IT directors in the public sector need to tackle the huge
legacy of paper and electronic records in their organisations now
if they are to comply with the Freedom of Information Act, which
comes into force on 1 January 2005.
The Act means that public servants no longer "own" information but
are its custodians, with a duty of care, so awareness and training
are important elements in overcoming poor information management
behaviour.
There are three steps that need to be taken before the Act comes
into force. First, conduct an information audit so that you know
what information is held, where it is and what format it is in.
Then categorise information that needs to be retained and purge the
rest.
Second, develop processes for handling requests under the Act.
Begin with "dry run" simulations to find out how your organisation
currently gathers information and tracks information requests. Can
you do it within the 20-day time limit specified by the law? This
exercise will help prioritise what records need to be digitised as
it will reveal what material is likely to be commonly
requested.
As few requests are likely to be headed "FOI Act enquiry", a public
sector organisation will need to capture all information requests,
effectively turning the mailroom into an FOI "in tray". The
digitisation of post rooms boosts the efficiency of all processes
that begin with or involve paper-based input.
The third stage is deciding what technology you need to support
your information management and FOI processes. It is important to
take an holistic approach as providing systems for departments
independently will lead to future integration issues.
If all this sounds expensive, it is worth remembering that
effective information management offers value beyond FOI
compliance. It fosters greater collaboration between employees as
well as more efficient information access and processing, which is
central to the modernising government agenda, and critical to the
relationship between public bodies and citizens.
Mike Stone is chief executive of BT openaccess