Records management

Records management, also known as records and information management, is an organizational function devoted to the management of information in an organization throughout its life cycle, from the time of creation or receipt to its eventual disposition. This includes identifying, classifying, storing, securing, retrieving, tracking and destroying or permanently preserving records.[1] The ISO 15489-1: 2001 standard ("ISO 15489-1:2001") defines records management as "[the] field of management responsible for the efficient and systematic control of the creation, receipt, maintenance, use and disposition of records, including the processes for capturing and maintaining evidence of and information about business activities and transactions in the form of records".[2]

An organization's records preserve aspects of institutional memory. In determining how long to retain records, their capacity for re-use is important. Many are kept as evidence of activities, transactions, and decisions. Others document what happened and why.[3] The purpose of records management is part of an organization's broader function of governance, risk management, and compliance and is primarily concerned with managing the evidence of an organization's activities as well as the reduction or mitigation of risk associated with it.[4] Recent research shows linkages between records management and accountability in governance.[5]

  1. ^ ARMA International. "Glossary of Records and Information Management Terms, 3rd Edition". ARMA International. Archived from the original on 2013-09-28.
  2. ^ International Organization for Standardization – ISO (2001). "ISO 15489-1:2001 – Information and Documentation – Records Management – Part 1: General". International Organization for Standardization – ISO. Archived from the original on 2014-04-02.
  3. ^ Megill, Kenneth (2005). Corporate Memory: Records and Information Management in the Knowledge Age (2nd ed.). Munich: K.G. Saur/Thomson.
  4. ^ Anthony Tarantino (2008-02-25). Governance, Risk, and Compliance to the Handbook. ISBN 978-0-470-09589-8.
  5. ^ David, R. (2017). Contribution of records management to audit opinions and accountability in government. South African Journal of Information Management, 19(1), 1-14.https://doi.org/10.4102/sajim.v19i1.771