In the 21st century, we are constantly inundated with digital innovations and necessities. It can become very overwhelming and confusing. Digitizing everything, especially important information, is a must not only for our day-to-day lives, but also in the workplace. Fortunately for some of us, there are various experts out there trying to help clear the confusion.
On September 16, 2015, GovLoop hosted its Second Annual State and Local Government Innovators Virtual Summit, an all-day, virtual event with six different online trainings, networking opportunities and resources to help state and local govies do their job better. One of the sessions was The Secret to Better Records Management.
Kristopher Stenson, Electronic Records Archivist for the Illinois State Archives and a member of the Council of State Archivists (CoSA), co-hosted the session with Mike Constantine, Director of Data Protection Services at ViON.
During the session Stenson and Constantine discussed the necessity for proper records management. They stressed that good records management is essential for transparency and building trust among an agency’s target audience and where there is a growing demand, there is a way!
Stenson and Constantine described the top three drivers for digital growth and provided some insight on how to better manage your records:
- File sizes are getting bigger. Beware of changing compliance regulations. Be prepared to be flexible with previous execution styles and methods of digital record-keeping.
- Files are retained longer. Thinking long-term is a must, as certain files may be needed for extended periods of time.
- Demand for Business Intelligence (BI) is increasing. BI provides real-time data to your audience, but it also creates new data sets that must be maintained.
If you want to learn more about digital records management and upkeep please partake in CoSA’s celebration of Electronic Records Day (E-Records Day)! The event will take place on October 10th and CoSA invites various members from the state level to share best practices and the dos and don’ts of their work.
CoSA’s aim is to inform any and all pertinent members of society about the issues that can lie ahead and how to best deal with them. Digital records management doesn’t have to be a burden. CoSA and GovLoop are constantly working to find the most efficient ways to manage digital records, in the most cost-effective and efficient way possible! So join the movement and help each other become aware of digital records management!