Recordkeeping in Brief 52 - Considering digital recordkeeping as part of systems development or procurement

About digital records
Minimum requirements for digital recordkeeping
Adressing recordkeeping as part of the 6 steps of procurement
Options for keeping records from business systems
Resources

Potentially, any new ICT system could have recordkeeping needs associated with it. For example, a system that is introduced to manage client contact information and issue bulk emails to clients may be required to produce and keep a record showing the email that was sent, to whom and when.

The purpose of this Recordkeeping in Brief is to recommend ways that digital recordkeeping issues could be dealt with as part of the process for procuring, configuring and implementing a new ICT system.

About digital records

Almost all business conducted by government requires the creation of records that are relied upon for business, legal, accountability-related and other reasons. Where government business is conducted using ICT systems, the best and most cost effective way to create and keep records is in digital form.

A digital record is digital information, captured at a specific point in time that is kept as evidence of business activity. Digital records means 'born digital' records such as emails, web pages, digital photographs, digital audio files, GIS files or database records, as well as scanned versions of paper records that have been digitised in business processes.

Keeping records in digital form brings a range of benefits including improved service delivery through faster access to accurate business information and cost savings as a result of a reduction in the quantities of paper stored.

Minimum requirements for digital recordkeeping

In May 2009 the Premier issued Premier’s Memorandum 2009-11 NSW Standard on digital recordkeeping. The Memorandum directs agencies to the Standard for minimum requirements in relation to digital recordkeeping and includes the timetable phasing in the Standard's requirements as an attachment.

The compliance timetable states that for any new ICT system implemented after June 2009, agencies are required to:

determine whether there are any records requirements associated with the new system
define any digital records that the agency needs to be made and kept, and
design and implement systems so that the records are made and kept to meet the Standard’s functionality and metadata requirements. This may either be by building recordkeeping features into the new system, or designing an interface / integration with an existing records system (eg an EDRMS).

Adressing recordkeeping as part of the 6 steps of procurement

The table below shows how recordkeeping considerations can be integrated into the 6 step process for the procurement of goods and services in the New South Wales Government: [1]

Step	Activities to comply with digital recordkeeping requirements	For example
*Step 1: Needs analysis*	Project need is defined. Determine whether there is a recordkeeping need associated with the business the system will support. Define any records needed in consultation with stakeholders from the business including records managers, business managers and risk / audit personnel.	Taking the example of the client information system noted above, the agency identifies a business requirement to maintain a record of any bulk emails sent using the system.
*Step 2: Funding approval*	Project scope and objectives are defined. Indicate whether the project will need to encompass a recordkeeping component. If so, activities that may need to be included in project scope include programming, system integration, change management and training.	At this point the project team determines that while the new system will need to produce a record of each bulk email, these will then be captured into the agency’s existing recordkeeping system (EDRMS).
*Step 4: Service provider selection*	Include recordkeeping requirements in the request for tender documentation.	For example: ‘System to produce a copy of bulk emails sent showing sender, receipients and text of the message, in a format suitable for capture into the agency’s EDRMS such as PDF’
*Step 6: Procurement evaluations*	Review outcomes against objectives. Determine whether the system meets the identified recordkeeping requirements, either on its own or by virtue of an interface / integration with a records system?	On implementation, the project team evaluates whether the system is capable of producing the records as specified, and whether these are being captured into the EDRMS.

Options for keeping records from business systems

The example above describes a recordkeeping requirement met by capturing an email out of a business system into an EDRMS. In other cases, however, it may be necessary to use alternative methods to meet records requirements. For some business systems, such as human resource management systems or case management databases, a record may consist of:

a collection of data elements (or structured data) that are linked and controlled by the system, e.g. entries in a database
distinct digital objects controlled by the system that have a clearly defined data format (or unstructured/semi-structured information), e.g. documents, emails or spreadsheets, or
a combination of the above.

In this instance it may not always be practical or desirable to export the records to an EDRMS. However, business systems generally do not automatically possess the required functionalities from the Standard on digital recordkeeping. The options for addressing recordkeeping requirements for new business systems are:

adding functionalities to the system itself via programming
integrating the business system with a recordkeeping system so that the business system creates and stores the records while the recordkeeping system performs functions such as access control and metadata management

enabling the export of digital records and their associated metadata from the business system to a recordkeeping system, so that the recordkeeping system stores and manages the records and the metadata.

These options are not exhaustive: public offices may find other ways to ensure compliance with the Standard.

Resources

Guidance to help with addressing recordkeeping requirements as part of the implementation of new ICT systems is available from State Records in a number of forms.

The Short guide to implementing the Standard on digital recordkeeping (Guideline 23) contains information on:

identifying and defining the digital records you need to create and keep, in both structured and unstructured data environments
options for enabling the capture of the records into digital recordkeeping systems, including models for linking business systems with existing EDRM systems, and
recordkeeping metadata creation and management.

State Records' digital records strategy, Future Proof, has a dedicated website that contains:

links to State Records publications on a range of digital recordkeeping topics including email management, dealing with digital images and software selection
a blog by State Records staff on digital recordkeeping issues, with comment invited from the NSW public sector
a podcast series consisting of interviews and presentations on a range of digital records topics.

Footnotes

[1] NSW Government Procurement, 6 Step Process, viewed 4 June 2009, <http://www.nswprocurement.com.au/Government-Procurement-Frameworks/Goods---Services/6-Step-Process.aspx>

© State of New South Wales through the State Records Authority, 2009.
This work may be freely reproduced and distributed for most purposes, however some restrictions apply.
ISSN 1440-3978