Magister Library and Information Studies - MLIS / Universities face complex changes such as mergers; new competitors; socio-economic; political and technological changes. In order to survive and preserve competitive advantage, the university has to adapt to such changes. The University of the Western Cape has been through many changes since its establishment to its current status as a culturally diverse autonomous institution with a mission statement that reflects its ability to respond and adapt to change. Universities that can adapt to changes are considered to be intelligent. Intelligent universities adapt to changing and unpredictable environments by organizing all information resources; transforming information to knowledge; and using this knowledge to enhance performance. Records are an information resource. They contain evidence of business activities of an organization, their management therefore is important. This study was undertaken to add knowledge and insight into records management in the intelligent university by investigating whether records management contributes to making the University of the Western Cape intelligent. Records management is a function within an organization, hence the researcher's choice of the functionalist theory to frame this exploratory qualitative case study. Secondary sources, semi structured interviews; and electronic questionnaires were used to collect data from purposively selected participants. The data was imported and analysed on a qualitative data analysis software Atlas.ti7, version 7.5.10. The findings of the study showed that records management as a function was not used optimally by the university due to limited knowledge and awareness of its existence; as well as other services it offers. Records management therefore does not contribute to making the University of the Western Cape intelligent. Marketing, training, strategic placement of the records management function on the university organizational structure, integration with other components, implementation of electronic records management and a records management model for the intelligent university were recommended to address short-comings. This study adds more knowledge on records management in the intelligent university and brings to light the importance of the records management function; highlights how university records can be used for competitive advantage as well as decision-making; and aids in developing a records management model for an intelligent university. A large scale national study in other institutions of higher learning to provide a clearer picture of whether records management plays a role in making South African universities intelligent is recommended.

The increased demand from citizens for efficient service delivery from public sector organizations has implications for the information that underpins those services. Robust and effective information management is required. Information is looked upon as a resource that can give organizations a competitive edge if it is well leveraged. To address the need for more services and for more efficient service delivery, the Swedish government has promoted e-government initiatives and the two municipalities that are the subjects of this research have responded by engaging in e-service development and provision. e-Government has at its core the use of information and communication technology (ICT).  The municipalities have embarked on the analysis and automation of their business processes and hence the use of information systems.  Web-based technologies have created a two-way communication flow which has generated complex information for the municipalities to address. This development calls for stronger information and records management regimes. Enterprise Content Management is a new information management construct proposed to help organizations to deal with all their information resources. It promotes enterprise-wide information management. There is, however, little knowledge and understanding of ECM in the Swedish public sector. Further, how e-government developments have affected the management of information is an issue that has not been explored. Traditionally Swedish public authorities have employed records management to address the challenges of managing information. Records management has been used for the effective and systematic capture of records and the maintenance of their reliability and authenticity. While information helps with the daily running of business activities, records carry the evidentiary value of the interactions between the citizens and the municipalities. This research critically examines the interface between Enterprise Content Management (ECM) and records management as information/records management approaches. This has meant examining what the similarities and the differences between the two approaches are.  The research instrumentally used the lens of the Records Continuum Model (RCM), which promotes the management of the entire records’ continuum, a proactive approach, combines the management of archives and records and supports the pluralisation of the captured records. The research further highlights the information management challenges that the municipalities are facing as they engage in e-government developments.    Keywords: Enterprise Content Management, Records Management, E-government, Long-term Preservation, Business Process Management, Enterprise Architecture. / Centre for Digital Information Management

This thesis has focused on digital born personal archives; how they are different from analog paper archives and possible ways to overbridge these differences. It is also studied how archivists and librarians are dealing with digital archives, what they think about new proactive solutions when collecting private papers and collections and positive and negative effects with this way to work. The thesis is delimitated to only private collections and digital created material. It do not concern digitized material or electronic documents in government or business organizations. The challenges in digital curation and administration are discussed in aspect of the Records Continuum Model. The empirical material is also put in relation to research in Personal Information Management and identity theory. Two qualitative methods have been used, a case study of an authors personal electronic archive and five deep-going interviews with archivists and librarians working with personal collections in university libraries. This study shows that many difficulties and problems displayed in the electronic archive could be solved in the future with a more proactive approach and early cooperation with the collector. By educating and informing creators of personal records about file formats, archival structure and the need of them to engage in their own collection, more personal digital records could be preserved. Librarians and archivists are imagining more proactive work in the future but are also asking for other solutions. A lot of the challenges united with electronic personal archives are associated with lacking continuity which is a reason to use the Records Continuum Model to explain and work with personal digital collections. This is a two year master’s thesis in archival science.

Government computers are generating enormous volumes of e-records such as e-mails, word processed documents and databases. The immediate challenge of the public sector is therefore to preserve these digital records and make them accessible to future generations. The present study was conducted to investigate the management of e-records in the public sector in Lesotho. The objectives of the study guided the researcher to find out what IT infrastructure and resources existed. The study looked at which records were currently being created and strategies and policies used in managing those records. The archival legislation was reviewed to assess how it affected e-records. An e-records model suitable for managing e-records in Lesotho was suggested. The study adopted the descriptive research by utilizing the case study approach. Interview schedules were employed for data gathering, together with observations. The literature review guided the content of the interview schedule. Data was analyzed according to the objectives of the study. The overall findings revealed that the public sector in Lesotho was not managing its e­-records satisfactorily. The public sector did not have legislation that specifically dealt with managing e-records, there were no written policies, strategies and guidelines were non-existent. The study also revealed that there were no qualified personnel with expertise and skills in the management of e-records in the public sector. The study's conclusions and recommendations were that the public sector be allocated more resources and IT infrastructure. Staff should be trained, policies should be formulated, legislation should be amended to accommodate e-records and, lastly, the study recommended that the public sector in Lesotho should adopt the South African e­-records management model. / Thesis (MIS)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 2004.

This thesis begins by tracing the development of the practice of records scheduling in the federal governments of United States and Canada, from the initial concern with records disposal in the late eighteen hundreds, to the implementation of formal records schedules in the 1940s in the United States and the late 1950s in Canada. These federal initiatives provided a model for later developments at the state and provincial level. However, changes in scheduling methods have lately become necessary to meet the demands of the increasing volume of records, organizational complexity and change, and the widespread use of new media, particularly electronic records. Many of these changes have occurred at the provincial and state level, where the limited size of government has allowed the agencies responsible for scheduling to be more responsive and innovative. For this reason, analysis of current records scheduling practices in the provinces of British Columbia and Ontario, and the states of Washington and New York were conducted. These studies reveal schedules which are both flexible in their use and adaptable over time because they attempt to accommodate both records in all media and organizational change. Among the scheduling techniques examined are the addition of media specific elements, the use of functional schedule arrangement, the integration of schedules with other management tools, like classification, and the expanded use of general schedules for records common to more than one organization. These techniques are capable of dealing with the volume, complexity and variety of records which are being created in government today. Despite the changes demonstrated, the studies show that records scheduling remains a viable practice to control the life cycle of all records, from creation until disposal. Throughout this investigation, the role of archivists is discussed. Archivists' involvement in scheduling began with the earliest developments and continues still today. Archivists have been central to the initiation, development and adaptation of records scheduling in government. With the development of new information technologies, archivists' role is even more important, for they must intervene into the process of records creation if they want to maintain the ability to identify records of enduring value to society, and to ensure that their integrity is maintained throughout administrative procedures and use.

For centuries, the theory and principles of diplomatics have played a role in the work of European archivists. In North America, however, its relevance is still under scrutiny. This thesis employs diplomatic analysis to test its validity when applied to modern documents and procedures. To investigate the significance of diplomatic methodology and analysis, this thesis first discusses the recent history and structure of the British Columbia court system. It then examines a selection of case files from the civil, probate and bankruptcy registries, and it assigns the documents within to one of the six phases of a procedure: initiative, inquiry, consultation, deliberation, deliberation control, and execution. The study concludes by discussing the diplomatic character of the procedures and its importance in the understanding of modern records. More specifically, it outlines how diplomatics and procedural analysis can assist records professionals in the development of classification systems and retention and disposition schedules; the design of automated records management systems; and archival appraisal, arrangement and description.

This study investigated the extent to which records management practices fostered accountability in the Public Service Reform Programme (PSRP) in some government ministries in Tanzania. The effective implementation of the PSRP depends largely on many factors, the most important of which is the proper and well organized methods of managing public records. It is essential for government ministries to ensure that records are properly managed at every stage of the records life cycle, so that the information they contain can provide evidence of transactions and the efficient and effective provision of service to the public. The records life cycle model through its phases formed the theoretical foundation of the study. A mixed methods research approach was adopted and quantitative approach was used as a dominant paradigm. Both quantitative and qualitative data were gathered simultaneously during a single phase of data collection. Data was collected through a questionnaire administered to registry personnel from the government ministries, interviews with senior ministerial officials, National Archives personnel from the Records and Archives Management Department (RAMD) and staff from Tanzania Public Service College. The overall response rate from the questionnaire was 67%. An observation checklist was further used to verify data obtained from the questionnaire and interviews. Quantitative data was analyzed using the SPSS statistical package version 15.0 and the results of the study are presented in the form of figures, tables and text, while qualitative data from interviews was content analyzed and in some instances presented in tabular form. The findings of the study indicated that records in some government ministries in Tanzania were not properly managed to foster accountability in the implementation of the PSRP. The study established that although the introduction of the PSRP has resulted in some efforts in reforming records management practices in the government ministries, current records management in the government ministries was still weak, thus fostering accountability in the PSRP would be difficult. The findings of the study revealed a lack of registry mission statements, records management policy and dedicated budgets for registry sections. The majority of government registries in Tanzania lacked records retention schedules and systematic disposal of records resulting in heavy congestion of records and poor retrieval of information. Further, disaster preparedness and security control for records and archives did not form a significant part of the records management activities in the government ministries of Tanzania. On the extent of the use of computer applications in the management of records, the findings indicated the existence of computers in some registries but few computers were used to create records. National Archives and registry personnel faced challenges in the management of electronic records. The study established that National Archives personnel had not undertaken surveys to determine the number of electronic records created in the ministries. The findings of the study showed that although registry personnel received professional records management advice from the National Archives personnel, they did not implement the advice. The findings of the study revealed that the levels of skills and training of registry personnel was relatively low. The majority of registry personnel had not attended courses to update their knowledge and skills. To foster accountability in the public sector, the major recommendation of the study was the restructuring of records management systems. The restructuring should include enacting records management policies in order to accommodate the changes brought about by technology to enhance the proper management of records and effective implementation of the PSRP. The study recommends that government ministries should allocate dedicated budgets for registries. A budget should make provision for registry supplies and equipment and should ensure that registry personnel are provided with formal training in records management so as to develop their levels of skills and training. In order to ensure reliability, integrity, authenticity and long-term preservation of electronic records in support of the requirements of good government and fostering accountability, the study recommended for the integrated approach to records management to be considered in order to incorporate records in both paper and electronic formats. Further, the National Archives should undertake a survey at least annually, to determine the number of electronic records created in the government ministries. It is recommended that the government should update Records and Archives Management Act No.3 of 2002 to reflect the management of electronic records. National Archives should develop records retention and disposition schedules and records should be disposed of regularly in order to create more space for the current records, thus enhancing accountability in the implementation of the PSRP. The study recommends that professional records management advice should be provided on a regular and continuing basis. The National Archives should work closely with the President’s Office-Public Service Management to organize training for senior ministerial officials in order to create awareness regarding the importance of managing records as a strategic resource and its effectiveness in fostering accountability in the implementation of the public service reform programme. The setting up of standards and guidelines on the training of registry personnel is also necessary in order to enhance their status and skills. Enhancing their status and skills would be important for the proper management of records throughout their life cycle to foster accountability in the effective implementation of the PSRP. The study further recommended several issues which could be the subject of further investigation by other researchers in the field, including investigating the current records management practices in Judiciary, Parliament and local government authorities in Tanzania, a study to establish the levels of e-records readiness and e-government in the public sector in Tanzania, and a study to investigate the training of National Archives personnel in order to establish their levels of education and how they impact on the management of records in the government ministries. Furthermore, a study should be conducted to establish the role of records management in addressing corruption, fraud and maladministration in the public sector of Tanzania. A study to assess records management performance in the public sector using international standards such as ISO 15489 Information and Documentation-Records Management, General International Standard Archival Description (ISAD(G)), ISO/DIS 11799 Document Storage Requirements for Archive and Library Materials and ISO 11108: 1996 Information and Documentation-Paper for Archival Documents, is also important. / Thesis (Ph.D.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 2010.

This study investigated the extent to which records management practices fostered accountability in the Public Service Reform Programme (PSRP) in some government ministries in Tanzania. The effective implementation of the PSRP depends largely on many factors, the most important of which is the proper and well organized methods of managing public records. It is essential for government ministries to ensure that records are properly managed at every stage of the records life cycle, so that the information they contain can provide evidence of transactions and the efficient and effective provision of service to the public. The records life cycle model through its phases formed the theoretical foundation of the study. A mixed methods research approach was adopted and quantitative approach was used as a dominant paradigm. Both quantitative and qualitative data were gathered simultaneously during a single phase of data collection. Data was collected through a questionnaire administered to registry personnel from the government ministries, interviews with senior ministerial officials, National Archives personnel from the Records and Archives Management Department (RAMD) and staff from Tanzania Public Service College. The overall response rate from the questionnaire was 67%. An observation checklist was further used to verify data obtained from the questionnaire and interviews. Quantitative data was analyzed using the SPSS statistical package version 15.0 and the results of the study are presented in the form of figures, tables and text, while qualitative data from interviews was content analyzed and in some instances presented in tabular form. The findings of the study indicated that records in some government ministries in Tanzania were not properly managed to foster accountability in the implementation of the PSRP. The study established that although the introduction of the PSRP has resulted in some efforts in reforming records management practices in the government ministries, current records management in the government ministries was still weak, thus fostering accountability in the PSRP would be difficult. The findings of the study revealed a lack of registry mission statements, records management policy and dedicated budgets for v registry sections. The majority of government registries in Tanzania lacked records retention schedules and systematic disposal of records resulting in heavy congestion of records and poor retrieval of information. Further, disaster preparedness and security control for records and archives did not form a significant part of the records management activities in the government ministries of Tanzania. On the extent of the use of computer applications in the management of records, the findings indicated the existence of computers in some registries but few computers were used to create records. National Archives and registry personnel faced challenges in the management of electronic records. The study established that National Archives personnel had not undertaken surveys to determine the number of electronic records created in the ministries. The findings of the study showed that although registry personnel received professional records management advice from the National Archives personnel, they did not implement the advice. The findings of the study revealed that the levels of skills and training of registry personnel was relatively low. The majority of registry personnel had not attended courses to update their knowledge and skills. To foster accountability in the public sector, the major recommendation of the study was the restructuring of records management systems. The restructuring should include enacting records management policies in order to accommodate the changes brought about by technology to enhance the proper management of records and effective implementation of the PSRP. The study recommends that government ministries should allocate dedicated budgets for registries. A budget should make provision for registry supplies and equipment and should ensure that registry personnel are provided with formal training in records management so as to develop their levels of skills and training. In order to ensure reliability, integrity, authenticity and long-term preservation of electronic records in support of the requirements of good government and fostering accountability, the study recommended for the integrated approach to records management to be considered in order to incorporate records in both paper and electronic formats. Further, the National Archives should undertake a survey at least annually, to determine the number of electronic records created in the government vi ministries. It is recommended that the government should update Records and Archives Management Act No.3 of 2002 to reflect the management of electronic records. National Archives should develop records retention and disposition schedules and records should be disposed of regularly in order to create more space for the current records, thus enhancing accountability in the implementation of the PSRP. The study recommends that professional records management advice should be provided on a regular and continuing basis. The National Archives should work closely with the President’s Office-Public Service Management to organize training for senior ministerial officials in order to create awareness regarding the importance of managing records as a strategic resource and its effectiveness in fostering accountability in the implementation of the public service reform programme. The setting up of standards and guidelines on the training of registry personnel is also necessary in order to enhance their status and skills. Enhancing their status and skills would be important for the proper management of records throughout their life cycle to foster accountability in the effective implementation of the PSRP. The study further recommended several issues which could be the subject of further investigation by other researchers in the field, including investigating the current records management practices in Judiciary, Parliament and local government authorities in Tanzania, a study to establish the levels of e-records readiness and e-government in the public sector in Tanzania, and a study to investigate the training of National Archives personnel in order to establish their levels of education and how they impact on the management of records in the government ministries. Furthermore, a study should be conducted to establish the role of records management in addressing corruption, fraud and maladministration in the public sector of Tanzania. A study to assess records management performance in the public sector using international standards such as ISO 15489 Information and Documentation-Records Management, General International Standard Archival Description (ISAD(G)), ISO/DIS 11799 Document Storage Requirements for Archive and Library Materials and ISO 11108: 1996 Information and Documentation-Paper for Archival Documents, is also important. / Thesis (Ph.D.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 2010.

The implementation of electronic records management is a challenging task due to the resources it requires and most importantly because it requires a substantial change in the methodology to be used for electronic rather than analog records. Universities in North America have struggled with electronic records management for the last two decades because most records practitioners have neglected this methodology paradigm shift created by the arrival of electronic records. Given the great significance of universities in their societies, it is important that they manage electronic records effectively. It seems a bit odd that universities have not developed adequate responses to the challenge of managing electronic records since many are heavily funded by governments and must comply with multiple regulations that obligate them to manage their records well. Moreover, universities have been the source of much academic research into digital records issues and have access to this expertise, and familiarity with the issues. They also have a long tradition of archival programs for analog records. This thesis analyzes the causes for delayed implementation of electronic records management (eRM) best practices in certain North American universities in Canada and the United States. It concludes that the main cause is failure to adopt the guiding principles of the ISO (International Organization for Standardization) Records Management (RM) standard 15489: 2001 and the methodologies associated with it.

For over forty years, archivists and records managers have developed and advocated numerous theories and methodologies for the preservation of authentic and reliable organizational digital records. Many different tools, standards, and guidelines have been created to enhance and safeguard the content and context of digital records across multiple migrations. In addition, several archives have been able to create and sustain full-scale digital preservation programs. However, in spite of these successes, most archives and records management programs are not yet capable of preserving digital records indefinitely. Long-term archival digital preservation advocacy is defined as efforts undertaken by archivists and records managers to convince others, inside and outside their professions, to support the concepts, methodologies, and resources necessary to implement long-term digital preservation. Advocacy as a political- and policy-focused activity to convince a targeted audience to act is distinguished from archival “public programming” that is centered around outreach, publicity, exhibitions, and reference services. Advocacy for long-term digital preservation has not been widely successful, as evidenced by the relative small number of fully supported and fully functional archival digital preservation programs. As a result, the potential for a “dark age” characterized over the long term by a dearth of surviving, readable, and contextualized digital records is very real. This thesis explores why advocacy efforts have created only limited success, as well as what might be done to improve this situation. It rethinks long-term digital preservation as an issue of advocacy and will, as well as one of technology, strategy, or theory. Chapter One opens the thesis with a brief discussion of computers and digital records, placing advocacy efforts within a historical and technological context. Chapter Two presents an intellectual history of long-term digital records preservation advocacy literature and practice, demonstrating how advocacy “messages” have been formulated, disseminated, and “sold.” It also illustrates the multitude of informational resources and technological “solutions” that are now available to assist archivists and records managers in undertaking long-term digital preservation activities. Chapter Three tests the resonance of advocacy efforts through a series of surveys which I conducted with archivists and records managers from a variety of government, corporate, educational, and other institutions, as well as follow-up interviews with Manitoba-based records professionals. Survey questions were developed based on my examination of long-term digital preservation advocacy literature in Chapter Two, while interview questions were based on the responses of survey participants. Chapter Four concludes the thesis with a series of recommendations on improving long-term digital preservation advocacy. It argues for archivists and records managers to increase their personal commitment to long-term digital preservation, which includes having the will to embrace change and get started. Records professionals must also produce more practical internal guidance to assist archivists and records managers in undertaking preservation activities. In addition, the development and delivery of external advocacy “messages” must be improved, so that advocacy arguments better resonate with those responsible for funding organizational records management and archival preservation programs for digital records.