Managing Electronic Records

Citation

Muir, A. (2006), "Managing Electronic Records", Program: electronic library and information systems, Vol. 40 No. 2, pp. 196-197. https://doi.org/10.1108/00330330610669343

The editors of this book both have a track record in the records management field. The book consists of 11 contributed chapters and a concluding chapter written by the editors. The contributors are practitioners or researchers and all have expertise in records or archives management and are based in Australia, Canada, China, France, South Africa, UK and the US. The book is “not only for records professionals but also for information, IT and business administration specialists” and the level is certainly professional as chapters assume familiarity particularly with the records management discipline, but also with IT. The preface mentions students of records management as a target audience, but this is likely to be a secondary one.

In the opening chapter, there are comments on (the lack of) progress in the management of electronic records over the last ten years and a strategic vision is set out. The themes raised in this first overview chapter are addressed in the chapters that follow. There is a strong message that records management must take place in the context of business needs and the importance of human resources in successful electronic records management. The complexity of electronic records management is another theme. There are informative chapters on the use of standards and models, metadata, preservation technologies and legal issues. The standards chapter includes brief descriptions of standards for functional requirements for records management software, metadata and digital archives. It also briefly deals with methodologies for implementing standards. The section on metadata identifies standards and schemas that have been developed. The following chapter focuses on the design and implementation of metadata strategies. Similarly, the two chapters on preservation take a high level and more technical implementation approach, respectively, although they are not consecutive as the chapter on research comes between them. This is perhaps not the best place for that chapter, but it is hard to see a better place as it covers trends and projects that are mentioned in the other chapters. It is less clear what contribution a chapter on ethics and electronic record making makes to the whole. It is based on the South African experience and generalises to the rest of the world without fully arguing the points made.

None of the chapters explore issues in any depth, no doubt due to space restrictions, and readers would have to go elsewhere to find further details. However, references are provided at the end of each chapter to help readers in their search for further information. There are also short case studies from the public and private sectors that provide more practical insights. The major issues and developments in the field are pointed out, including research and development work. This book functions more as an overview and first point of reference on this subject rather than a handbook of practical guidance. There is a useful index and the book is well presented. While the standard of writing is generally good, there are one or two places in the chapters written by non‐native speakers where the meaning is not clear.