ADMINISTRATION OF ARCHIVES (IMR 455)

INDIVIDUAL ASSIGNMENT :

ARTICLE REVIEW

NAME : WIRA BIN MAHIDEN

ID NO : 2019615978

SIR T.S AP AZLI

1.0 OBJECTIVES

The objective of this paper is to highlight the importance of records and archive
management in an institution. An organization receives and processes tremendous amount of
information day in and day out but not all of them are records. A record is invariably linked
to an organization’s official business and maintained as evidence. Accordingly, “records” can
be defined as any recorded information or data in any physical format or media created or
received by an organization during its course of official business and kept as evidence of
polices, decisions, procedures, functions, activities and transactions. For example, a driving
licence application will be kept as a record by the Transport Department of the Government
as evidence of its business. Records or archives management is the supervision and
administration of digital or paper records, regardless of format. Records management
activities include the creation, receipt, maintenance, use and disposal of records. In this
context, a record is content that documents a business transaction. Documentation may exist
in contracts, memos, paper files, electronic files, reports, emails, videos, instant message logs
or database records. Paper records may be stored in physical boxes on-premises or at a
storage facility. Digital records may be stored on storage media in-house or in the cloud. In
other words, records management refers to the whole range of activities which an
organization should perform to properly manage its records. The key activities include setting
records management policy, assigning responsibilities, establishing and promulgating
procedures and guidelines, as well as designing, implementing and administering
recordkeeping systems. The goal of records management is to help an organization keep the
necessary documentation accessible for both business operations and compliance audits. In
some small to mid-sized businesses, spreadsheets are used to track where records are stored,
but larger organizations may find records management software suites that are tied to both a
taxonomy and a records retention schedule to be more useful. This research paper also
highlight records management practices. According to this paper, the implementation of
records management practices has proven to be effective in any situation. In this records
management there are enormous amount of tacit and explicit knowledge that can be gathered
from a variety of sources internal and external to the organization. This sources are best
practices, corporate money, corporate data warehouses and databases, communities of
practice, current operations, innovation and generation of new knowledge and outside and
external information. According to this paper, a good records management will impact the
government business positively through computer technologies and human capital utilization.
2.0 DISCUSSION

Firstly, I would like to talk about the electronic record management. Development of
information technology (IT) and the widespread use of networked computers to conduct
business have resulted in exponential growth of records being created digitally. More and
more records relating to decision-making and programme delivery are created and kept in
electronic forms e.g. e-mails, spreadsheets and video recordings. Many companies today are
still stuck in the paper world when it comes to regulated documents. There are often
significant technical, financial and operational barriers to overcome when implementing
electronic document management systems (EDMS), but there are also significant benefits to
be had once these systems are in place. For example EDMS have better version control. How
often have you wondered if you are working on the latest version of a document? In the
world of paper, file shares and email can often be challenging as there is no built-in version
control. Being able to go back in time to understand changes is also near impossible without
manual versioning mechanisms. An EDMS has built in version control which allows you to
automatically version documents and ensure that full document history is available. As
everyone is working on the same single document within the EDMS, problems associated
with multiple copies of documents dissipate, as does the need to distribute copies via email.
Beside that and most importantly an EDMS is built with better security and control.
Regulated content can be extremely sensitive and having adequate security and control is
imperative. Achieving this through paper or file share based document management systems
is extremely challenging. Being able to clearly show custody and traceability of documents is
a regulatory requirement, and EDMS can help us comply through the use of audit trails and
traceable and granular security controls.

Secondly is the importance of good human capital utilization. There is increasing

integration of records management and archives in the workplace, but this is poorly
understood and recognized. Records managers and archivists have to manage digital
documents, which can be created anywhere, at any time, and by an enormous range of
people. Such records raise issues of privacy, security, preservation, intellectual property,
surveillance, and access. As the technology is constantly changing, legislation follows rather
than leads. There are also difficulties associated with the sheer number of records in the
electronic environment. Records managers and archivists can unite to increase political clout
in the face of threats to the professions, notably from IT and information professions such as
knowledge management. Given the fierce competition that now exists, it is only sensible that
records managers and archivists should collaborate and cooperate, particularly as both groups
draw on similar theoretical bases and share many tasks of practice. Formal integration
between the professions is actually happening due to these factors. To practically integrate
records management and archives, there must be agreement that users need access to
organized records, including both current and inactive records. This requires a complete
historical understanding of the organization and its processes and decisions, which demands
input from both professions. Added to this, the question of custody and ownership as records
pass from one phase of the continuum to another needs to be satisfactorily resolved, which
requires a holistic view as well as the development of a classification scheme and thesaurus
that will accommodate all types of records at all stages for all purposes. Recognition of each
profession’s role in each of these tasks is essential if the work is to be properly done.

Lastly is the importance of good records management. Records are the memory or
proof of activities being carried out regarding your organisation. Records keep track of
business transactions. They keep track of your agreements with suppliers and clients as in
contracts. Records also record communications within and without your organisation as in
emails both internal and with outside parties such as your clients. New records of all types are
created by organisations all the time. These records follow their own life cycle as they are
created, distributed, used, stored and eventually disposed of at some point in the future.
Records can vary in importance and often contain sensitive information. The handling and
eventual destruction of many records are regulated by legislation. Failure to comply, or the
loss or destruction of these records can result in legal action that is detrimental to the
organisation. Like our own memory, records should be accessible swiftly when needed.
Failure to locate records timeously naturally results in delays and loss of production. The fact
is, where records are not controlled or properly administered negative consequences arise.
These consequences include loss of production time due to lost or missing records. They can
also include regulatory and legal consequences. The public exposure of private information
may give rise to both legal consequences and loss of trust in your organisation and its people.
Thus, the importance of Records Management is the ability to fully control and administer
the records of your organisation. By allowing records to flow within your organisation, vital
information can be accessed. By limiting access to information records are kept secure.
Compliance and risk mitigation are also increased. In short, Records Management can help
an organisation be more productive, more secure and can even help us reduce operational
costs.
3.0 SIGNIFICANCE TO ARCHIVE ADMINISTRATION

There are some obvious similarities between the archives and records management
professions. Both :

 are called upon to identify which documents (records) they will manage.
 need to be careful about maintaining the physical and intellectual integrity of the
documents in their care
 describe and arrange records to provide access as well as contextual information
 observe necessary legislation regarding disposal, privacy, intellectual property, and
other issues
 maintain the physical – including digital – condition of records

Differences between the two professions are based largely around cultural, societal, and
historical dimensions. Archives are political; they cannot be seen only as preserving records
for historical research or as a warehouse for old records no longer in current administrative
use. The institution behind archives – government or business organization – will provide a
model for preservation, which frequently suggests keeping those records that support the
dominant position, the metanarrative, or the status quo. Records management, on the other
hand, has emerged from a modernist, late-capitalist philosophy of management in both
business and government. The emphasis is on efficiency, productivity, competitive
advantage, strategic value, increase of profits, and avoidance of loss. Management of records
is an integral part of business processes, is associated with workflow, and is based on
administrative and legal necessity. Evidence in the archival sense can be defined as the
passive ability of documents and objects and their associated contexts to provide insight into
the processes, activities, and events that led to their creation for legal, historical,
archaeological, and other purposes. Evidence for the records manager means that the record
must have sufficient integrity to be admissible in a court of law. The primary evidential
values related to legal, fiscal, and administrative purposes are the domain of records
managers; the subsequent cultural, historical, and social evidential values are determined and
understood best by archivists. The different societal needs to which each profession responds
means that there are different groups of users seeking the services of records managers and
archivists. For records managers, users are largely seeking legal evidence and administrative
information; for archivists, users are historical researchers attempting to create new
knowledge about past events, people, and organizations.

CONCLUSION

There has been a dramatic change in the nature of official records. They increasingly
are created in electronic form. The challenge is to manage them in this way, without risking
the integrity of the records so essential to accuracy and probity and without the wasteful
duplication into paper. That challenge is one facing all governments in Malaysia, and one that
is seen as a priority task. There is a big task ahead. There is a very large amount of paper
records in the custody of government agencies, taking up expensive office space. There
appears to be considerable uncertainty over the selection processes of records for permanent
retention as archives and those which have only short-term usefulness. Further, electronic
records are clearly proving complex to manage in their own right. Such knowledge is
essential to make the right decisions. To this end, public agencies, government organization
and private companies should be working together towards realizing the importance and
needs for efficient and economic management of records and electronic records.
REFERENCES

1. Acland, Glenda. (1992). Managing the record rather that the relic. Archives and
Manuscripts.20(1).
2. Ahmad Sarji b. Abd. Hamid. (1992). The Public Service of Malaysia: Some
Reflections On
3. Quality, Productivity and Discipline. Kuala Lumpur: National Printing Department.
Akta Arkib Negara 2003 [Akta 629]
4. Upward, Frank. “Modelling the Continuum as Paradigm Shift in Recordkeeping and
Archiving Processes and Beyond: A Personal Reflection.”Records Management
Journal. Vol. 10, No. 3 (2000).
5. Structuring the Records Continuum, Part Two: Structuration Theory and
Recordkeeping. Archives and Manuscripts. Vol. 25, No. 1 (1997).
APPENDIX

Access - the availability of or permission to consult records. Access may be withheld to

protect the privacy of data subjects, if records are especially sensitive, if there is a risk of a
breach of security or if there is a possibility of physical damage to records.

Accountability - the principle that organisations and individuals, especially those funded by
public monies, are required to account to others for their actions. Accountability may be
required under legal or statutory requirements or because of community expectations.

Active records - records which are referred to on a frequent basis. In order to facilitate
convenience, they are commonly located adjacent to work areas.

Activity - an action taken to complete a business function.

Appraisal - the process of examining and evaluating records in order to determine which
records should be kept, and for how long, to meet the needs of the organisation, legal
requirements, and the expectations of researchers and other users of records.

Archives - records retained on a permanent basis because of continuing value. Commonly,

archives are retained as they are significant for research and posterity, because of intrinsic
factors, or they retain legal or administrative importance.

Capture - records capture refers to the registration of records in a record-keeping system.

Classification - the process of determining how records are kept. This will involve naming
files and allocating user permissions.

Closed file - a file to which no further documents may be added. Commonly, files are closed
as they have reached maximum size or the matter to which they pertain has been terminated.

Control - control of records applies to the entity that is in possession, either knowingly or
unknowingly, of records.