add value business process. Once image, what do you do with the paper? Ensure quality of imaged records. Ensure accessibility of images records. keep the paper, upon retention limit dispose of both paper and electronic 
• Disposition of Electronic Records: Retention schedules will tell you what is to be done with the records, Dispose of ALL formats – paper too! What happens when file is delete?– Delete <> Destroy; Delete = Discard– Files can still be retrieved – Software is available to “shred” electronic files  
• Certificate of Records Disposal: Still required for electronic records, Paper and electronic records can be combined on one certificate. How to determine the volume? –number of files? Size?  
• Transferring to the Archives: Native format is not required for archival records. – PDF, Microsoft Office (except Access), text, rich text, csv, html, most image files, zip – File types or databases/applications.

  
6. ELECTRONIC RECORDS MANAGEMENT PROJECT AND PROCEDURE MANUAL  

• Capture information with associated attributes in an electronic system 
• Associate Record Provide the capability to associate a record used in creating a record through a Record Association attribute 
• Ensure Authenticity: Ensure the acceptability of a record as genuine, based on its characteristics such as structure, content, and context.  
• Assign Disposition : Using an established disposition authority, assign the disposition schedule, item number, and disposition instructions to the record 
• Categorize Record: Utilizing agency business rules, assign an appropriate descriptive label to the records to facilitate management in an electronic system 
• Search Repository: Query all or selected system repositories of records (transitory, temporary, and permanent) across the enterprise for content and/or attributes, in order to determine the existence and location of matching records 
• Retrieve Record: Using the search results, allow for the selective display of the full record and/or associated attributes for an authorized purpose 
• Execute Disposition: Implement destruction, transfer, or continued retention of a record in accordance with the established disposition authority. After validation that the disposition action is valid, execute the disposition action, and record the transaction