Hello

 

I have been following this string with interest and can't help but feel that something is missing from the discussion.

 

One of the frustrations I have with the string is the seeming ignoring of important international developments and recent history. I don't know if people are aware of  interPARES 1 and 2 projects ( www.interpares.org )   . I am wondering if people are aware of the efforts undertaken at the Pittsburgh and Columbia Universities in the 90s to develop a coherent recordkeeping response to electronic records. I also wonder if people need to be reminded of the work done to develop an international standard for records management. The standard was the culmination of efforts that began some ten years earlier to re-configure core recordkeeping concepts and practices to manage the advent of electronic records. As a final example of the profession's capacity to develop strategies for coping with changes in the information management milieu, we need look no further than the two excellent International witness conferences held at Northumbria University,     

 

I do think that this is a time when we, as a profession, need to, once again, reconfigure some of our practices and concepts to address issues arising from the arrival of web2. I have read Steve Bailey's book with great interest and ease (it is very well written). I am sure that strategies to address the important points he raises will be developed.  

 

 

 

 

 

 

-----Original Message-----
From: The UK Records Management mailing list [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Steve Bailey - JISC infoNet
Sent: 29/07/2008 6:56 PM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: How successful has RM been? (was RE: Comparative definitions of Classification and Taxonomy)

 

Hhm, this seems to be a circular argument which could run and run…

 

So if everything in the garden is as rosy as Chris describes and everyone is now singing to our tune why all the tales of woe that have filled this debate from others about why RM is ignored, how we are being marginalised, how we are failing to prove our worth and demonstrate ROI etc….

 

I have a huge amount of respect for all of the RM course providers around the country, most of whom I know very well, but compare the number of students coming out of these courses with the number of new IT graduates being produced each year and you realise just how small beer we really are.  Now when these undergraduate IT courses start including significant RM modules within their core courses then we really might be getting somewhere.

 

Cheers

Steve

 

 

I hate to disagree with Steve again but I think he has failed to grasp that actually the technology that now underpins a lot of Records Management has actually caught up with where we are now and that our services as Records Managers have become increasingly valuable and valued by our organisations (maybe this is just in my organisation).  This would probably explain why courses (such as the wonderful one at Northumbria Uni that I attended) are more popular than they have ever been. Someone, somewhere is getting value from us.

 

The shift to electronic documents set the profession back until technology suppliers where able to come up with the goods which could support the burgeoning problem. The solutions are not perfect but are sellable as long as you don't promise the earth.

Chris Tinsley MSc

Wiltshire County Council

 

Information is the key

 

From: The UK Records Management mailing list [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Steve Bailey - JISC infoNet
Sent: 29 July 2008 15:11
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: How successful has RM been? (was RE: Comparative definitions of Classification and Taxonomy)

I’m not sure it will ever be possible to ‘market ourselves better’ unless we, as a profession, are prepared to accept that maybe it is the product that we are trying to sell, rather than that way that we sell it that might just be the cause of the problem.

 

Put crudely, records management originated as a practical solution to a very real problem: how to cope with the huge increase in physical paper records created by the advent of reproductive technologies (in particular the photocopier).  The methodologies we came up with were proportionate, practical and effective and made a direct, positive impact on our organsiations and its staff.  Not surprisingly it gathered strength and momentum from then on.

 

Our problems arose when the issues shifted from dealing with paper records to managing ever increasing volumes of electronic records: firstly because the problem was far less visible to management, secondly because the entire drift of the IT profession and popular culture started going in the opposite direction to what we were trying to say and thirdly (and most significantly of all) because we failed to reassess our methodologies (sorry Russell – can’t help it) accordingly so they no longer represent practical, effective solutions to the problems that organisations face.

The ironic thing is that most of today’s  problems, just as 50 years ago, also stem from questions relating to how to deal with the volume of information created, but techniques which were appropriate for managing a room full of paper are fundamentally unsuitable for managing gigabytes and terabytes of digital information.  Once we’ve cracked this – then I guarantee that ‘records management’ will be back in vogue with our employers.  Until we grasp this I fear we will be left flogging an increasingly poorly horse…

 

Steve

 

 

 

 

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