Thursday, January 06, 2011

Is the “Paperless Office” still a Myth?

Question was asked by a participant at a seminar.

Response:

This is a question that arose from an article written The New Yorker, 25 Marcy in 2002: “The Social Life of Paper” by Malcolm Gladwell, reflecting on how computer technology was supposed to provide the paperless office.

It is my contention that the “Paperless Office” is no longer a myth for both public and private organizations. Unfortunately, technology has grown faster than our ability to adequately manage electronic information effectively from a records management standpoint. While the information is being created by individuals within organizations, we are losing the same information by not managing information produced by of technology such as email, blogging, Wiki’s, Twitter, and Facebook.. Basically, we are losing our organizations’ business memory.

One only has to follow the legal, records management and other information management listservs to recognize the legal problems facing organizations who do not take steps in managing their information. There does not seem to be one day that goes by when there is not a court case at the local, state or federal level on litigation and sanctions for the loss of or inability to find documentation required in a lawsuit. But as a company lawyer once told me, “all we need is another good lawsuit to get the attention of management on the need for a document management program”. With this message in mind I would review current litigations in the federal and state courts that may be related to the business of the company. I would then send a copy of the document(s) to the appropriate areas within the company and to the lawyer for his information. By being pro-active I accomplished two things:
1. Provided internal clients with current articles on possible problem areas.
2. Increased internal client awareness of the organization’s records management program.

The following are a few articles of interest on various document management topics that were recently on the Records Management Listserv:
• Top 7 Legal Things to Know about Cloud, SaaS and eDiscovery — CIOUpdate.com - http://bit.ly/fdFHzT
• FTC Issues Guide for Businesses on Securing Digital Copiers : Info Law Group - http://bit.ly/eKicPc
• Gmail Tips: How to Take Chat Off the Record; Archive E-Mails - http://bit.ly/dMa9Fw
• The Revolution Should Not Be Digitized–Put It on Microfilm Instead | Discoblog | Discover Magazine - http://bit.ly/gJtXxy

In addition, there are resources that may provide some guidance for the records manager on the use of the new technologies. For example:
• Guidelines and Best Practices for Social Media Use in Washington State –
http://www.sos.wa.gov/archives/RecordsManagement/ElectronicRecordsManagementAdviceandResources.aspx.
• Guidance on Managing Records in Web 2.0/Social Media Platforms, October 20, 2010 - http://www.archives.gov/records-mgmt/bulletins/2011/2011-02.html
• Guidance on Managing Records in Cloud Computing Environments, September 30, 2010
http://www.archives.gov/records-mgmt/bulletins/2010/2010-05.html

In closing, I believe RIM professionals are tasked to be aware of the problems an organization may encounter when managing the technologies of the 21st Century. I hope the resources outlined in this article may be useful to the RIM professional in becoming aware of both the positive and negative points of use of technology.


Bob Dalton, CRM of Dalton Consulting

Note: My thanks to editor, Barbara Werelius, Records Manager and Guru at the Tacoma Public Utilities for her assistance in the development of this article. Other articles by Mr. Dalton can be reviewed and copied at his BLOG site: askthecrm.blogspot.com.