Surveying and Scheduling Records of OCIO Presented by Jennifer Wright Smithsonian Institution Archives Records Management Team February 16, 2005

Goals of the Presentation  Introduce the Smithsonian Institution Archives (SIA)  Identify SIA’s Records Management Services  Describe the Survey and Schedule Process  Instruct in the Use of a Records Disposition Schedule  Explain the Records Transfer Process  Answer Questions

SIA’s Mission  Appraise, acquire and preserve records of the Institution  Establish policies and provide guidance for management of the National Collections  Offer a range of reference, research, and records services  Create products and services which promote understanding of the Smithsonian and its history

SIA’s Authority – SD 501  “All documents created or received by employees of SI in the course of official business are records of the Institution, and none may be disposed of except in accord [with guidelines] established by the Smithsonian Archives.”

Records Management Services  Help identify what to keep and what to discard  Create disposition schedules  Assist in organizing records – advice and file plans  Supply boxes and do the physical transfer of records  Provide transfer instructions for permanent electronic records  Maintain, care for, and provide access to records  Destroy records according to established schedules

Records Survey and Schedule  More effective management of records  Faster retrieval of documents  Reduced/eliminated level of record-keeping redundancies  Reduced costs of storage equipment and supplies  Elimination of unnecessary files storage  Increased usable space

Survey Process  Meet with designated OCIO staff in small groups  Discuss records created by the unit –Function –Volume –Dates –Format –Arrangement –Office of Record  Follow up with individuals if needed  Meet individually with staff responsible for financial, budget, and other administrative records

What is a Record?  Any official recorded information, regardless of medium or characteristics, created, received, and maintained by a Smithsonian museum, office, or employee

What Do Records Do?  Document actions, decisions, policies and procedures  Legal evidence  Audit trail  Accountability  Corporate memory

What Do Records Look Like?  Records may be located in filing cabinets, storage rooms, servers, or electronic media  They may include: –Paper –Electronic Records –Film and Video –Audio Recordings – –Spreadsheets and Databases –Photographs

Appraising and Scheduling Records  What records were found during survey  Who created those records  What those records look like  What those records do  Do those records exist in other formats

Functions of SI Records  4 Core Functions –Assuring Institutional Continuity –Acquiring and Maintaining the National Collections –Conducting and Supporting Original Research –Diffusing Knowledge

Office of Record  Office of Record is responsible for maintaining the official and most complete set of the record –“Torch” Office of Public Affairs –“Smithsonian Directives” (SDs) Office of Planning Management and Budget  Not all offices are the Office of Record –Technical Notes – one office should maintain the final version although drafts and copies of the final version are found elsewhere

Record Retention  Permanent Records –Historical, enduring value –Best document your office’s activities  Temporary Records –Records of short-term value –Records for which you are not the Office of Record –Administrative, routine, housekeeping functions

Record Activity  Active Records –Current working files –Regularly used to conduct current business –Maintained on-site  Inactive Records –No longer needed by your office to conduct current business –Transfer to the Archives or discard on-site after consulting SI Archives and in accordance with established disposition schedules

How to Use a Records Disposition Schedule  Consists of 4 parts: –Front Matter with instructions for using the schedule and general records management recommendations –General schedule for records common to most offices –Specific schedules for each unit –Appendices with information about maintaining, transferring, discarding, and retrieving your records

Records Transfer  For paper records, call SIA with the types of records to be transferred and the number of boxes you will require  Number the boxes and create a list of folder titles in each box  the folder list to SIA and schedule a records pickup  For electronic records, call SIA to discuss the best means of transferring the records

Records Retrieval  After the records transfer, SIA will provide you with the accession number and a copy of the folder list and will place another copy on the Web with full-text search  To retrieve records, simply contact SIA.  Records stored on-site can be retrieved immediately. Records stored off-site will be retrieved once per week  Records may be used in the SIA Reading Room or charged-out for extended use

Records Center  Records Center materials should be prepared, transferred, and retrieved in the same manner as permanent records  At transfer, a destruction date will be assigned based on the OCIO records disposition schedule  SIA will ensure the timely destruction of records  Temporary electronic records/media should be destroyed through OCIO (see Technical Note IT- 960-TN15) according to guidelines in the OCIO records disposition schedule

Contact Information  Jennifer Wright, Project Coordinator, ext. 37,  for Reference Services:  Records Management on the Web: tml tml