Standard ISO 15489
Kathryn Dan
National Archives of Australia
A new international standard
In early October 2001 a new international standard ISO 15489: Information and documentation – Records management was launched. Although the words «acquisition» and «appraisal» are not defined or used in the Standard, the ideas are threaded through the document and are central to its implementation.
At the core of the standard is a process for design and implementation of the records system. The approach of ISO 15489 supports making decisions about how records are created, captured, controlled and kept at any stage, including in the design of records systems.
What ISO 15489 says about appraisal
Appraisal is embedded in the decisions made when designing or implementing a records system. Implementing a records system includes «determining retention periods and making decisions about records which have continuing value, in keeping with the regulatory environment.» (ISO 15489, 8.1). Operating a reliable records system entails "protect[ing] the records from unauthorized alteration or disposition" (ISO 15489, 8.2.1).
The steps in designing and implementing a records system are:
- preliminary investigation;
- analysis of business activity;
- identification of requirements for records;
- assessment of existing systems;
- identification of strategies for satisfying records requirement’s;
- design of a records system;
- implementation of a records system; and
- post-implementation review.
Appraisal occurs as a logical result of the combination of a number of these steps. It is integral to the design or re-design of a records system. Although there will be a point when an appraisal decision is made and documented, the decision relies on an understanding of the business and requirements for records, and will need to be implemented through the whole records system. This is especially true in the electronic environment.
Basis of the appraisal decision
Decisions about how long particular records should be kept are based on an assessment of business requirements, the regulatory environment and the needs of stakeholders. Risk is an underlying element in any assessment and decision.
To decide how long records should be kept one needs to examine:
- Current and future business needs:
Identifying the needs of business includes assessing how records contribute to actions of the organisation, what role they play in accountability, whether they contribute to corporate memory and ensuring that records are dealt with efficiently and destroyed expeditiously if not required. - Legal and regulatory requirements:
Specific minimum retention times may be set by law or regulation. - Current and future needs of internal and external stakeholders:
Identifying the needs of stakeholders is probably the most difficult area as these will be varied and may not be well known or articulated. The aim of assessing the needs of stakeholders is to identify those records that will «serve the interests of research and society as a whole» (ISO 15489, 9.2).
Standards in practice
The predecessor of ISO 15489 in Australia was AS 4390 Australian Standard – Records Management, issued in 1996. Australian government archives, at a federal and state level, endorsed the use of AS4390 in their jurisdictions and the standard has been used in other organisations. The archives of the State of New South Wales (State Records New South Wales) and the federal archives (National Archives of Australia) jointly developed a manual which takes the strategic steps of the standard and develops them into a practical guidance manual, the Designing and Implementing Recordkeeping Systems Manual.
In the last 18 months the National Archives of Australia has worked with up to 75 federal government agencies on implementation of various stages of designing and implementing a records system using the Manual as a guiding tool. Many agencies have concentrated on making appraisal decisions for their records. We have learned from this experience that:
- the analysis in various steps of designing a records system overlaps and is iterative;
- taking an integrated and holistic view of recordkeeping is a new way of thinking for many organizations; and
- having a Standard does not eliminate variations in interpretation.
One of the strengths of the ISO 15489 approach is that the analysis is contingent on the environment in which it is implemented. Therefore appraisal decisions and records systems design can be strongly linked to the context – whether that context is the business itself, the regulatory environment or social concerns.
Suggested reading
- ISO 15489-1 Information and documentation – Records management – Part 1: General.
- ISO TR 15489-2 Information and documentation – Records management – Part 2: Guidelines.
- Forthcoming publication from the International Organization for Standardization (ISO)AS4390 Australian Standard – Records Management. Standards Association of Australia. 1996.
- Designing and Implementing Recordkeeping Systems Manual. Available at www.naa.gov.au/recordkeeping/dirks/dirksman/dirks.html and www.records.nsw.gov.au/publicsector/DIRKS/exposure_draft/title.html.
Kathryn Dan
Kathryn Dan is an Assistant Director-General at the National Archives of Australia. She has responsibility for the Government Recordkeeping Branch, which sets and promotes standards for government agencies on how they create, manage and keep records. Kathryn spent seven years at National Archives in the 1980s and 1990s working in a variety of areas including disposal and personal records. Prior to re-joining the organisaion in 1998, she worked at the National Library of Australia in reference services and policy coordination and as Acting University Archivist at the Australian National University. Kathryn has also worked in several federal government agencies. She is a member of IT21, the Records Management committee of Standards Australia and has served on the national Council of the Australian Society of Archivists holding the position of President/Vice-President from 1995-1998. She has a Bachelor or Arts (Honours) degree and a Graduate Diploma in Library and Information Management.