1. January 26, 2010 WAPRO Electronic Records Management 101 WAPRO Electronic Records Management 101 Washington Association of Public Records Officers Kyle Stannert Public Records Manager City of Bellevue

2. Overview Records Management 101 What are the challenges to managing electronic records? City of Bellevue Case Study – Managing email records Lessons learned Discussion – Applying the theories

3. Records Management 101 Washington State Definition of a Record Information, “regardless of physical form or characteristics, …that have been made by or received by any agency of the state of Washington in connection with the transaction of public business…” (RCW40.14.010)

4. Records Management 101 But not all records are created equal…

5. Records Management 101 Look before you leap: RCW 40.14 - Preservation and destruction of public records What is a record Destruction of public records / retention schedules WAC 434-662 - Preservation of electronic public records Electronic records must be retained in electronic format for the length of the designated retention period. Manage metadata with the record Electronic records with archival value WAC 434-663 - Imaging systems, standards for accuracy and durability What to do if you are looking to convert paper records

6. The Challenges Creation Stage Distribution and Use Storage & Maintenance Inactive Storage Archival Preservation or Disposition Who makes the decisions, and when?

7. The Challenges 1)Compliance: Rules for records retention, public disclosure, legal discovery 2)User Fatigue and Confusion High volumes of information and full schedules make it difficult for staff to manage their records 3)IT Resources Costs of storage, maintenance, retrieval, restoration, and increasing expectations from staff

8. City of Bellevue Email Case Study Project Goals: Manage all e-mail and voicemail records in one place. Build in retention rules so staff does not have to do it themselves. Reduce server volumes by limiting non- record storage. Make it easier for staff to find the information they need to do their jobs.

9. City of Bellevue Email Case Study Implementation: Use of City owned email archiving tool (originally implemented in 2004). Spoke to staff about what functions / records they managed in email format. Asked staff if they felt they were successfully managing email. If so, how? Rolled out mandatory email management training for staff and added it to new employee orientation.

10. City of Bellevue Email Case Study Common email categories: 1. Administrative 2. Citizen Complaints / Requests 3. Employee Issues 4. Finance Support Documents 5. Legal Opinions / Advice 6. Planning and Project Files

11. City of Bellevue Email Case Study Folders Are Customizable… ….sort of: Subfolders can be created to match the way YOU work Parent folders cannot be deleted, renamed or added by users.

12. City of Bellevue Case Study Lessons Learned: The GoodThe…Not so Great Implemented feedback from staff in all departments & divisions on how they “successfully” managed email. Unable to address functionality / business use needs not found in the product we owned. Spoke to all employees about their responsibility of managing email, and how to do it. Solution is a “best practice” not a mandate. Not a one size fits all retention solution (ex: keep all email 2 years). Can’t provide flexibility at the user level for storage categories. Ability to search City email at “admin” level.Cannot apply holds at the user / subject / department level. Addresses a significant network storage and efficiency issue. Core functionality email archiving tool (“stubbing”) is frustrating for users. City of Bellevue Email Case Study

13. Common email categories: 1. Administrative 2. Citizen Complaints / Requests 3. Employee Issues 4. Finance Support Documents 5. Legal Opinions / Advice 6. Planning and Project Files

14. Potential Solutions Tools are important, but not the entire solution. Training for staff - all staff - needs to be a priority Determine what is required – technology, users, and compliance Records Management, Information Technology, and Legal all need to work together to find the best fit solutions Create standards, including: – Naming conventions – Filing structures – Agency defined retention periods

15. Discussion – Applying the theories Where are your records, and what can you do with them?

16. THANK YOU! Questions? Kyle Stannert Public Records Manager City of Bellevue 425-452-6021 kstannert@bellevuewa.gov