A set of advisory organizations and industry representatives have come together to form a new group to help federal agencies become better information stewards and reach compliance with records management mandates.
The Coalition for Public Sector Information Governance Leadership officially formed on Jan. 26 with the goal of bringing industry best practices in records management to the government, a topic that has only become more complex in the digital age.
The group includes ARMA International, the American Health Information Management Association (AHIMA), the Association for Information and Image Management (AIIM), the Information Governance Initiative (IGI), the National Association for Information Destruction (NAID) and Professional Records and Information Services Management (PRISM) International.
"This group was born out of conversations with partners and federal workers," said Liz Icenogle, director of government affairs for ARMA International, the organization that initiated the new coalition. "We realized there was a little bit of a gap in resources when [agencies] look for help."
The main problem for agencies is a lack of resources available to meet the goals of the Managing Government Records Memorandum issued by President Obama in 2011. That memo was followed up by a joint directive from the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) and Office of Management and Budget in 2012.
"NARA and OMB are forcing the hand of agencies to make sure they're upgrading their infrastructure," Icenogle said. "The directive is wonderful but it doesn't recognize the challenges."
As budgets fall or remain flat and mandates increase, the coalition plans to advise agencies on best practices that can help them management records more efficiently and effectively.
"We're looking at ways to provide educational resources for free from the private sector — some in-person and a lot of it electronically online," Icenogle said. "We have wonderful members who know so much about information management. We want to be the conduit for that advice."
The group is currently working with its members and other stakeholders to determine what advice is needed most and will begin setting in agenda in the coming weeks and months.
Eventually, the coalition plans to expand to state and municipal governments, as well.
"We're excited as an organization to work with these other organizations to help connect all the corners of this industry," Icenogle said.
Aaron Boyd is an awarding-winning journalist currently serving as editor of Federal Times — a Washington, D.C. institution covering federal workforce and contracting for more than 50 years — and Fifth Domain — a news and information hub focused on cybersecurity and cyberwar from a civilian, military and international perspective.
