EDRM AND CULTURE CHANGE: WHAT’S HAPPENING AT KING’S COLLEGE LONDON

EDRM AND CULTURE CHANGE: WHAT’S HAPPENING AT KING’S COLLEGE LONDON Clare Cowling (Records Manager) Joshua McKim, (Records Administrator) HE/FE Records Management Group meeting 14/9/04

EDRM and King’s • How do we sell EDRM to the College? • Do we want to sell EDRM now? • What needs doing first? • Getting King’s to take records management seriously comes first!

I want to have a paper-free office. How do I go about it? We’ve been offered a cheap document management system. How do we fit our records into it? We’ve just bought some scanners. What do we do with them? I’ve decided to scan everything. How do I organise that? Now that everything’s safe on CD ROM, can I bin the paper? Here are some questions we’ve been asked in the last year…

And the biggest question of all.. I hear there are shortcuts to save us having to manage our information the old-fashioned way. So why doesn’t King’s just buy one or another of the e-management systems on the market and save all the hassle?

And this is what we tell them… Yes, there are lots of: • e-document management systems… • And e-records management systems... • And e-content management systems… • And e-mail management systems… • And combinations of all the above (enterprise management systems)! And most are excellent products but

It’s just not that easy. This is what software solutions do… • Electronic document management systems are programs, procedures and/or software that manage, control and provide access to electronic documents; • Content management systems offer packages to standardise, format, and search for e-information e.g. what’s contained in a website; • Enterprise content/records management systems offer packages to control and retrieve both structured and unstructured electronic information and paper

…And this is what they don’t do • They can’t decide for you whether a record is important enough to keep or not. • They can’t decide for you whether a record should be deleted/destroyed or not. • They don’t provide the solution on how to keep e-records long-term. • So they don’t get you off the hook: you still have to manage your records properly!

And, incidentally….. • As King’s doesn’t have an overall classification scheme or a file plan it won’t be possible for the organisation as a whole to effectively implement an electronic document or records management system. • So we can’t just go buying a system because it’s on offer and expect it to work! Nor would we get staff buy-in if we just impose a system from the top. • So there’s a lot of work the organisation has to do first. Such as….

Step I • Training sessions for all staff in legal compliance, business continuity, risk management and information management

Step 2 • Meetings, discussions and papers to get senior management to support records management

Step 3 • Getting guidelines and other practical advice out to the schools and departments on how to manage their records, including implementation of the King’s Records Disposition Schedule

Step 4 • We’ve just started a programme of records surveys, using one school and one administrative department as pilot studies

Step 5 • Will be to get everyone’s records properly organised (classification scheme, good workflow, specific disposal procedures) • And then will come…

Step 6! • Thinking about what to do about EDRM! • - identifying what system or systems we want; • - looking at suitable products; • - experimenting/ testing/piloting potential systems.

Electronic information management systems can’t be implemented at King’s until we... • Recognise that the electronic information we create and maintain belongs to the organisation, not us • Realise that we have a responsibility of stewardship for the records we create • Are confident of medium to long-term accessibility if necessary • Have agreement throughout the organisation. • Can afford them. Software solutions are costly.

My department I know how things work here. It’s all in my head. I don’t need to tell anyone else. It’s no-one else’s business how this department works. Your department I don’t know what your department does. I don’t care what your department does. I’ve worked out my own procedures and no-one else needs to know about them. …and until we stop organising ourselves like this...

…and start thinking like this! • We cannot work in isolation any longer • We need common systems to access information • We should assume that all information is available to everyone in the organisation unless there is good reason why not...

We must, finally, accept that culture change is an essential part of the process! Staff (including academics!) must accept that they will have to give up personal control over the records they create. Staff must accept that they will have to fully support whatever software system or systems are brought in. Staff must accept that they will have to spend time integrating our records into the chosen system. Otherwise EDRM can’t succeed.

Meanwhile, back in the Archives… • Josh and I are working on a project to digitise student files, both to save space and to improve access by electronic retrieval … • Which may teach us some lessons about how to prepare for EDRM….

King’s hard copy student files disposal policy • King’s has decided that selected documents within student files will be retained permanently. • Student files have been created by Registry, Administrative Departments, Schools, Academic Departments and academic tutors. • At times, the Archives has received student files from all of the above.

The Problem • We had numerous, partially duplicate, files on single students stored in different locations within the Archives. • Classification codes had not been applied systematically. • Duplicate and extraneous materials had created critical space shortages. • Finding all or the specific information requested was difficult. • It is in contravention of the DPA to keep inaccurate or redundant personal information.

The Solution • Microfilm the paper student records to save space and increase accuracy and speed of retrieval. • Create a database of key access terms to allow us to search the microfilmed records. • Information will be provided to us on request electronically, via a web link to the company providing the service .

The Problem with the Solution • King’s had a classic records management problem for which microfilming was the last step in the solution. • We first needed to resolve • What student information should be kept in the amalgamated student file. • Where the student file was located and the logistics of amalgamating them into a single named file. • How to standardise the various classifications of all the files • What data access points should be created and recorded.

What is the Student File? • Clare conducted a JISC funded study on what information constituted the student file. • The study established: • What information should be retained • What information should be destroyed • When it should be destroyed.

Where were our records? • Student records are stored under many systems and in various media by many bodies. • We looked at the paper files in our custody and decided to: • Consolidate files by department. • Consolidate files by year of last attendance. • Search across thousands of entries for matches and amalgamate them all.

Creating the Database • How would we search, locate, and access exactly the information needed? • We chose five data access points for information on who, when, and where. • Surname • Forename • Alternate Names (e.g. if married) • Department • Year left

Grunt Labour • We hired three student temporary workers to work with us on the locating, listing, and amalgamating files work. • They needed basic training in data entry, physical weeding, and to sign a confidentiality agreement. • As this is a pilot project, we have been open to procedural and conceptual changes of which there have been many.

Current Status, so far…. • We have located and listed over 8,000 student files. • We are almost ready to ship half of these to be microfilmed. • We have received full funding for the next two years to change this from a project to a program.

What lessons can we learn from this project about preparing for EDRM? • That there’s a lot of work to do first!

Which is…. • Your records have to be managed properly before you can start looking; • It will take at least twice as long as you thought it would; • It will cost twice as much as you thought it would; • You need clear but flexible procedures and… • Implementing the chosen EDRM software system is the last step in the process!

EDRM AND CULTURE CHANGE: WHAT’S HAPPENING AT KING’S COLLEGE LONDON