This is a draft unpublished paper that has been prepared
in association with a National Association of Government Archives
and Records Administrators (NAGARA) annual conference presentation
in Sacramento, California, July 16-19, 1997. Any references to
this paper should note, along with attribution to the author,
that it is an unpublished draft paper.
Business Systems Analysis: Tool for Information Management
and Macro-Appraisal
Business Systems Analysis: Municipal Modelling
and Functional Thesauri
Julie Luckevich, BA, MLIS, Toronto, Canada
Abstract
This paper answers the question: Can a business enterprise model
be used by Records Managers and Archivists to provide a framework
for organizing records? This paper describes a project for the
Municipality of Metropolitan Toronto (Ontario) Canada that would
integrate a business enterprise model called the Municipal
Reference Model (MRM) and a controlled thesaurus designed
for public sector agencies (Keyword AAA) to apply a controlled
indexing vocabulary to a multi-dimensional database that would
track all records-related information necessary to manage a Corporate-wide
records management program. The benefits of using an enterprise
model include: instant documentation of the relationships between
the various parts of the organization, an instant classification
structure, which can be used to integrate both paper and electronic
record keeping systems, and an almost instantaneous high-level
controlled indexing vocabulary, which ensures access and retrieval
of "the right information at the right time". Keyword
AAA is helpful as an adjunct to the MRM in providing more
specifically records related terminology resulting in a truly
comprehensive controlled vocabulary for describing the entire
information holdings of an organization.
"The task of constructing a mirror of society is difficult, but possible, and it is this role which archivists should seek to fulfill."(1)
Introduction
What is a business model? a business model identifies business functions, and the information subjects created and used in the performance of those functions, and then links these to the organizational units and business locations.(2)
When referring to 'business functions', I do not mean function
in any sense which links it to organizational structure. The
business functions, in the sense in which I am using them, are
completely independent of the organizational structure, and instead
focus on what is being done. What program is being offered to
the residents of a municipality? What services are provided,
as part of that program? What activities need to be performed,
in order to provide that service? And finally, what information
is being created?
I like to think of a municipality of a system for providing certain
generally recognized amenities - clean water to drink, schools
for our children, safe roads, emergency response, parks and other
recreational facilities, and safe disposal of waste products of
the people and businesses that live and operate in that municipality.
If you think about analyzing it as a system, what would
it look like?
Think of a model home at a home show, or a modular home building
kit . If you were seriously interested in purchasing that home,
you would probably want to make some modifications. You might
want the sink moved to a different side of the kitchen. You might
want one large front hall closet instead of two smaller hallway
closets. You would customize it to suit your needs.
The Municipal Reference Model works in much the same way.
a city decides to purchase the generic model, which it then customizes
to reflect the specific programs and services which it provides
to its citizens.
Another way of looking at it, is to think of Tinker Toys. For
those of you who never played with Tinker Toys, they were standardized
pieces that could be put together to make larger things. There
were disks with holes around the edges, and small sticks which
you stuck in the holes. The elements were simple and interchangeable,
and you could put them together in different ways; they ended
up looking a lot like molecular models. The MRM is like that too.
The use of strictly controlled vocabulary to describe programs
and activities means that much of the language stays the same;
the rest is as meaningful and descriptive as possible.
The Business Systems Analysis Approach
The Municipal Reference Model is a pre-built enterprise
model specifically designed for municipalities. It is intended
to be used as a planning tool
While not intended as a records management tool, this paper describes a method of using the Model to meet the needs of a Corporate-wide, integrated Records Management and Archives program. The Model comes as a software tool, pre-populated with an inventory of typical municipal programs, services, resources, events and activities. When a municipality purchases it, they immediately begin to populate it with their particular mandate, organization structure and culture. The municipality does this using a rigorously defined controlled vocabulary.
At the macro-level of a business function, this controlled vocabulary
is also used to describe the life cycle of activities associated
with each business function. These business function life cycles
can be used by archivists and records managers as a framework
for much of the necessary work of acquiring, appraising, describing,
indexing and retrieving information collections.
It is my belief that using a business model as an analytical tool
will provide many benefits. For example, the MRM
Statement of Purpose
Using a database of metadata about the record series, I propose
to use the business systems analysis approach as a way of providing
a stratified view of the organization. This view of the organization
will assist archivists and records managers to plan, organize
and put in place systems for the arrangement and description of
their organization's information collections. This approach will
make use of two key tools: the Municipal Reference Model,
and Keyword AAA.
I propose to use the Human Resources function to show how examining
the records using a business systems analysis approach can make
appraisal decisions easier and more representative.
Case Study: Overview of Human Resources in the
MRM
All activities identified in the Model share a template for the
types of activities. These activities are organized into four
phases of a "life cycle". The phases are:
For each of these phases, there are specific activities, specific
things which the Corporation probably does in support of a program
or service.
Example: Human Resources
Phase of Life Cycle | Resource Type Activities |
Management/Planning Activities | Forecast requirements for human resource Define human resource development objectives and strategies Define human resource policies, procedures and standards Define compensation and benefit schedules for human resource Negotiate human resource agreements |
Acquisition/Use Activities | Recruit human resource Record human resource activities Pay human resource Develop human resource Counsel human resource |
Monitoring Activities | Monitor human resource performance Monitor compliance with human resource policies |
Disposal Activities | Transfer human resource Terminate human resource |
For each of the activities identified, there should be records
showing that this work was actually done by the organization.
This template can be used as a "treasure hunt" for records
which the archivist suspects must exist, but has no knowledge
of.
Another use of the Model is in providing a stratified view of
the same business function, across all organizational units.
STRATIFIED SAMPLING
What is it?
Stratified sampling is a method for achieving objectivity when
making judgements in the disposal of case and survey files. It
overcomes some of the deficiencies of random sampling, (certain
files of significant research value may be overlooked) without
substituting that principle of archival selection which, in effect,
says, use your best judgement.
According to the ALA World Encyclopedia of Library and Information
Services,
One method used to overcome this deficiency [of random sampling]
is to create a stratified sample that includes all files at the
high level of a scale and reduced percentages at lower levels
of the scale.(4)
Typical strata, viewed from left to right, might include the following
typical types of files which would be of interest to archivists:
|| Policies, procedures || Program Mgmt. ||
Program Admin. || Case files ||
Or, one could view a stratified sample as being a sort of pyramid. The layers of the pyramid can represent the different strata of records produced by the business unit. The archivist could then assign a percentage to the quantity of records to be selected from each strata. The
strata could be based on the Business Functions Life Cycle, or
other template.
|| Mgmt/Planning || Acquisition/Use || Monitoring
|| Disposal ||
Type of files Percentage kept
Acquisition/Use 1 ? %
Disposal 10 ? %
Monitoring 80 ? %
Management/Planning 100 ? %
Or, the archivist might find that case files, for example, include
records relating to more than one phase of the life cycle. The
archivist could use the life cycle to ensure that they had documented
the important records under each activity; they could then "map"
the record series to the activities, or vice versa. The resulting
activity to record series relationships could provide very interesting
information to researchers about how the organization worked.
How does the Model help?
Because the Model links records by business activity, it naturally
pulls together records dealing with the same activity, no matter
where it takes place in the organization. This means, for
example, that all records dealing with human resources could be
identified not only by organizational unit, but by where they
fit within the larger organization, cutting across all organizational
lines. It's a view that provides instant context; a map, or guide
to where archivists should focus their efforts as far as documenting
the key functions of the organization.
Another aspect of the Model, that is of critical importance to
records managers and archivists, is that it assigns the level
of authority for each program and service.
The levels of authority are represented by three codes which are
assigned to each particular program and service: P - Primary,
I - Involved, and D - Decision Making. For each specific program
or service, the model can track which organizational unit has
primary authority for running the program or providing
the service, which unit is merely involved in the program
or service, and which unit has decision-making authority
regarding that particular program or service. Where the model
is most helpful, is that it can show, quite easily, where, for
example, one program is offered by several units, areas or locations
within the same organization. It can also show, quite clearly,
where there is, apparently, no decision-making unit within
an organization for a particular program or service. These tables
could be of great benefit to records manager trying to establish
official copies of documents for retention purposes, and to archivists
trying to establish lines of authority and decision-making.
For example, suppose a new program appears in 1986, Recycling
(Blue Box Program). The Model instantly puts Recycling within
the larger context of the Environment Program, together with all
of the other municipal services classified as belonging to the
Environment Program. If the archivist was looking for documentation
of the social conditions and business environment that led to
the decision to add this program to the municipal portfolio of
services provided to its residents, he or she would know that
the records would most likely be found in the record series classified
as belonging to the Environment Program, just prior to
and during the initial implementation of the Blue Box Program.
The example below lists all of the municipal services classified
as belonging to the Environment Program, and the Department responsible
for them:
Example: Metro Works Department, Environment Program
Program Service
Environment Program Storm water removal
Pollution control service
Solid waste disposal
Environmental approval services
Sanitary/Liquid waste removal
Industrial discharge inspection
Solid waste recycle
Infrastructure improvement grant service
In the example above, the Model would link this information the
organizational structure. As part of the customization of the
Model, the Municipality would add the information showing the
level of authority for specific Programs, Services and Activities,
i.e. who had primary responsibility for running the program,
who was involved in it (however peripherally), and who
had decision making authority for it.
It's important to try, graphically (or otherwise), to represent
the existence of records flowing out of what the business is
and does. The Model provides this structure.
How can the Model be implemented?
By creating a database of metadata about the records, linking
it to the terms from the Model, in addition to the organizational
hierarchy.
Problem Definition
This proposal to use the Model as a records management and archives
tool began with the recognition of a business problem within the
Corporate Records Management Program at the Municipality of Metropolitan
Toronto.
As the Senior Records Analyst for Classification and Documentation,
it was my job to collect and track project statistics for work
done by Records Analysts for the individual departments. These
projects consisted primarily of active records conversions, but
also included transfers of inactive records, transfers of active
records, and file consolidations/splitting of files.
Conversions also included development of an operational file plan,
and data entry of the records into our software. We had software
to track the files, but nothing to track the management of the
projects within the larger context of the Corporation's total
information holdings. We wanted to get and keep a handle on the
total information holdings of the Corporation (both paper and
electronic), and we wanted one tool to both manage the metadata,
as well as the project-related data. We then wanted to extract
project-related statistics from the database, and be able to roll
them up from the smallest aggregate unit, e.g. a unit of a section
of a division of a department, to the department or higher level
for two purposes: reporting to senior management, and managing
the four portfolios of departments. (The portfolios mapped to
the four Standing Committees of Metro, and did not always group
whole departments. The Human Services portfolio, for example,
included the Corporate Access and Privacy division of the Clerk's
Department. The Infrastructure and Facilities portfolio included
the entire Transportation and Works Departments, but only sections
of Parks and Culture Department. The other two portfolios were
Planning, and Corporate Functions, where the rest of the Clerk's
Department was located.)
Briefly, the problems were as follows:
1. Service Statistics
2. Retention By-laws
3. Organizational Change
Process That Was Followed
Solution Proposed
Business Systems Analysis Approach
e.g. Program: Internal Support Activities
Service: Human Resource Management - Compliance
e.g. Human Resource Management - Compliance might include
Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) Programs
e.g. EEO: enquiries, grievances, legislation, meetings,
planning, policy, procedures, programs, reporting, standards
e.g. EEO: agenda papers, briefing papers, complaints, customer
surveys, disability plans, minutes, registers, regulations, reports,
returns, reviews
Example:
Function: Human Resources
Keyword: Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO)
Activity Descriptor: Grievances
Subject Descriptor: Reports
Subject Descriptor: Alternative Dispute Resolution
Free text/Controlled Term: Mediated Settlement
As can be seen from the examples above, these terms could also
be used to provide a standardized to naming convention for how
record series are named, and how files are titled.
The terms from Keyword AAA can be used with the Model to
create, in effect, a controlled indexing vocabulary. A subject/functional
vocabulary is analogous to the use of Library of Congress Subject
Headings to index library material. The difference is that the
organization starts with the structure only (and some general
terminology), and must create its own Corporate Thesaurus. This
Corporate Thesaurus should ideally be controlled by either a Descriptive
Standards Office, the standards position on the Records Management
side, or both, with Records Management probably being the source
of many of the new terms, and the archives program putting in
the links (see and see also references, use
and used for references) from the new terms to the older,
or no longer used Corporate terminology (or vice versa, from the
old terms to the new terms).
Benefits
General Benefits
I think that what all of this leads to, is using the Model to
create a highly rigorous subject/functional classification scheme,
that solves the problem of tracking cumbersome revisions to the
Corporate records classification scheme. By describing the records
at the basic business process level (the macro level), and by
using a highly structured language to describe the business functions
(programs, services and activities) one can be relatively confident
that the top level terms will not change very often, and will,
in fact, be quite stable, and will only need very periodic revisions
to add new programs and services. Since the organizational changes
are tracked in a separate module, the records management program
is freed up from some of the tedious labour of updating retention
schedules merely to reflect changes to the organization.
Another benefit of adopting the Model and Keyword AAA as
a subject/functional classification, is that they provide a framework
for integrating paper and electronic versions of the same records.
This means that it can also be used as a framework for approaching
enterprise-wide document management systems.
When IT departments use the Model to develop their various system
architectures, or to assess their current systems, they create
a bridge between the electronic records and the paper records.
One of the advantages to using the Model to structure the Corporate
information infrastructure, is that IT departments can use the
framework to make better hardware and software decisions. The
IT infrastructure is like having an interstate system of highways
that connects all of the states. It provides the links, based
on classification of the business processes, at the macro-level
for electronic records and business systems. If Records Management
and Archival programs also used the same framework for organizing
and managing the records created by the business, then I have
no doubt that greater efficiency of record keeping will be the
result.
Benefits Specific to Records Managers and Archivists
The benefits of using the Business Systems Analysis approach for
Records Managers and Archivists can be summarized as follows:
What Happened to the Project?
The RFP went out in November, 1996. There were four responses.
After review, it was determined that none of the proponents met
the requirements of the RFP, and the RFP was cancelled. There
was also not enough funding to cover the cost of the first choice
proponent.
It was determined that the Project Tracking component of the RFP
could be implemented first, and that, when funding became available
for the Other modules, the linkages between data fields could
be added at that time. MSProject was selected as the Project
Management Software, and Project Templates for the Records Management
projects were entered. As of this date, the rest of the RFP is
"on hold" pending funding as well as implementation
of the "Megacity" re-organization, which is scheduled
to take effect on January 1, 1998. (a decision on several legal
court challenges to the constitutionality of the City of Toronto
Act are expected within a few weeks.)
Conclusion
The success of the MRM as a management tool is its ability to
provide a key link between a corporate strategic plan, which sets
out broad goals and objectives, with the fundamental operations
of the municipality.(6)
If the mandate of an archives program is to provide a mirror of
the organization to itself, then I believe that using a business
enterprise model is a key tool for archivists and records managers.
The model provides the link and structure between the organization's
goals and objectives, and how it carries them out. It provides
almost instant documentation of the relationships between the
various parts of the organization, and provides signposts to the
archivist on where to look for the records that document the important
decisions made by the organization.
From a records management point of view, an enterprise business
model is good because it provides an instant classification structure,
which can be used to integrate both paper and electronic record
keeping systems (particularly if an organization's IT department
bases its architecture on the same model). It also requires less
frequent updating, since the classification is independent of
the organizational hierarchy.
And finally, an enterprise business model is good for both, and
particularly for the organization as a whole, because it provides
an almost instantaneous high-level controlled indexing vocabulary,
which ensures access and retrieval of "the right information
at the right time". Keyword AAA is a helpful tool which
can be used, in conjunction with an enterprise business model,
to provide more specific record-type terminology for a truly comprehensive
controlled vocabulary for any type of organization.
FOOTNOTES
1 Ann Pederson, ed.,
Keeping Archives (Australian Society of Archivists, Inc.,
1987), 100. This book has an excellent chapter on the principles
of appraisal, including a checklist of questions to be asked when
doing appraisal.(Return to text)
2 See extract included
as Appendix for more information about the MRM, taken from The
Municipal Reference Model Program: Program Overview (Toronto:
Municipal Reference Model Program, n.d.).(Return to text)
3 Municipal Reference
Model: Business Modelling Workshops: Overview of the Model Concepts
(Toronto: Municipal Reference Model Program, June 1997), 6.(Return to text)
4 ALA World Encyclopedia
of Library and Information Services, 2nd ed. (Chicago: American
Library Association), 59.(Return to text)
5 Keyword AAA:
Evaluation Package (n.p.: Government of
New South Wales, Records Management Office, 1995), 4.(Return to text)
6 The Municipal
Reference Model Program: Program Overview (Toronto: Municipal
Reference Model Program, n.d.), 2.(Return to text)
APPENDIX: Extract from "The Municipal Reference
Model Program: Program Overview"
1. What are Enterprise Models?
"Enterprise Models" are models of an organization, which typically define:
for the client. These models are then used by municipalities
to achieve higher performance from their people and processes,
enable them to understand the linkages and impacts of a
strategy, decision, tactics, or process design on all aspects
of the business, and link the business plans and strategies with
Information Technology investment plans, architectures,
and evolution strategies.
A Generic Enterprise Model (GEM) is a pre-built
enterprise model which is delivered in a database with software
tools for customization, analysis and planning. a GEM can be
used to promulgate standards (guidelines, best practices,
performance metrics, etc.) sanctioned by regulatory bodies and
associations, enable organizations to create higher quality
enterprise models for less up-front investment, and use
them more effectively.
For a municipality that has made the decision to use an enterprise
model as their primary planning tool, the cost difference between
using a generic enterprise model versus developing one from scratch
can be a significant savings. Furthermore, the quality of the
results is measurably enhanced by using a generic enterprise model
because the model is pre-built utilizing consistent and high quality
"industry" standards.
2. What is the MRMTM?
The Municipal Reference Model is a pre-built generic enterprise
model, built for municipalities, which is pre-populated with a
robust inventory of municipal programs, services, resources, events
and activities - all important ingredients to a municipal business
model. When a municipality receives the MRM, they immediately
go into edit mode and begin to shape the model to reflect
their particular mandate, their particular organization structure,
and their culture.
The database contains generic models or inventories of:
of a municipal government. These lists are inter-related, so
it is possible to see which services support which programs, which
business activities are required to manage and deliver which services,
and what information is created or used by each business activity.
The success of the MRM as a management tool is its ability to provide a key link between a corporate strategic plan, which sets out broad goals and objectives, with the fundamental operations of the municipality. This can be accomplished through the identification of municipal programs and services.
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