This was a question posed by one of my colleagues who will be attending the ARMA conference in November. Unfortunately, I will be unable to attend due to business commitments, but I will share my thoughts on sessions that I would attend based on past experience in attending this annual conference.
While I do attend many of the excellent educational sessions offered at conferences by knowledgeable professionals, I can usually be found talking with vendors and/or attending technology sessions in the Conference Exposition Hall. However, I would probably make sure to attend those sessions that are currently my favorite topics. For example:
• Sunday – 1:00-2:30pm: If I was new to the profession I would attend the session “Six Starting Points for a Records Management Rookie”, presented by Richard Smith, CRM. I have attended his poster session in the past and his session on basic RIM should be worthwhile.
• Monday – 8:-9:30am: I have found in the past that Laurie Carpenter, CRM, has a real grasp on marketing her records management program which would make her session “Motivating Through RIM Marketing” a must for anyone in the profession.
• Monday – 2:45-4:30pm: Training of the RIM professional is one of the areas I find lacking with most organizations that I have worked for as a consultant. One of the reasons given is a limited budget. So I would attend the “Employee RM Training on a Limited Budget”, presented by Richard Smith, CRM.
• Tuesday – 8:-9:30am: Hot Topic - The ARMA International Educational Foundation will have a session “The Impact of Social Networks on RIM” that will discuss the negative effects these tools have on an organization's ability to manage information.
• Tuesday – 1:-2:30pm: The session “Developing an Interactive RIM Training Program”, presented by Karon Teague may also be of interested to those who are trying to implement a RIM training program within their organization.
In addition there are many other sessions being presented by experts in the field of records and information management that would be worthwhile attending.
As I have written in past articles on attending conferences I need good visual stimulation to I need to fully understand the technology. In short, I need to see and hopefully touch what the written words have described to fully understand the process. That is one of the reasons I would attend the training sessions and visit the vendor booths that will be in the Expo Hall. I liken the visit to the Expo Hall as one visiting a candy store. It is the only time in the year that you get a chance to view new products, ask questions and hopefully attend an informational training session that makes you think how you could use the product.
I would also attend the Poster Sessions that will be located in the Expo Hall. I found some of the past poster sessions provided some very interesting approaches to management of a project, case studies, or marketing of a program. The poster sessions are less formal and provides the attendee a chance to talk directly with the presenter. You can review the posters on Sunday, November 7 and come back Monday afternoon, November 8, to ask questions of the presenter.
I urge members of our profession to continually seek out educational opportunities that are offered through our association and other associations that provide the training to keep up with the many changes in our profession.
Saturday, October 30, 2010
How can we manage the social media phenomenon?
Question asked by a client during a question and answer session AT A RECENT SEMINAR.
Response:
This is an excellent question CONCERNING a real problem for those involved in the management of electronic information. A few decades ago most organizations (public and/or private) only had to worry about managing their paper records and microfilm. In a recent seminar I listed some of the different ways organizations maintain their information using today’s technology:
Paper
Optical Disks
Compact Discs (CD/DVD)
Cell Phones
Bar Coding
Flash Drives
Email Websites
IM (Instant Messaging)
Blogging
Social Networks (Wiki’s, Twitter, Facebook, etc.,)
Cloud Computing
Microfilm
Next New Technology?????
Unfortunately, technology has grown faster than our ability to adequately manage new technologies effectively from a records management standpoint. One only has to subscribe to a legal, records management, archives or technology listserv to see the confusion caused by our inability to proactively provide specific guidelines on “how to” manage the information. Some regulations are being changed to include the requirements for managing social media. The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) issued Regulatory Notice 10-06, which requires member firms to monitor and retain business related postings made using social networks. Other federal agencies are also updating their rules to include social media content. If you note, no one is prepared for the management of the new technology, and we, in the records management profession, are always placed in a reaction mode. In the case of social media everyone is a few years behind in the establishment of the rules to manage the information explosion.
Fortunately, there is some guidance using the FAQ’s (Frequently Asked Questions) on various records management websites and from NARA (National Archives & Records Administration). As of August 14, 2010 NARA has not posted guidance on their website so you should check later on their FAQ page reflected below. The following are some resources that can be reviewed in the development of a policy:
State of Washington: http://www.sos.wa.gov/_assets/archives/RecordsManagement/RMAdviceSheetBlogsTwitter.pdf
They also have a presentation on social media that may be of interest at: http://www.sos.wa.gov/archives/RecordsManagement/ElectronicRecordsManagementAdviceandResources.aspx
City of Seattle: http://www.seattle.gov/pan/SocialMediaPolicy.htm
NARA: http://www.archives.gov/records-mgmt/faqs/
U.S. Government – General Service Administration: http://www.gsa.gov/graphics/staffoffices/socialmediapolicy.pdf
A listing of various social media policies by governments and private organizations can be found at the Social Media Governance website: http://socialmediagovernance.com/policies.php
University of Washington: http://f2.washington.edu/fm/recmgt/
Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA: http://www.finra.org/Industry/Issues/Advertising/p006118
Although a policy is not currently available on the use of social media the University of Washington website is a great resource with their records management FAQ’s. If you are working in a college/university environment the website should definitely be on your favorites list.
In conclusion, while the use of social media for the dissemination of information is being rapidly adopted by government and private organizations, the legal ramifications on its use is currently in flux based on the lack of established legal precedence. The key thing to remember is that the information being created and maintained on social media sites may be considered a business document and the responsibility of the user to insure that the information is retained, if a legal requirement exists.
Response:
This is an excellent question CONCERNING a real problem for those involved in the management of electronic information. A few decades ago most organizations (public and/or private) only had to worry about managing their paper records and microfilm. In a recent seminar I listed some of the different ways organizations maintain their information using today’s technology:
Paper
Optical Disks
Compact Discs (CD/DVD)
Cell Phones
Bar Coding
Flash Drives
Email Websites
IM (Instant Messaging)
Blogging
Social Networks (Wiki’s, Twitter, Facebook, etc.,)
Cloud Computing
Microfilm
Next New Technology?????
Unfortunately, technology has grown faster than our ability to adequately manage new technologies effectively from a records management standpoint. One only has to subscribe to a legal, records management, archives or technology listserv to see the confusion caused by our inability to proactively provide specific guidelines on “how to” manage the information. Some regulations are being changed to include the requirements for managing social media. The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) issued Regulatory Notice 10-06, which requires member firms to monitor and retain business related postings made using social networks. Other federal agencies are also updating their rules to include social media content. If you note, no one is prepared for the management of the new technology, and we, in the records management profession, are always placed in a reaction mode. In the case of social media everyone is a few years behind in the establishment of the rules to manage the information explosion.
Fortunately, there is some guidance using the FAQ’s (Frequently Asked Questions) on various records management websites and from NARA (National Archives & Records Administration). As of August 14, 2010 NARA has not posted guidance on their website so you should check later on their FAQ page reflected below. The following are some resources that can be reviewed in the development of a policy:
State of Washington: http://www.sos.wa.gov/_assets/archives/RecordsManagement/RMAdviceSheetBlogsTwitter.pdf
They also have a presentation on social media that may be of interest at: http://www.sos.wa.gov/archives/RecordsManagement/ElectronicRecordsManagementAdviceandResources.aspx
City of Seattle: http://www.seattle.gov/pan/SocialMediaPolicy.htm
NARA: http://www.archives.gov/records-mgmt/faqs/
U.S. Government – General Service Administration: http://www.gsa.gov/graphics/staffoffices/socialmediapolicy.pdf
A listing of various social media policies by governments and private organizations can be found at the Social Media Governance website: http://socialmediagovernance.com/policies.php
University of Washington: http://f2.washington.edu/fm/recmgt/
Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA: http://www.finra.org/Industry/Issues/Advertising/p006118
Although a policy is not currently available on the use of social media the University of Washington website is a great resource with their records management FAQ’s. If you are working in a college/university environment the website should definitely be on your favorites list.
In conclusion, while the use of social media for the dissemination of information is being rapidly adopted by government and private organizations, the legal ramifications on its use is currently in flux based on the lack of established legal precedence. The key thing to remember is that the information being created and maintained on social media sites may be considered a business document and the responsibility of the user to insure that the information is retained, if a legal requirement exists.
What Do You Know About Cloud Storage
Question asked by an information technology worker during a break at a recent meeting.
Response:
I told the individual asking this question that the use of Cloud Storage is a hot topic on the records management listserv with various articles discussing the pro’ and con’s of outsourcing storage of electronic records storage to the Cloud. Cloud storage is one of the latest “buzz words” being used by vendors to promote a service to organizations. Based on my review of current literature many organizations are looking into outsourcing their important business information to reduce the cost of their information technology functions. As records management professionals in an organization we are probably not included on the decision making team evaluating the use of the Cloud strategy. We are usually in the re-action phase and only thought of after the fact and/or when someone realizes the information that is being outsourced may have unforeseen consequences by being in the cloud environment in the event of a litigation, retention, retrieval, etc.
As reflected in the “Guidelines for Outsourcing Records Storage to the Cloud”, sold by ARMA International, 2010, Gartner defines Cloud Computing as “A style of computing where scalable and elastic IT-enabled capabilities are delivered as a service to external customers using Internet technologies”. The publication became available in late October in both paper and pdf format and should be a good resource regarding the use of Cloud technology for the RIM professional. The publication comes with checklist that can be used by an organization considering the use of the technology.
As mentioned earlier the main benefit for the use of Cloud computing is cost saving. The publication mentioned above and others list the risk factors. Some of the risks are:
• Accessibility – the ability to retrieve 24 hours a day/7 days a week
• Data Security - how to preserve and protect data to avoid problems in the retrieval process
• Data location – Where is it stored. There may be privacy and data protection issues.
• Data Segregation – How do they manage the segregation of the data for multiple owners sharing the same application and servers.
• Data Integrity – How do they manage backup, recovery and retention issues?
• Data Ownership – Requirement for solid contract with provider on ownership issues.
For further information on Cloud Computing/Storage I recommend the following articles:
“Cloud Computing: Can You Retrieve your Data?” published by CFOInnovationsAsia, October 2010. Article discusses worse case scenarios by an organization of the need to audit and/or litigation. . I’ve bookmarked this website for further review.
http://www.cfoinnovation.com/content/cloud-computing-can-you-retrieve-your-data
Other articles on Cloud Storage from this same resource:
“Cloud and the CFO Reality Check – Finance” published by CFOInnovationsAsia, 19 October 2010
http://www.cfoinnovation.com/content/cloud-and-cfo-reality-check-finance
“The CFO Cloud Computing Nightmare” published by CFOInnovationsAsia, 28 August 2010
http://www.cfoinnovation.com/content/cfos-cloud-computing-nightmare
“When Cloud Computing and Compliance Collide”, ComplianceWeek, 11 October 2010. Also read some of the comments from readers at the bottom of the article.
http://www.complianceweek.com/blog/kelly/2010/10/11/when-cloud-computing-and-compliance-collide/
“What’s The Problem With Cloud Security? There’s Too Much Of It…”, Rational Survivability, 17 October 2010. Article contains technical information with comments from readers on the Cloud structure methodology.
http://www.rationalsurvivability.com/blog/?p=2693
In closing, while I believe many organizations will take advantage of the benefits of Cloud storage, RIM professionals are tasked to be aware of the problems an organization may have if our employer implements Cloud Storage. I hope the resources outlined in this article will be useful to the RIM professional becoming aware of both the positive and negative points of use of this product .
Response:
I told the individual asking this question that the use of Cloud Storage is a hot topic on the records management listserv with various articles discussing the pro’ and con’s of outsourcing storage of electronic records storage to the Cloud. Cloud storage is one of the latest “buzz words” being used by vendors to promote a service to organizations. Based on my review of current literature many organizations are looking into outsourcing their important business information to reduce the cost of their information technology functions. As records management professionals in an organization we are probably not included on the decision making team evaluating the use of the Cloud strategy. We are usually in the re-action phase and only thought of after the fact and/or when someone realizes the information that is being outsourced may have unforeseen consequences by being in the cloud environment in the event of a litigation, retention, retrieval, etc.
As reflected in the “Guidelines for Outsourcing Records Storage to the Cloud”, sold by ARMA International, 2010, Gartner defines Cloud Computing as “A style of computing where scalable and elastic IT-enabled capabilities are delivered as a service to external customers using Internet technologies”. The publication became available in late October in both paper and pdf format and should be a good resource regarding the use of Cloud technology for the RIM professional. The publication comes with checklist that can be used by an organization considering the use of the technology.
As mentioned earlier the main benefit for the use of Cloud computing is cost saving. The publication mentioned above and others list the risk factors. Some of the risks are:
• Accessibility – the ability to retrieve 24 hours a day/7 days a week
• Data Security - how to preserve and protect data to avoid problems in the retrieval process
• Data location – Where is it stored. There may be privacy and data protection issues.
• Data Segregation – How do they manage the segregation of the data for multiple owners sharing the same application and servers.
• Data Integrity – How do they manage backup, recovery and retention issues?
• Data Ownership – Requirement for solid contract with provider on ownership issues.
For further information on Cloud Computing/Storage I recommend the following articles:
“Cloud Computing: Can You Retrieve your Data?” published by CFOInnovationsAsia, October 2010. Article discusses worse case scenarios by an organization of the need to audit and/or litigation. . I’ve bookmarked this website for further review.
http://www.cfoinnovation.com/content/cloud-computing-can-you-retrieve-your-data
Other articles on Cloud Storage from this same resource:
“Cloud and the CFO Reality Check – Finance” published by CFOInnovationsAsia, 19 October 2010
http://www.cfoinnovation.com/content/cloud-and-cfo-reality-check-finance
“The CFO Cloud Computing Nightmare” published by CFOInnovationsAsia, 28 August 2010
http://www.cfoinnovation.com/content/cfos-cloud-computing-nightmare
“When Cloud Computing and Compliance Collide”, ComplianceWeek, 11 October 2010. Also read some of the comments from readers at the bottom of the article.
http://www.complianceweek.com/blog/kelly/2010/10/11/when-cloud-computing-and-compliance-collide/
“What’s The Problem With Cloud Security? There’s Too Much Of It…”, Rational Survivability, 17 October 2010. Article contains technical information with comments from readers on the Cloud structure methodology.
http://www.rationalsurvivability.com/blog/?p=2693
In closing, while I believe many organizations will take advantage of the benefits of Cloud storage, RIM professionals are tasked to be aware of the problems an organization may have if our employer implements Cloud Storage. I hope the resources outlined in this article will be useful to the RIM professional becoming aware of both the positive and negative points of use of this product .
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)