Spotlight

This is one of the questions posed in the literature review, the first deliverable of the JISC infoNet project ‘A common framework for measuring the impact of records management’.

HE and FE institutions are being asked to brace themselves for cuts in funding. Particular emphasis is being placed on protecting and enhancing the quality of teaching and research, with institutions being guided to make efficiency savings and cut administrative costs. Where does this leave the records management (RM) function?

Certainly it seems that the case for RM will need to be argued far more than it has in recent years, where there has been a reliance on the intangible benefits of regulatory compliance.

Is the RM function an overhead, a cost or burden that an institution can look to sacrifice as it moves forward in these uncertain economic times; or it is part of the arsenal an institution can utilise to make efficiency gains in the administering and support of its core business of teaching and research? Does RM actually hold the answer?

According to the literature RM can make claim to a number of intangible and tangible benefits, but how these are articulated to an institution’s management is key. Is it sufficient to note the benefits of regulatory compliance or will managers look for further evidence of the benefits received by an institution from the investment of its resources?

Articulating the benefits of RM is no easy task, especially if there is little hard evidence to support the claims. Understanding how the RM function impacts on an institution is an important factor in selling the benefits of it, but are we speaking the same language as senior management? If teaching and research is the core business of an institution should we be looking to articulate the benefits of RM along these lines?

The literature review which aims to look at the extent of evidence available to support claims of efficiency savings made by the RM function is now available. The literature review is the first of three deliverables for this project, the remaining two deliverables ‘Records and Information Management Impact Calculator’ and ‘Records Management Maturity Model’ are scheduled for release in the late autumn.