FCW Workshop: Electronic Records Management

The official deadline for federal agencies to shift fully to electronic records management can be counted in days. On December 2022, the National Archives and Records Administration will stop accepting new paper records.

The deadline is a concluding note in the federal government’s shift away from paper to fully digitized documents and records. Those goals, set by M-19-21 in 2019, not only demanded digitized records, but also called for changes to business processes, dramatically different approaches to content classification, new systems that are digital throughout, and records management professionals who are far more strategic and empowered in their roles. It’s a foundational modernization effort and needs to be treated as such.

As the deadline fast approaches, agencies have responded enthusiastically, reimagining how electronic records can be harnessed to make their missions more effective and implementing new systems that harness records management more effectively in service to their mission.

Yet budget constraints, competing IT priorities and even organizational cultures can complicate these already-challenging efforts. Beyond the deadline, agencies will have to keep up with advancing tech. Understanding that path is crucial if they want to keep their edge.

In this workshop, attendees will gain a better understanding of:

• How to identify gaps in existing records management systems
• Develop and implement tactics for addressing those gaps
• Hear from agencies that have implemented complex but successful records digitization systems, including the mission impact of those systems
• Work more efficiently with industry to maximize technology investments
• Better leverage the guidance and assistance available from NARA