Are electronic records effective records? Electronic records have been the subject of intense discussion in the archival and records management communities over the past ten years. Unlike traditional paper-based format records, electronic records are not likely, without active management throughout their existence, to remain accessible and complete even over short periods of time. There are two reasons for this: first, the pace of technological change and second, the highly flexible environment in which electronic records are generated and stored. This environment promotes the generation of a very large number of records and also helps in the alteration and updating of the records.
These two issues have major implications for the long and short term preservation of the records in an inviolate manner. Electronic records require much more attention than paper-based records because the media on which electronic records are stored is less stable, the format of the medium is subject to rapid obsolescence, and the information itself is under control of software that is usually short-lived and often owned by an organisation other than the licensee. Traditional paper-based format records are less susceptible to these changes given their inherently stable format and the fact that alterations to such records are clearly visible.
This vulnerability means that policies are needed urgently. But despite considerable debate both internationally and elsewhere in Australia, the issues which these policies need to address have not been extensively canvassed in South Australia. This discussion paper is the first step in doing this.
The first part of the paper looks at the context in which electronic records exist, considering the legislative framework, the nature of records (and noting a few other key definitions), the records-information-knowledge spectrum, and finally some brief comment on the broader framework for electronic records strategies and the intended audience for records management policies.
The second part of the paper addresses four major issues:
1. Records management system design and creation
2. Management and maintenance of electronic records
3. Preservation of electronic records
4. Access
Each of these sections in the paper opens with a general statement of the issues they currently pose for State Records, with relevant extracts from the State Records Act 1997, and concludes with a set of questions which seem to us to warrant discussion. These are consolidated at the end of the paper. There will be others.
This paper looks for comment. Contact addresses are noted at the end of the paper. A workshop will be run in Adelaide on 14 May which will involve several experts outside South Australia along with stakeholders within the South Australian Government. Following that, policies will be developed and implementation pilots established. Getting practical experience in agencies is critical.
This is a discussion paper, and comment on any aspect covered - or not covered - is welcome.
Matthew Gordon-Clark
Acting Records Policy Adviser
State Records of South Australia
P O Box 1056
BLAIR ATHOL WEST, SA 5084
phone:(08) 8343-6825
fax:(08) 8260-6133
e-mail:mathew@gr.ssa.sa.gov.au
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