A dissertation submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Masters in Information Science at the University of Zululand, South Africa, 2012. / Records management seeks to efficiently and systematically control the life-cycle of records that are routinely generated as a result of activities and transactions. Records are a vital asset in ensuring that the institution is governed effectively and efficiently, and is accountable to its staff, students and the community that it serves. Records support decision-making, organize documents, provide evidence of policies, decisions, transactions and activities, and support the university in cases of litigation. There have been many instances at the University of Zululand whereby records were reported to be misplaced or missing thus raising a question on how are records managed and what system and policies are used in terms of records management. This Master‘s dissertation sought to investigate the status of records management at the University of Zululand. The study used the survey research method, with the questionnaire as the primary data collection instrument. The study targeted both administrative and academic (Heads of Departments) employees at the University of Zululand. Purposive sampling was used to select 26 academic Heads of Departments and 24 administrative employees, resulting in a total of 50 respondents.
The findings revealed that the University of Zululand still has a long way to go with respect to day-today records management. Apart from the Integrated Tertiary Software (ITS) which is an Enterprise Management System, no formal records management system was identified at the University of Zululand that deals with either paper-based or electronic records such as emails. There also appeared to be no specific policy for records management. There were no qualified records management practitioners at the University of Zululand, even though there are employees who are hired by the university as so-called =records officers‘. Proper training, workshops and skills in records management are therefore lacking amongst academic and administrative practitioners at the University of Zululand.
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The study recommends the development and adoption of an official records management policy, the appointment of a records manager, and the establishment of a records management training program for staff. Furthermore, the study recommends the acquisition and implementation of a suitable campus-wide records management model such as Windows SharePoint Server (WSPS) or other relevant system, and the establishment of a formal records department for record keeping.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:netd.ac.za/oai:union.ndltd.org:uzulu/oai:uzspace.unizulu.ac.za:10530/1219 |
| Date | January 2012 |
| Creators | Coetzer, Xolile Patience |
| Contributors | Le Roux, C.J.B., Jacobs, D. |
| Publisher | University of Zululand |
| Source Sets | South African National ETD Portal |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Thesis |
| Format | application/pdf |
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