Fundamentals of Electronic Records Management (ERM) Systems. Electronic Document Primer. Agenda. The Three Orders of Information

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1 Agenda Fundamentals of Electronic Records Management (ERM) Systems Bruce Schinkelwitz, MAS CRM Session E-4 Whining about Records Conference Kelowna, BC October 14, :30 12:00 PM Primer on electronic records The basics of an ERMS Challenges Standards Approaches to Effective Implementation Order One: The Physical Object self documenting Electronic ument Primer Order Two: The 1:1 Reference to the Physical Object Order Three: The Dynamic Metadata View 1

2 What s an electronic document? Are products of a specific combination of Software and Hardware Operating System + Application(s) + Computer MS PowerPoint2007 on Windows 7 on 64-bit Intel-based PC A Bitstream of 1s and 0s created and presented in document form Content 3 main forms Structured database data Unstructured non-database information in an object form (i.e., a document) Semi-Structured object with an underlying database (e.g., Outlook ) Metadata Electronic document = Content + Metadata Content and data are typically separated from descriptive and management metadata Content is passed to OS and Hardware to store Application manages use metadata Metadata Provides computing instructions Describes the document Provides data to manage the document Descriptive and Management metadata consists of The Field/Property ( Name, ument Number ) The value ( Bruce, ADM-1234 ) e-records Management Reference Physical we have indexes Electronic - Need to know what metadata is available on records and how to use metadata to search Disposition Traditional: describe records context and purpose New: Must identify metadata needed ERMS Basics Effective, comprehensive e-rim requires standardization ERMS as Metadata System Retention and Disposition Records in an ERMS are document objects with specialized metadata ERMS as RM tool Manage retention and disposition of documents Uses specific metadata Classes and metadata Concept of document class or type E.g., Invoice, Report, Application A records class is a type of record with custom metadata needed for the handling of the document Retention & disposition are rules applied to records. Each rule consists of Trigger a condition set for a specific field E.g.: Date Closed, Date Created, Date Terminated Retention period(s) or phases E.g.: Retain 5 years, retain permanently Disposition action E.g.: Destroy, Transfer to Archives Association with the entity to be disposed Folder or document 2

3 Structure of a Basic ERMS Map Retention to Classification Record Class and Metadata Retention Schedule Record Series Classification Retention Schedule Vendor Invoices Accounts Payable Travel Expenses Pay Registers Employee Garnishments Payroll Salary Change Form Franchise Material Order Sales Orders Disposition Rules Content systems vs ERMS Content System Any system that stores e-content Content Systems focused on ease of access based on minimal metadata folder name title, date, author Ease of use stems from lack of controls and massive replication ERM Systems Designed to control records using metadata and rules ERMS strives for single instance of record The Challenge of Metadata in ERMS Typical document creation applications create their own metadata Not everything passes to the ERMS Metadata created in one technology doesn t (easily) translate Different systems have different metadata Metadata is beholden to the software When the software is obsolete, the record and its metadata are lost without advance planning Standards Standards Software DoD MoReq Metadata Dublin Core ISO Practice ISO 15489, Draft ISO 30300, Ideal program objectives and components 3

4 Implementation Realities Implementation More than 50% of effort comes up front, before software Identify documents to be managed in ERMS Understand document context (use) requirements Retention schedules modernized for trigger, phases When and How do records go into ERMS IT is a critical partner Are de facto e-records custodians Few projects succeed without good IT partnership End Users are the most important actors ERMS represents a culture change for everyone Implementation Basics Implementation Best Practices Keep with basic principles An e-document as content + metadata from a native environment Using an ERMS means e-records are managed outside their native systems Metadata is the heart of the ERMS The impetus to deploy an ERMS stems from a core issue The ERMS will be judged on how it solves the issue An ERMS (almost) never manages all documents Focus on what the ERMS will manage Understand requirements for entire implementation Have to plan for all records Expect that later deployment phases introduce change Start deployment with a Pilot One business unit with a small set of records Use Pilot lessons to revise implementation Begin Deployment with piloted unit and records Iterative pilots Useful References Basic Texts William Saffady, Managing Electronic Records. Thank You! bruceschinkelwitz@me.com National Archives of Australia. Publications. See David Weinberger. Everything is Miscellaneous: The Power of the New Digital Disorder. Henry Holt and Company,

5 Useful References Standards ISO. Information and documentation - The Dublin Core metadata element set, 15836:2003 ISO. Information and documentation -- Records management processes -- Metadata for records, 23081:2006. ISO. Information and documentation -- Records management, 15489:2001. ISO/DIS Information and documentation Management system for records Requirements (Draft) 5