Some News
By Doug Allen | August 6, 2008
Here’s some publicity that I really wasn’t counting on. I bring it to you here before you see this story in the press:
Topics: ARMA International - Activities & Commentary | 1 Comment »
What Is The Visible Future of Records and Information Management?
By Doug Allen, CRM, CDIA+ | July 19, 2008
I hope that those reading this posting feel quite open and ready to comment on the visible future of the Records and Information Management Profession. Comments about the future of the profession, and comments relating to the future of ARMA International are most welcome here.
Now, just as some “food for thought”. Does the professional future for Records and Information Management include:
(1) The merger of ECM (Enterprise Content Management) and BPM (Business Process Management) technology suites?
(2) Does our foreseeable future include new advances in those technologies, where the software firms involved incorporate aspects of instant messaging, wiki, “forum”, and social networking capabilities?
(3) Can we foresee some real challenges and problems with the inclusion of new technologies as we seek to ensure that our organizations comply with statutes and regulations - within our home nations and beyond?
(4) Do we foresee the need for significantly enhanced skill sets among Records and Information Management professionals, and what might those be?
(5) Would anyone reading this like to take on the task of the challenge that the Enterprise/Web 2.0 tools may pose to organizations, as they seek to comply with regulatory requirements, with e-discovery needs, and with efforts to manage information more effectively?
(6) Are we faced with a future that includes increased levels of governmental regulation?
(7) Are Records and Information Managers going to be called on to manage or to work with stakeholders including IT, and Legal to manage “non-record” electronic information as well?
The above are just a few examples of what each of us might consider in first evaluating our visible future, and in mapping out our plans to prepare for that future. Again, the comments of all are welcomed here!
If you are a member of ARMA International….and wish to comment further, please register on the Forum site incorporated in this blog site. Simply register with a name that I can track to an ARMA membership account, and you’ll be welcomed to provide input on additional topics, including the specific ARMA International Vision/Mission/Goals and Values Statements, etc. Your involvement and comment can only help ARMA International in developing programs, products and services that will help your career prospects!
Topics: ARMA International - Activities & Commentary | No Comments »
Should Records and Information Managers Be Involved In Medical Records Discussions?
By Doug Allen, CRM, CDIA+ | July 7, 2008
I am taking the opportunity to post two key questions to those engaged in the Records and Information Management profession. Should all of us be involved in the discussion as it relates to what’s happening in the arena of medical records? Should ARMA take a stand as it relates to protecting medical records from inadvertent disclosure or malicious “medical indentity theft”? My position as one who is heavily involved with ARMA and who has been a “victim” of financial identity theft is a definite yes!
My reasons focus on the potential disaster that can befall a victim of medical identity theft. We have witnessed a deluge of recent disclosures relating to paper-based and electronic medical records losses and thefts. What some of us may not realize is what that can mean for us as individuals, and what it means for others whose medical records are used inappropriately or illegally by others. Members of the American Medical Records Association are involved, why not ARMA members and ARMA as an Association as well?
What are the potential results? The results can affect us and others by compromising our financial identity - where medical identity thieves essentially hijack our information to obtain controlled substances - drugs, and can even lead to the inclusion of innacurate information within our own medical profiles. Let’s say, for example, that someone with a different blood type hijacks your medical record. What happens when a hospital relies on that incorrect information to provide you with a blood transfusion? What happens when that incorrect information leads medical professionals to treat you with a medication to which you are allergic? Disaster can certainly ensue, and the risks include the potential for death as the result of treatments based on that false information.
As Amy Buttrell noted on the bankrate.com web site, “Financial identity theft can wound your wallet, but medical identity theft can kill you.”
Beyond the impact on each of us, medical records theft often allows the thieves to bilk our insurers, our government sponsored health care plans like Medicare out of millions and potentially billions of dollars. Fraud in the health care area only serves to increase our costs and to increase our taxes as insurers and government agencies pay for services and for prescriptions that are not needed or used.
What are your thoughts about the stake that Records and Information Management professionals have in protecting our medical records identities? I look forward to your comments!
Topics: Records and Information Management News | 3 Comments »
Invitation for ARMA Members - What Can ARMA Do For You?
By Doug Allen, CRM, CDIA+ | July 1, 2008
This posting is designed to invite those who read this blog to participate in determining ARMA International’s future direction. As some may be aware, ARMA has a Strategic Plan. That plan provides the foundation of activities and programs that are designed to serve both the profession of Records and Information Management and the members of the Association. Thus, it directly affects what ARMA is doing for you - as an ARMA member.
Your participation is important. It provides the Strategic Planning Committee with your thoughts helps us determine what we want to see for our profession (our vision), what we are all about - or what we do (our mission), our goals, and the issues that we address. I won’t go into detail about the entire planning process, but the Committee will meet between August 1 and 3 in Kansas City. At that meeting, we’ll review our existing strategy, determine where we want to go from here, and what we’ll be doing in the future - beginning next July (yes - July, 2009).
For those interested in seeing and learning what the planning process is all about and what our plan provides for today, please check this link, and log into the ARMA International Members site. That provide you with what the Strategic Planning Committee has established as our plan, as of today. Let us know what you think by linking to the survey located at the bottom of that link in so far as the key issues are concerned. The text at the bottom of that page reads as follows: “Tell us what you think.”
You can tell us more, however than just those issues on which we should focus time, attention and monetary resources. You can participate in a full discussion regarding all aspects of the plan, and can help determine what ARMA will do for you and for other members of the profession in future years. In order to go beyond the survey responses, I invite you to click on the link for this blog site, entitled “Forums” on the top right corner of this page. If you’d like to register and to provide us with your comments, questions, etc., just register - provide just a bit of information (ensuring that you’re over the age of 13), your email address, and I’ll ensure that your registration is approved. The only limitation that I’ll point to here is that we’re seeking input from members of ARMA International, thus in order to have your registration approved, you must be an ARMA member.
If you do that, your comments, questions and issues will be raised directly with those responsible for determining ARMA’s future. We’ll be better able to determine what is most important to you and what we can do for you.
Thank you in advance for considering participating in the Forum on ARMA Strategic Planning - I look forward to your contribution!
Topics: ARMA International - Activities & Commentary | No Comments »
Tools for Our Paper Based Heritage
By Doug Allen, CRM, CDIA+ | May 6, 2008
This is my first posting in a while, as best as I can calculate it has been more than four weeks since my last posting. It appears that the weddings of children, ARMA activities and work can sometimes take priority. Fortunately, it has given me time to think a bit about a number of topics. One of those relates to our paper-based heritage in Records and Information Management and the absolute need for practitioners to be aware of the best approaches to (1) paper based filing for active files, (2) records storage that may be onsite or offsite, in-house or outsourced for inactive records and (3) the disposition of records for those records ready to be disposed of.I do see a number of postings on the Records Management Listserv that relate to questions arising in all areas, and I am well aware of some excellent sources that people may overlook in their quest to manage our paper heritage. Hopefully, I can provide at least a few here - focusing primarily on standards and guides, some ANSI based, some industry based to help those who wish to follow best practices.
The management of paper-based active filing systems has been the subject of numerous books, articles and recommendations over a period of a number of decades. One starting point to which I would refer those seeking to establish such filing systems would be the ISO Standard entitled “Establishing Alphabetic, Numeric and Subject Filing Systems. What better place is there to begin than through the use of a standard recognized by ANSI? Here is a link to that publication within the ARMA International Bookstore for convenience purposes.
In managing inactive records storage facilities, there are a number of excellent sources. Those sources can provide guidance for Records and Information Managers seeking to evaluate their storage options and those seeking to operate such facilities, based on ISO standards. First, I would point to another association, the Professional Records & Information Services Management Association (PRISM). Members typically include those storage organizations that provide outsourced storage of inactive records, vault storage for electronic records, and sometimes offer services including secured destruction management. PRISM’s “Facility Evaluation Checklist” is readily available on the PRISM web site at the location contained within this link . Additional resources are available through the ARMA International web site, including the Records Center Operations - A Guideline and the Guideline for Evaluating Offsite Records Storage Facilities .
Finally, we do know that the destruction of records has become a hotter topic, as statutes that are designed to protect individuals from identity theft have come to the fore and as private sector firms place increased emphasis on the protection of their intellectual property. Fortunately, there is a group to which many organizations belong that focuses its attention on ensuring that its members adhere to some commonly approved practices to ensure that the destruction of records is properly secured. The National Association for Information Destruction, Inc. (NAID®) has information readily available to those who are Records and Information Managers about those firms that are “certified members” and information regarding the NAID® Certification Program.
Hopefully the above sources will prove helpful to those who stumble across or who check this blog!
Topics: Standards & Best Practices | 1 Comment »
Government and Business Process Transformation Projects - What’s Wrong with Current Efforts?
By Doug Allen, CRM, CDIA+ | March 24, 2008
I have seen substantial investments of tax dollars made as State and Local Agencies focus on improving existing business processes, and as they seek to ensure that key governmental services applications are improved to render better services to constituent groups. However, many of these efforts fail to achieve the high impact, long-lasting results that agencies set as their ambitious goals.What are the reasons for the frequent failures to achieve success? There are several, but one that I believe is often overlooked is that agencies view process improvement or process transformation as a “one time effort”. They often fail to appreciate the need for the continuous improvement of their processes. Thus, agencies are prone to taking actions that allow them to:
- Document current business processes
- Identify weaknesses, gaps and areas requiring improvement, and subsequently
- Launch new processes based on newly developed system applications
Where’s the weakness? The weakness rests in the thought that a single iteration of a new or “to be” process is sufficient. Thus, rather than acquiring advanced Business Process Management (BPM) suites…and then building applications around those tools, agencies tend to rely on contractors who build one-time, one-off solutions that embed some process management capabilities, but that do not allow agencies to:
- Model and simulate alternative processes
- Actively Manage existing processes to shorten process cycle times and to appropriately monitor process goals and business activities
- Apply advanced process analytics to see where bottlenecks are developing, and then to apply additional modeling and simulation to eliminate such bottlenecks.
There are outstanding suites available for use, some of which would allow government organizations to operate with as much or with greater efficiency than any private sector firm. However, until these agencies demand that contractors incorporate such suites into their proposed solutions, it is unlikely that we will see government agencies achieve the results that the desire. Contractors, for their part are apt to build solutions that “encourage” or require agencies to continue to return to them for future services, as business requirements or statutory requirements create the need for additional changes in process.
One agency that has broken the constraints of that particular mold is the Los Angeles County Information Systems Advisory Body. As that group sought to build a solution to automate a key law enforcement application for the collection of DNA evidence, they sought to acquire a solution that they could implement, and that they could operate over time. As a result of their work, the Los Angeles County Information Systems Advisory Body and the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department now work with a solution that will serve them well beyond an initial deployment.
Topics: R.I.M. Technology | No Comments »
RIM Standards, Best Practices, Training and Litigation - How Soon Will This Become a Key Issue?
By Doug Allen, CRM, CDIA+ | March 17, 2008
The title of this posting is a question that I’ve posed to some of those who conduct “mock trial” events for ARMA International, and for some of the better known ECM vendors. My question arose again during some recent conversation with an Attorney General’s office in one of our larger states here in the
The Attorney General’s office in question contacted me…and I imagine a few others to ask about Records Management practices in a particular vertical industry. Among other things, they were interested in learning:
- What are or what should be the requirements for a Corporate Records and Information Manager
- What education and training such an individual should have, what kind of staffing levels should exist, based on the characteristics of this industry
- What training would be or should be provided to company employees, and
- What standards and best practices exist as it pertains to protecting “individual identifying information
The apparent reasons for the questions raised, were that the firm in question appeared to have a Corporate Records Manager, but one that did not happen to be a Certified Records Manager (CRM). The organization also had specific policies in place that all employees were to follow. However, it appears that in one particular instance, in the State in question, an employee of the firm disregarded those policies and failed to adequately protect that personal identifying information. Since the State had a statute in place designed to discourage such failures, and an Attorney General who took privacy protection seriously, legal action was taken against that firm.
While I do not know the specifics of the case, or the specifics of the alleged violation of statute, the message that I got from the discussion was as quite telling. That message is: that merely having a “Records Manager” is not apt to be enough to “inoculate” a firm against potential litigation, that a firm involved in such litigation is likely to have a serious probe of its Records Management program and policies become part of that litigation, that the qualifications of the Records Manager, the training of that Manager, and the support for that Manager will be considered to be fair game. Additionally, those involved in litigation will compare quite closely the practices that firms undertake, given existing standards today. It also demonstrated the potential damage and the potential issues that can arise, since so many employees actually handle such information today.
Is this a singular case that will not recur? My opinion is that it will not. States that take new Statutes regarding privacy seriously can be counted on to pursue those who disregard those statutes. Firms that pay lip service to Records Management, without taking such efforts seriously will be challenged and may pay high price for failing to mitigate the risks involved with mishandling information that contains personal identifying information of employees and customers.
Topics: ARMA International - Activities & Commentary | 2 Comments »
Ethics – Professional Responsibility and Career Success in Records and Information Management
By Doug Allen, CRM, CDIA+ | March 12, 2008
One of my “google alerts” last week led me to an article on the topic of personal business ethics in the pursuit of professional growth. I found the article to be rather insightful. It was one that touched on issues that those of us on the ARMA International Board of Directors occasionally encounter, when fielding questions or issues raised by members. For those of us who are vendors or who are consultants, the following passage grabbed my attention…
“If your career involves consulting, advising, or otherwise providing solutions to other people in any capacity, whether it is to consumers who seek your expertise, or peers within your own specialty who stand to gain something from the information you can impart upon them, your personal sense of ethics is a premier point by which others will judge you.”
During my 33+ years in the information management business, I’ve seen many of our compatriots heed this advisory, and those individuals have typically prospered over time and remain in the business. Others who failed to recognize the role of ethical conduct in success have more often that not “evaporated”, and have often moved on to destinations unknown.
For those of us who are members of ARMA International, many of us are aware of ARMA’s Code of Professional Responsibility, although it would not be a bad idea for us to review that code from time to time. There are provisions for the enforcement of that Code of Professional Responsibility, but I am happy to report that instances where complaints are filed, or where disciplinary action is deemed appropriate are quite rare.
If you have time to review the article, and to review the Code of Professional Responsibility, I would recommend highly recommend it. Not because I see most of us as lacking in any way, but to ensure that we appreciate the link between ethical conduct and long-term career success.
As always, I would like to hear any comment that any readers of this blog might have!
Topics: ARMA International - Activities & Commentary | No Comments »
Taking Control of Your Career
By Doug Allen, CRM, CDIA+ | March 7, 2008
Are you challenged in finding a way to move from a “job” in the Records and Information Management field to a “career” in the field? In earlier years, I certainly was challenged to do just that. My efforts at that time focused on attaining a CRM certification - something that has proven to be very valuable, and later to incorporate a CDIA+ certification. However, in seeking additional training and education, I had no tools available that would allow me to assess where I stood, nor any specific pointers to resources that would allow me to supplement that training and education. Today, as I continue that “life long learning” effort in which many of us engage, I’m happy to have new tools that I’m able to use. Those tools are available to ARMA members, through the self assessment that measures my progress against a developed set of competencies.Just a few days ago, ARMA International announced the launch of a RIM Self-Assessment tool. That new tool is designed to provide RIM professionals with the ability to assess their strengths and to identify gaps in their skills and knowledge. Not only does that tool provide an assessment, but it also points to resources that will allow RIM professionals with the ability to locate resources that will allow professionals to fill those gaps and to move forward in their careers.
There are a few items to note in using the assessment, including:
- You must be a member of ARMA International.
- The assessment will open in a new browser window, so be sure your pop-up blocker is set to allow the connection.
- Log in using your email address and ARMA International member password. You will be taken to the RIM Self-Assessment to begin. Save your results any time by moving to the next page in the assessment. Your assessment will be saved and you can refer to it and your results at any time.
For more complete information on the Self Assessment Tool, see this link on the ARMA web site. Then, get started in taking greater control over the progress of your career!
Topics: ARMA International - Activities & Commentary | No Comments »
Business Process Management and Outsourced Capture – What’s the Link?
By Doug Allen, CRM, CDIA+ | February 26, 2008
We hear about and read about business process management (BPM) as being important to business enterprises. Efforts to continue to push the envelope of productivity improvement and customer service improvement motivate organizations to invest in software and to pursue implantation aggressively. Believe it or not, there are direct benefits from those outsource capture firms that have implemented Business Process Management Technology, like Global 360’s Business Optimization Suite. Customers of those firms benefit directly from:
- Increased visibility into their outsource partner’s processes
- Improved ability to monitor contract compliance with service levels
- Ability to locate information that is currently in an outsource partner’s hands - often at the folder level
- Ability to provide reporting to senior management on the status of one or more conversion projects
- Improved communications and issue reporting with the organization’s conversion partner
In improving visibility of an outsource partner’s processes, the use of BPM tools allows an organization to better understand and to see real-time information regarding the progress of either an ongoing scanning effort or a large back-file conversion effort. They can actually look at the current status of those efforts over a secure web link.
Turnaround times can be readily calculated and reported to an organization on an automatic basis. Organizations whose partners make use of BPM tools can see immediately whether their outsource firm is either in compliance with service level agreements, or whether they may be out of compliance.
BPM tools often make use of the data collected through the preparation, scanning, indexing, and quality assurance processes to provide customized reports that limit a project managers work in reporting to senior management on the progress of conversion efforts. The use of graphical representations of information (e.g. bar charts or graphs) can supplement the data provided in those reports to provide an accurate picture of the status of the conversion efforts.
Communications with outsource conversion partners has been handled by telephone and email in the past. The use of BPM tools and the collaboration components within them can significantly improve issue reporting, tracking and resolution. That collaboration component also helps ensure that no issue drops through the cracks, and that all open issues are visible to both parties.
Could such capabilities be applied to large-scale in-house scanning and conversion efforts? The answer is yes, so long as there is adequate data available from the capture software in use.
Topics: R.I.M. Technology | No Comments »
