Document Management

An Overview

with

Functional Requirements

LTS Corporation
1500 Wilson Boulevard, Suite 1010
Arlington, QA 22209-2404
 Elect D o c M p t

1.O E x e c u t i v e Summa-
This paper provides input for defining the functional r e q u i r e m e n t s f o r an

Agencywide e l e c t r o n i c document management system. The Development I n f o r m a t i o n

System (PPC/CDIE/DI) and r e c o r d s management (M/AS/ISS/RM) f u n c t i o n s can p r o v i d e

u s e f u l i n s i g h t and d e f i n i t i o n t o forming a document management a r c h i t e c t u r e . The

s e r v i c e s p r o v i d e d by D I S and r e c o r d s management a r e n e c e s s a r y e x t e n s i o n s of a
sound i n f o r m a t i o n r e s o u r c e management s t r a t e g y . T r a d i t i o n a l IRM s t r a t e g i e s have
focused a l m o s t e n t i r e l y on improving management of s t r u c t u r e d d a t a w i t h i n f i l e s
and d a t a b a s e s . However, a s a t t e s t e d by t h e r e c e n t KRA r e p o r t and t h e i n i t i a t i v e s
i n ES, documents a r e t h e " c u r r e n c y " of A . I . D 1 s businese, and c a p i t a l i z i n g on

t h e i r i n f o r m a t i o n c o n t e n t c a n n o t be i g n o r e d n o r n e g l e c t e d . T r e a t i n g them a s
" i n f o r m a t i o n a s s e t s " w i t h i n t h e i n f o r m a t i o n r e s o u r c e management framework w i l l
p r o t e c t and b e t t e r u t i l i z e a v a l u a b l e s o u r c e of b u s i n e s s knowledge - development
experience - within A.I.D.

Document management a p p l i c a t i o n s , such a s t h e DIS and RM, have f o c u s e d p r i m a r i l y

on document c o n t e n t a c c e s s methods. These a p p l i c a t i o n s c a n be g r e a t l y improved
by b u i l d i n g on t h e f o u n d a t i o n of an agencywide document management a r c h i t e c t u r e .
The a r c h i t e c t u r e c o n s i s t s of standardized f i l e indexing t e r m s , standardized

s t o r a g e subsystems c o n t a i n i n g t h e a c t u a l r e c o r d s , and s t a n d a r d i z e d a c c e e s and

r e t r i e v a l p r o c e d u r e s common t o a l l u s e r s . The o b j e c t i v e of such a j o i n t e f f o r t
between a r c h i t e c t u r e - a p p l i c a t i o n i s c o n t r o l of documents d u r i n g t h e i r l i f e c y c l e -
from c r e a t i o n t h r o u g h f i n a l d i s p o s i t i o n ' . The u t i l i t y and v a l u e of s u c h a n
approach i s i t ' s c a p a b i l i t y f o r making i n f o r m a t i o n c o n t a i n e d i n documents and

r e f e r e n c e m a t e r i a l s a c c e s s i b l e " a t t h e moment o f need."

The value-added s e r v i c e s of DIS and r e c o r d s management add r o b u e t content

The r e s u l t s of such a system a r e knowing what y o u ' v e g o t , where it i s ,

how t o g e t a t it, how long t o keep it, and what t o do w i t h it o n c e i t ' s a c t i v e
u s e f u l n e s s h a s been r e a l i z e d .

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navigation and organizational vitality to a sensible document management

architecture. A consistent set 04 services that span workgroups and

applicationsz will enable better "customer service" - responding to a

m u l t i p l i c i t y of i n q u i r i e s and demands from m u l t i p l e s o u r c e s (e.g. Congress,

m i s s i o n s , GAO, IG). With b e t t e r o n - l i n e ( o r equivalent) information access

acrooo networked s y s t e m s , customer c o n c e r n s can b e more q u i c k l y documented,

t r a c k e d , a d d r e s s e d , and r e s o l v e d . P r o d u c t i v i t y and teamwork a r e improved a s

i n f o r m a t i o n becomes a v a i l a b l e on demand. Optimal work g r o u p c o l l a b o r a t i o n i s

e n a b l e d , a s i n d i v i d u a l s b e g i n t o b u i l d upon ( a n d n o t from s c r a t c h ) - not only

t h e i r own work - b u t t h e knowledge-base of t h e e n t i r e o r g a n i z a t i o n .

~t ahould be u n d e r s t o o d t h a t a document management a r c h i t e c t u r e i s one t h a t

integrates enterprise library services, document communication methods, and

documont g e n e r a t i o n w i t h c r i t i c a l b u s i n e s s - p r o c e s s a p p l i c a t i o n s . D I and RM want

t o put: it t o work f o r t h e Agency and c a n do s o by p r o v i d i n g i n p u t i n t o i t s

d e f i n i t i o n based on s u b s t a n t i v e l e s s o n s l e a r n e d o v e r t h e p a s t decade. The

c u l t i v a t e d e x p e r t i s e o f D I and RM can b e v e r y u s e f u l i n t h i s r e g a r d .

The purpose of t h i s paper i s t o provide input f o r defining t h e functional

requirements f o r an agencywide e l e c t r o n i c document management system (edms) . Its

audience a r e t h e e n d - u s e r s w i t h i n A . I . D . and t h e system d e v e l o p e r s i n IRM. It

i s i ~ rtwo p a r t o : the f i r s t p a r t b e g i n s w i t h a d i s c u s s i o n of t h e business

perspective, from which t h e system development e f f o r t a r i s e s , f o l l o w e d by a

g e n e r a l s t a t e m e n t of r e q u i r e m e n t s . P a r t two of t h e p a p e r c o n s i s t s of a d e t a i l e d

statelnent of t h e f u n c t i o n a l r e q u i r e m e n t s .

! Shamrock: The Document Management C o a l i t i o n , 22-Feb-94

ETS c r r p o r a t i o n -2-
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Business Perspective

The Agency recently completed a strategic re-evaluation of its role and mission
in global development. The resulting development agenda for the 1990s is one
that emphasizes projecting the U.S. national interest through preventive
diplomat$. The critical success factors (cross-cutting themes) of this
strategic objective are:
o promoting environmentally sustainable development
o building democracy
o promoting peace
o providing humanitarian assistance, and
o promoting prosperity through trade and investment.
The principal programs to implement the strategy include: producing and
disseminating knowledge; building development partnerships to leverage scarce
resources; and delivering advisory, financial and implementation servicesto host
countries .

The announcement of the Agency's strategic business objectives, in conjunction

with vice-president Gore's call for "reinventing government", has been followed
closely by several organization design activities including reduction of the
number of management layers and an increase in management accountability.

In addition to organization design, business process reengineering efforts4 of

the sort that the Agency is engaged in typically cover two other functional
areas: human resource policies and information systems. In the area of human
resource policies, the competencies that the staff must possess in order to
achieve operational objectives are being defined by HRDM. Work to develop new

Atwood testimony before House Committee on Foreign Affairs, 3-Feb-94

Results Oriented Operatione Reengineering, D r a f t R e p o r t , U S A I D , March

1994

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i n f o r m a t i o n s y s t e m s o r r e d e s i g n e x i s t i n g o n e s t o s u p p o r t t h e new o r g a n i z a t i o n
d e s i g n i s b e i n g c a r r i e d o u t by IF3 and v a r i o u s o t h e r o r g a n i z a t i o n u n i t s . One
p o t e n t i a l key i n f o r m a t i o n system development e f f o r t , t h e Agencywide document
management system, is t h e focus of t h i s paper. Other p r o j e c t s t h a t w i l l
complement t h e document management s y s t e m i n p r o v i d i n g a comprehensive set of
i n f o r m a t i o n management s e r v i c e s a r e d e s c r i b e d i n A g e n c y ' s I n f o r m a t i o n S t r a t e g i c

Plan (ISP).

Why i s I n f o r m a t i o n Management a P r i o r i t y Concern?

A s a knowledge-based o r g a n i z a t i o n , t h e consumption and p r o d u c t i o n o f i n f o r m a t i o n

a r e c o r e a c t i v i t i e s o f t h e Agency. C o n s e q u e n t l y , t h e q u a l i t y , a v a i l a b i l i t y , and

e a s e o f a c c e s s t o i n f o r m a t i o n a r e m a t t e r s of s t r a t e g i c c o n c e r n . Information
c o n t a i n e d i n b u s i n e s s documents and r e f e r e n c e m a t e r i a l s muet b e a c c e e s i b l e " a t

t h e moment of need". F a i l u r e t o c a p i t a l i z e on t h e s e i n f o r m a t i o n a s e e t s i n a
consistent and reliable manner impedes organization performance, bueinese
d e c i s i o n s , work f l o w s , d e l i v e r y of customer s e r v i c e , cost controls, and t h e
a b i l i t y t o e s t a b l i s h measures t o improve q u a l i t y . Improving t h e document

management s y s t e m t h u s becomes a p r i o r i t y program a c t i v i t y .

There a r e a v a r i e t y o f r e p o r t s and o t h e r s o u r c e m a t e r i a l s ( i n c l u d i n g i n t e r n a l
s u r v e y s of s t a f f ) t h a t a t t e s t t o t h i e c o n c e r n . To mention j u s t o n e , t h e KRA

~eport', identifies potential improvement^ i n t h e Agency'e document management,

i n f o r m a t i o n f i l i n g and r e t r i e v a l s y s t e m s a s o n e of t h e key i n t e r n a l e n v i r o n m e n t

r e q u i r e m e n t s f o r a more e f f e c t i v e o p e r a t i o n 6 .

T e x t and Document Handling S t u d y , KRA C o r p o r a t i o n , 7-Apr-94

F i n a l Forms Management Report: USAID Forms Management S t u d y , 7-Apr-94

Another is t h e NIS/TF Communications and Records Needa Assessment. 26-

Feb-93.

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Among its recommendations for improving the internal Agency environment for
effective portfolio management are the following:

a. Systems must be prepared to help guide the task manager to the right
information rather than presenting all the information.

b. Priority for improving accees to information should be given to

information used in decision-making.

c. Key documents should be made available in electronic form.

d. There should be a focal point for assuring that project documents

are filed in a systematic way.

e. Filing practices should be adjusted to include the electronic files

of analyses done for a document and not just the electronic form of
the final document.

3.2 What is a Document?

A document is the original or official object relied upon as the basis, proof or
support of the business functions and decision-making processes of the Agency.
It generally deals with a single subject, transaction or business activity. A
document may be: comprised of one or more pages of text; a database record; a
spreadsheet table; an electronic image; or a compound information object such as
an electronic text file that is dynamically linked to an image file, a
spreadsheet file, and/or a graphic file.

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What is a File?

It is important to address the distinction between a document and a file.

Classically, a file has been defined aa a collection of records which deal with
the same sort of data from the data processing perspective. Records management
looks at a file as an organized unit of documents grouped together either for
current use or in the process of archival arrangement. The use of this word
(file) becomes blurred in the electronic environment when multiple "filesn
authored from multiple software packages may, in fact, comprise only a single
document, also identified as a file in a storage subsystem.

Multiple "files" as one document, may be aggregated as a group of related

documents to comprise a "folder" - akin to a hardcopy paper system where file
folders may contain more than one document. Document management covers the
spectrum of these instruments. The traditional definitions of "file" and "files
management" may have to be reconsidered, as well as the methods and procedures
supporting them.

3.4 Records versus Document Management

Not all documents maintained in information collections throughout the Agency are
records. The kinds of documents that are considered to be records are those that
document the transactions, business proceesea and activities of the
organization7.

Prior to the widespread use of computerized nystems by Agency ataff to create and
store recorded information, most document^ were received andlor produced and
maintained in paper form. Consequently, the business function that has

Handbook 21, Part I1

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traditionally been responsible for managing the Agency's records, the records
management office (M/AS/ISS/RM) has maintained paper files. Most official
documents, even those produced using e-mail, text processing or other software
products, are still maintained in paper form.

Indexing, filing, retention scheduling and other document processing measures

designed to facilitate user access to information are usually carried out by
persons other than the document's author/creator. These records management
processes are thus applied after a version of the paper document has been
distributed by its author. However, whether a document is or is not a record,
it must be managed throughout ite life cycle in order to support the
transactional and informational needs of the organization effectively.'

3.5 Document Flows and Organization Design

Today, while the medium used to record and preserve information is no longer
limited to paper, the need to manage the Agency's documente effectively remains
as urgent as ever. In addition to their informational role, documents, whatever
their form, have always served the purpose of providing for individual and
organizational accountability. Accessing and retrieving documente for either
purpose has become increasingly difficult. Most documents are still stored in
paper files maintained by official and unofficial repositories alike. However,
the flow of paper documents to the official repositories has become increaeingly
a hit-or-miss proposition.

There are, no doubt, many causes of the document retrieval problems users
experience. Two of the causes are:

See: Records Management in USAID: Keeping Up with the Paper Flood, FY95
Action Plan. LTS Corporation: 23-Mar-94 (unapproved)

LTS Corporation -7- G:

 E l e c t Doc M g m t

a. Most documents a r e p r e p a r e d internally i n electronic form, and

u n l e s s t h e y a r e c a p t u r e d t h r o u g h some systematic work process, t h e y

a r e unlikely to become part of the collection in an o f f i c i a l

repository.

b. W h i l s t e f f o r t s s u c h a s t h e ES c o r r e s p o n d e n c e c o n t r o l and a c t i o n i t e m

s y s t e m a r e working to s i m p l i f y work processes9, some workflows

r e t a i n some o f t h e i r o r i g i n a l c o m p l e x i t y . F o r example, program and

p r o j e c t o p e r a t i o n s r e q u i r e p e e r r e v i e w s o f p r o j e c t documents which

i n t u r n i n v o l v e d i s t r i b u t i o n p a t t e r n s which may d i f f e r from p r o j e c t

t o project.

3.5.1 Workflow

L i k e o t h e r i n f o r m a t i o n s y s t e m s , t h e s y s t e m o f document ( r e c o r d s ) management t h a t

e x i s t s i n t h e Agency t o d a y h a s been b a s e d on c e r t a i n a s s u m p t i o n s a b o u t how t h e

o r g a n i z a t i o n was structured and c o n s e q u e n t l y how work processes should be

arranged. The o r g a n i z a t i o n s t r u c t u r e o f t h e Agency c o u l d b e d e s c r i b e d a s a

hierarchical/bureaucratic one and t h e model f o r t h e d e s i g n o f work s t e p s i s one

i n which i n f o r m a t i o n was s e n t up and down t h e c h a i n of command, t r a v e l l i n g i n

t u r n t h r o u g h e a c h f u n c t i o n a l l y o r g a n i z e d u n i t of t h e b u r e a u c r a c y . Work-in-

p r o c e s s flowed from one worker t o a n o t h e r , each performing a n assigned t a s k ,

u n t i l t h e j o b was completed.

Recent r e o r g a n i z a t i o n e f f o r t s have t r i e d t o modulate o r g a n i z a t i o n d e s i g n from

what it was s i x years ago. Streamlined, "more e f f i c i e n t " operations, are

e x p e c t e d from f e w e r management l e v e l s and t h e work s t e p s f o r b u s i n e s s p r o c e s s e s

s u c h as p r o j e c t management a r e p e r f o r m e d by p e o p l e from a number of d i f f e r e n t

Final Report, Executive Secretariat: Executive Iseue and Correepondsnce

Managcent Study. IRM: 25-Apr-94

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organizational units. Workflows a r e t h u s more complex, and t h e need f o r a c c e s s

t o common i n f o r m a t i o n s t o r e s i s p e r v a s i v e . A s t r i c t l y f u n c t i o n a l view o f

document flows through t h e o r g a n i z a t i o n i s t h e r e f o r e an i n a d e q u a t e model.

Networking and workgroup computing t e c h n o l o g i e s now make it p o s s i b l e f o r many

work s t e p s t o b e done s i m u l t a n e o u s l y and w i t h o u t i n h e r e n t d e l a y e t h a t r e s u l t when

p a p e r documents a r e exchanged.

3.5.2 S c a l a b l e / Modular O p e r a t i o n s

Workflow d e f i n i t i o n , p a r t i c u l a r l y f o r document management, i n c l u d e s p a r t i c i p a t i o n

o f implementing a g e n t s i n h o s t - c o u n t r i e s . These i n c l u d e o r g a n i z a t i o n s o f t h e
h o s t c o u n t r y government ( e . g . m i n i s t r i e s f o r a g r i c u l t u r e , h e a l t h , t r a d e , e t c . ) ,

PVO's, N G 0 8 s , and c o n t r a c t o r s . I t would b e u s e f u l t o d e v e l o p a modular, g l o b a l

document management model t h a t i n c o r p o r a t e d t h e i r need8 by c o n s i d e r i n g a l l o w i n g

a c c e s s , a t some " p r e - q u a l i f i e d " l e v e l , t o t h e same i n f o r m a t i o n b a s e a s t h a t o f

t h e m i s s i o n s and A I D / W . The l i n k c o u l d b e e s t a b l i s h e d t h r o u g h t h e m i s s i o n , f o r

a l o c a l " n e t " , and t i e d t o t h e l a r g e r agency e n t e r p r i s e WAN. S t o r a g e subsystems,

w i t h i n a g e o g r a p h i c o r program a r e a , c o u l d b e e s t a b l i s h e d as knowledge nodes on

t h e wider network. T h i s would be a reciprocal relationship i n that the

experience of implementing agents could be a c q u i r e d more effectively and

c o n s i s t e n t l y ( f o r a c c e s s and d i s s e m i n a t i o n t h r o u g h o u t t h e W A N , for inetance).

Such a m o d u l a r i z e d , g l o b a l model would be u s e f u l by r e i n f o r c i n g t h e teamwork

among many p l a y e r s r e q u i r e d t o s u s t a i n development e f f o r t s .

Document Management System: F u n c t i o n a l Requirements

There i s limited published information a v a i l a b l e a b o u t e l e c t r o n i c document

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management a p p l i c a t i o n s t h a t may be u n d e r development o r u s e i n t h e ~ g e n c y " .

Over t h e y e a r s , different b u s i n e s s u n i t s have d e v e l o p e d l o c a l l y - a p p l i c a b l e
approaches f o r organizing and s t o r i n g e l e c t r o n i c documents, using various
p r o p r i e t a r y DOS" a n d / o r Windows-based applications i n standalone a s w e l l a s

s h a r e d environments. There i s a n e c d o t a l a s w e l l a s e m p i r i c a l e v i d e n c e t o s u p p o r t
t h e c o n c l u s i o n t h a t e l e c t r o n i c documents a r e b e i n g l o s t , u n s y s t e m a t i c a l l y d e l e t e d

o r s t o r e d i n ways t h a t r e n d e r them i r r e t r i e v a b l e . This poses a s e r i o u s r i s k t o

t h e Agency's i n s t i t u t i o n a l memory. The p r e s e n t p a p e r i s i n t e n d e d t o s u p p o r t

development of an a p p l i c a t i o n f o r managing documents e l e c t r o n i c a l l y on a n

enterprise-wide basis. In order t o leverage information a s s e t s , a document

management a r c h i t e c t u r e d e s i g n e d t o s p a n t h e e n t i r e o r g a n i z a t i o n i s r e q u i r e d .

While a l m o s t a l l documents produced i n t h e Agency a r e g e n e r a t e d i n e l e c t r o n i c

form, t h e y a r e g e n e r a l l y m a i n t a i n e d i n p a p e r . According t o o n e e s t i m a t e , f o r

example, 50% of t h e a p p r o x i m a t e l y 32,000 e-mail messages s e n t and r e c e i v e d on a

d a i l y b a s i s by t h e 3,125 e-mail u s e r s a t t h a t t i m e were f i l e d f o r f u t u r e u s e .

Sixty-five percent of o u t g o i n g and 67% of incoming messages were saved i n

e l e c t r o n i c form. The volume of p a p e r documents produced and r e c e i v e d i n t h e

Agency i s such t h a t i n t h e absence of e f f e c t i v e management s y s t e m s , l o c a t i n g and

lo Management Improvement I n i t i a t i v e , P r o j e c t F i l e s Improvement: Final

Report. USAIDIDominican Republic: 1994

NARA F i n a l Report on P r o j e c t F i l e s I n i t i a t i v e i n USAID: Dominican Republic.

S p r i n g 1994
Conrad, Mark, " D a t a s e t s by Design: ~ r c h i v a lI n p u t i n t o Systems Design". NARA,
C e n t e r f o r E l e c t r o n i c Records: May 1994

Memo of Understanding: NARA and A I D , F a l l l W i n t e r 1993194

D r a f t , E l e c t r o n i c Document Submission Requirements t o PPC/CDIE/DI, 1993.

AFR/EA Extend-a-File Experiment, FY92

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g a i n i n g a c c e s s t o them can b e q u i t e f r u s t r a t i n g and o f t e n f u t i l e . The e c o p s of

t h e problem c a n b e s e e n i n t h e f a c t t h a t o v e r t h e l a s t few y e a r s t h e number o f
documents p r i n t e d by t h e Agency's p r i n t i n g u n i t s i n c r e a s e d by 35% from 81 m i l l i o n
t o approximately 100 m i l l i o n ) . The number of documents produced t h r o u g h

photocopying i n c r e a s e d by 2 1 % from 5 1 m i l l i o n t o 65 m i l l i o n .

I n view of t h e f o r e g o i n g , t h e o b j e c t i v e s o f t h e document management a r c h i t e c t u r e ,

therefore, are to:

a. Improve t h e management of t h e Agency's document-based i n f o r m a t i o n

r e s o u r c e s s o t h a t s t a f f a r e a b l e t o a c c e s s t h e s e r e s o u r c e s more
r e a d i l y i n o r d e r t o do t h e i r j o b s (Make i n f o r m a t i o n c o n t a i n e d i n

documents and r e f e r e n c e m a t e r i a l s accessible " a t t h e moment o f

need" ) .

b. P r e s e r v e a d e c i s i o n and a c c o u n t a b i l i t y t r a i l f o r b u s i n e s s p r o c e s s
t h a t employ e l e c t r o n i c documents.

c. P r o v i d e a n a p p l i c a t i o n and s e r v i c e s t h a t w i l l a l l o w s t a f f t h r o u g h o u t
t h e Agency t o manage e l e c t r o n i c r e c o r d s more u n i f o r m l y and t h u s more

cost-effectively. Automating Agency forms via macros is one

example, as w e l l as establishing standards for a common u s e r
i n t e r f a c e so user access is c o n s i s t e n t .

d. Permit more uniform access to document-based information,

irrespective o f the format in which it is stored. I n o t h e r words,

t o a l l o w u s e of t h e same i n t e r f a c e t o l o c a t e documents i n p a p e r
a n d / o r o t h e r hardcopy forms a s w e l l a s e l e c t r o n i c f o r m a t s . A useful

key o b j e c t i v e i s t o p r e c l u d e t h e development o f i n c o m p a t i b l e and

counter-productive document management "standards" that could

LTS C o r p o r a t i o n
 E l e c t Doc Mgmt

inhibit customer choice and the advancement of platform-independent

enterprise document management solutions.

5 .O Document Management Functions

Electronic document (and records) management is concerned with all stages in the
life cycle of the doc~ment'~. The management functions are:

a. Createlcapture and identify

b. Distribute / route

c. Index, file and store

Retrieve

e. Appraise and dispose

Associated with each of these functions are information management processee auch

l2 See Handbook 21, Part 11, Chapter 8

For comprehensive analyses of electronic records management issues, refer to the

UN's Advisory Commission for the Coordination of Information Systems (ACCIS)
publications:
Management of Electronic Records: Issues and Guidelines. ACCIS: UN, NY, 1990

Management of Electronic Records: Curriculum Materials. ACCIS: UN, NY, 1992

Strategic Issues for Electronic Records Management: Towards Open Systems
Interconnection. ACCIS: UN, NY, 1992
Guidelines on Computer-Assisted Records Management. National Archives of Canada,
Government Records Branch, Ottawa, 1988

LTS Corporation
 E l e c t Doc H
*

as security, version control, and format conversion.

To provide a context for understanding the detailed functional requirements which

follow we will describe the document life cycle in broad terms using the
processing involved with A.I.D. project management. We will also deecribe the
process for internally- as well ae externally-generated documents. But first,
a brief discussion regarding the types/characteristics of document8 received and
produced by the Agency.

5. P Overview o f Document Processing and Use

The process is discussed in the broadest possible terms, since a detailed

description is beyond the scope of this document. Our goal is to isolate the
elements of a representative business process that can be used as a basis for
identifying key functional features that are relevant to the design of the
document management system. Refer to the Agency Handbooks for a more complete
description of the project development and management process.

A key point to make in discussing project operations is that they are based on
the principle of delegation of authority and accountability. This means, in
practice, that one is very likely to encounter difference8 in how the various
organization units approach particular steps of operations processes. For
example, beyond the broad assignment of responsibilities in the Handbook, for the
same process, one unit might require a different cast of individual8 or follow
document review and clearance routines that are somewhat different from those
followed by another unit. Current eerial actions might be handled more
efficiently if simultaneous access to the same document encouraged parallel
processing.

Staff members assigned to carry out each operation of the project management

LTS Corporation
 El& Doc Mgmt

p r o c e s s t y p i c a l l y come from m u l t i p l e o r g a n i z a t i o n a l u n i t s w i t h i n and w i t h o u t t h e

r e s p o n s i b l e r e g i o n ( e . g . Geobureau, G l o b a l Programs, m i s s i o n ) . Furthermore, t h e

increasing emphasis on mission involvement in identifying, preparing and

s u p e r v i s i n g p r o j e c t s , t o g e t h e r w i t h t h e f a c t t h a t on o c c a s i o n a g i v e n p r o j e c t

r e q u i r e s e x t e r n a l p e e r r e v i e w , makes t h e g e o g r a p h i c l o c a t i o n of t h e document

management s y s t e m bn r e l a t i o n t o t h e document c r e a t o r and u e e r a n i s s u e o f

c o n s i d e r a b l e importance. Support (mobile computing) f o r s t a f f working i n t h e

f i e l d h a s been m e n t i o n e d a s a key f u n c t i o n a l r e q u i r e m e n t .

A n o t h e r o b s e r v a t i o n t o b e made a b o u t o p e r a t i o n s b u s i n e s s p r o c e s s e s , i n p a r t i c u l a r

t h e r e v i e w and c l e a r a n c e o f documents, i s t h a t t h e r e a r e s t a g e s o f t h e c y c l e a t

which s e r i a l r e v i e w / c l e a r a n c e i s mandated t o t a k e p l a c e .

The final general comment t o b e made about t h e p r o c e s s i s t h a t t h e r e are

i n s t a n c e s i n which r e t e n t i o n o f d r a f t s and f i n a l v e r s i o n s o f t h e d o c u m e n t a t i o n

f o r a b u s i n e s s a c t i v i t y i s e x p l i c i t l y p r e s c r i b e d by o p e r a t i o n a l g u i d e l i n e s .

R e t e n t i o n of d r a f t s o f o t h e r t y p e s o f documents p r o d u c e d i n c o n n e c t i o n w i t h t h e

same b u s i n e s s p r o c e s s i s d i s c r e t i o n a r y .

Turning t o the document production process itself, in t h e preparation of

documents, some documents a r e a u t h o r e d by a s i n g l e i n d i v i d u a l ; o t h e r e a r e j o i n t l y

authored. There a r e a l s o d i f f e r e n t approaches t o p h y s i c a l l y producing t h e

documente. Some t a s k managers d r a f t t h e document and f o r w a r d it ( o n a d i s k e t t e

o r e l e c t r o n i c a l l y o v e r t h e network) t o t h e i r s t a f f a s s i s t a n t s f o r formatting,

e d i t i n g and o t h e r a c t i o n s . O t h e r p e o p l e do it a l l t h e m s e l v e s .

By w h a t e v e r means t h e document i s p r o d u c e d , o n e o r more v e r s i o n s i s t y p i c a l l y

r o u t e d / d i s t r i b u t e d f o r review, clearance, o r other purposes t o other s t a f f i n

AID/W, t o m i s s i o n s , o t h e r c o r r e s p o n d e n t s , o r t h e h o s t c o u n t r y . A copy o f all

s i g n e d , a u t h o r i z e d , f i n a l paper documente are supposed t o be d e p o s i t e d i n t h e

ETS C o r p o r a t i o n
 E l e c t Do6 Hgmt

central p r o j e c t f i l e s responsible f o r maintainingthe records f o r t h e originating

units. Some u n i t s a l s o k e e p c o p i e s of document p r o d u c e d o r r e c e i v e d by them i n

working f i l e s which may b e m a i n t a i n e d f o r a u n i t o r i n d i v i d u a l .

Each r e c e i v i n g o f f i c e h a s i t s own p r o c e d u r e s f o r r e c o r d i n g and o t h e r w i s e h a n d l i n g

t h e documents it r e c e i v e s from e x t e r n a l c o r r e s p o n d e n t s . Some o f f i c e s m a i n t a i n

a s y s t e m f o r l o g g i n g and t r a c k i n g t h e movement of documents ( a n d c o r r e s p o n d e n c e )

through t h e v a r i o u s a c t i o n s s t e p s , u n t i l they are f i n a l l y deposited i n the

a p p r o p r i a t e document r e p o s i t o r y a n d / o r i n t h e o f f i c e f i l i n g s y s t e m 1 3 .

F i n a l l y , d e c i s i o n - m a k i n g i s sometimes b a s e d o n r e v i e w o f a s i n g l e document. In

o t h e r c a s e s , t h e decision-making i s b a s e d o n r e v i e w of a p a c k a g e c o n s i s t i n g o f

m u l t i p l e documents.

The documents received or produced in the course of conducting Agency

t r a n s a c t i o n s a r e r e t a i n e d i n i n s t i t u t i o n a l r e c o r d s management s y s t e m s f o r v a r y i n g

periods of time. Those t h a t a r e t r a n s f e r r e d t o NARA a r e k e p t p e r m a n e n t l y b e c a u s e

t h e y a r e of c o n t i n u i n g ( e v i d e n t i a l , a c c o u n t a b i l i t y and/or i n f o r m a t i o n a l ) v a l u e

t o the institution. Others a r e disposed of a f t e r t h e i r d e f i n e d r e t e n t i o n p e r i o d s

have e x p i r e d . The d e t e r m i n a t i o n o f value, and t h u s how l o n g documents are

r e t a i n e d , i s b a s e d o n a complex o f f a c t o r s , i n c l u d i n g t h e b u s i n e s s f u n c t i o n t h a t

produced o r a c q u i r e d them. D e c i s i o n - m a k i n g r e g a r d i n g how l o n g t h e d i f f e r e n t

g r o u p s o f t r a n s a c t i o n a l documents a r e r e t a i n e d i s c a r r i e d o u t j o i n t l y by NARA and

t h e A g e n c y ' s r e c o r d s management o f f i c e 1 4 .

Sumrnaq of F u n c t i o n a l R e q u i r e m e n t s

l3 R e f e r t o b o t h t h e NIS/TF C&R Needs Assessment (1993), and ES

Correspondence C o n t r o l E v a l u a t i o n ( 1 9 9 4 ) .

l4
O f f i c i a l g u i d a n c e i s s p e l l e d o u t i n Handbook 2 1 , P a r t 11.

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 El& Doc Mgmt

The p r e c e d i n g d i s c u s s F o n o f f e a t u r e s o f t h e document management p r o c e e e p r o v i d a e

e s s e n t i a l background i n f o r m a t i o n f o r t h e d i s c u s s i o n which f o l l o w s . The r e m a i n d e r

o f t h i s p a p e r i s d e v o t e d t o p r e s e n t i n g t h e key f u n c t i o n a l c h a r a c t e r i s t i c s o f t h e
document management system t h a t have been d i s t i l l e d from v a r i o u s documentary

s o u r c e s and o t h e r d i s c u s s i o n s . There a r e two b a s i c needs t h e s y s t e m must

address :

a. The need t h a t information contained i n documents and r e f e r e n c e

m a t e r i a l s b e r e a d i l y a v a i l a b l e and a c c e s s i b l e t o s t a f f "at the

moment o f need" i n o r d e r t o conduct t h e b u s i n e s s o f t h e Agency. IRM

must p r o v i d e t h e i n f o r m a t i o n a r c h i t e c t u r e t o o u p p o r t t h e A g e n c y ' s
b u s i n e s s , p a r t i c u l a r l y from a document management p e r e p e c t i v e .

b. The r e q u i r e m e n t t o c a p t u r e and p r e s e r v e r e c o r d s eystems and t h e

r e c o r d s ( i n s t i t u t i o n a l memory) t h e y c o n t a i n s o t h e y a r e a v a i l a b l e
f o r a c c o u n t a b i l i t y and r e f e r e n t i a l ( i n f o r m a t i o n ) u s e s . This i s t h e

b a i l i w i c k of r e c o r d s management, and PPC/CDIE/DI. The i n s t i t u t i o n a l

memory i s a n a p p l i c a t i o n derived from ( a n d n o t a s u b s t i t u t e f o r ) t h e

information architecture. The a p p l i c a t i o n u s e s t h e i n f o r m a t i o n

a r c h i t e c t u r e a e a r e s o u r c e t o i d e n t i f y o b j e c t s which s h o u l d r e c e i v e

value-added p r o c e s s i n g and r e l o c a t i o n t o a c e n t r a l r e p o s i t o r y f o r

maintenance and distribution. It should not, and cannot, be

incumbent upon t h e a p p l i c a t i o n t o b u i l d t h e i n f r a s t r u c t u r e which

s u p p o r t s it.

5.2.1 Types o f Documents

Documente found i n t h e Agency e x i s t i n a v a r i e t y o f forms ( o r r e p r e s e n t a t i o n s ) .

The document management system must t h u s be a b l e t o e u p p o r t t h e h a n d l i n g and

d i s p l a y o f d i f f e r e n t t y p e s o f e l e c t r o n i c documents. T a b l e 1 claaeifiee documents

LTS C o r p o r a t i o n -16- G: \G
 Elect Doc Xgmt

i n t e r m s o f t y p e s of i n f o r m a t i o n o b j e c t s t h a t t h e system must b e a b l e t o h a n d l e .

T a b l e 1: Examples of I n f o r m a t i o n O b j e c t s

Type Examples

1. S t r u c t u r e d document: Forms, ( i n t e r n a l ) p u r c h a s e o r d e r s , TA's

2. Semi-structured document: letters, memos, telexes, s t a n d a r d Agency
Reports
3. G r a p h i c and a u d i o - v i s u a l document: maps, tables, f i g u r e s , photographs,

blueprints
4. Compound document: A s i n g l e document c o n s i s t i n g of parts i n different .

representations (e.g. text, graphics, etc.) o r t h a t has l i v e l i n k s t o

o t h e r documents (hyperdocuments).

5. A g g r e g a t i o n of documents: f i l e s / f o l d e r s , r e c o r d s e r i e s

5.2.2 C r e a t e / Capture Documents

A p r i n c i p a l r e q u i r e m e n t of t h e document management s y s t e m i s t h e a b i l i t y t o

i n t e r o p e r a t e w i t h t h e t o o l s used t o c r e a t e and c a p t u r e i n f o r m a t i o n o b j e c t s . For

example, a n i n d i v i d u a l s t a f f member s h o u l d b e a b l e t o u s e any Agency s t a n d a r d
word p r o c e s s o r t o c r e a t e and r e v i s e a n e l e c t r o n i c document and by v i r t u e o f t h a t
i n t e g r a t i o n of t h e a u t h o r i n g t o o l w i t h t h e document management system have t h e
a b i l i t y t o s t o r e it i n t h e a p p r o p r i a t e document s t o r e , r o u t e / d i s t r i b u t e it, k e e p

t r a c k of v e r s i o n s , and c o n t r o l a c c e s s t o i t .

Workgroup Support. Similar s u p p o r t must a l s o be provided to a group of

individuals (workgroups) who collaborate in producing a single document.
A d d i t i o n a l c a p a b i l i t i e s t h a t workgroup document p r o d u c t i o n r e q u i r e s are t h e

a b i l i t y t o a n n o t a t e t h e document and c o n t r o l t h e d i f f e r e n t v e r s i o n s l i n k e d t o

LTS C o r p o r a t i o n
 Elect Doc Mgmt

their specific annotations. In other words, the documents that contain comments
must be linked to the specific versions that are being commented upon.

Capture and OCR. The system should support the capture and identification of
electronic documents (e.g. email, OCR) received from other persons or systems.
Appropriate access controls will also be required. It should also be able to
convert hardcopy documents, such as paper or microfiche, into electronic form,
including the capacity to translate "images" into full text through optical
character recognition.

The document management system will start simply, initially focusing on handling
documents that staff typically use word processors and spreadsheet software to
produce. The model will be tested locally, and if successful, expanded for wider
use. As the availability and cost of appropriate technology permit, the system
will be expected later on to handle compound and multimedia information objects.

Other. The system will also be required to provide tools to allow the
tracking and management of documents that are not stored in machine-readable
form. Such documents might include bulky procurement and other documents which
it is not cost-effective to convert for electronic storage but which users would
nonetheless like to be able to locate via the same document management
application. In short, it should be possible to enter index information about
documents stored outside the system15.

5.2.3 Distribute/Route Reports

The ability to dietribute/route information objects is needed to support both the

"I i
'
The records management office sponsored a substantive exercise in thia
area by working with NARA to develop a prototype automated records management
system. Refer to "Developing an Automated Records Management Prototypen. LTS
Corporation, July 1993.

LTS Corporation
 E l e c t DOC M g m t

creation and use of documents. With respect to creation, collaborative authoring

of documents requires the ability to distribute/route documents to workgroups
members' personal computers to be edited or otherwise manipulated. Workgroup
members must also be allowed to annotate documents that might be contained in a
distributed database. Likewise, making documents more widely available to staff
who need access to them requires that it be possible to distribute/route
documents fromthe creator's environment to a central and/or distributed document
store that supports multi-user access.

Since a document might be sent as an attachment to an e-mail message, the

distribution/routing capability entails integration of the document management
system with the Banyan Vines Mail/Messaging service. Workflow processes could
be triggered via associated message-enabled applications. It also involves use
of the network messaging service (or an equivalent locator syetem) to obtain
addressing and location information about internal and external users and
document stores.

5.2.4 Index, Fils, and Store Documents

Another set of management processes the document management system must support
are those that fall under the general rubric of document storage. After a
document is created, its creator will be required and assisted to supply certain
basic identifying information (or "profile") to allow it to be filed in the right
place and be managed properly throughout its life cycleI6.

The amount of basic identifying information required of document creators should

l6
Suggested core fields include project number, document author, document
title, document type, instrument number including grant, contract, PIO, TA, etc.
numbers, contractor name, and signature date. Automated value-added processing
may be able to assign record series numbers which determines disposition action8
and dates.

LTS Corporation
 E l e c t D o c Mgmt

b e k e p t t o a minimum, i n o r d e r t o avoid burdening busy s t a f f . However, for

e f f e c t i v e document management, value-added p r o c e s s e s may b e r e q u i r e d t o c o m p l e t e

a profile for each document. Records managers and other knowledgeable

information professionals (e.g. records liaison coordinators (RLC's), C&R

specialists, DIS c a t a l o g e r s ) s h o u l d b e a b l e t o add s u p p l e m e n t a l d e s c r i p t i v e

i n f o r m a t i o n i n c l u d i n g r e t e n t i o n and d i s p o s i t i o n i n s t r u c t i o n s . T h i s w i l l make

it e a s y f o r i n d i v i d u a l s o t h e r t h a n t h e c r e a t o r of a document t o l o c a t e and
r e t r i e v e it, i f it f i t s w i t h i n t h e i r s e a r c h c r i t e r i a . This c a p a b i l i t y is a l s o

needed f o r t h e c l a s s o f documents t h a t are n o t c r e a t e d w i t h i n t h e Agency ( e . g .

c o n t r a c t o r s ) b u t t h e t e x t of which may b e added and s t o r e d i n t h e system.

Conversion s e r v i c e s t h a t e n a b l e documents t o b e exchanged a c r o s s h e t e r o g e n e o u s

systems1' are also important. The services include the ability to store

i n f o r m a t i o n a b o u t t h e i n t e r n a l a r c h i t e c t u r e and f o r m a t of documents and c o n v e r t e r

l i b r a r i e s f o r a c c e p t i n g , p r o c e s s i n g and e x c h a n g i n g documents w i t h a p p l i c a t i o n s

and systems. Finally, there are composition services which provide for

cornbining/linking many electronic f i l e s t h a t originate from many d i f f e r e n t

a u t h o r i n g t o o l s i n t o a s i n g l e l o g i c a l e l e c t r o n i c v e r s i o n o f a document.

5.2.5 Retrieve Documents

The u l t i m a t e o b j e c t i v e o f t h e p r e v i o u s m e n t i o n e d f u n c t i o n a l c h a r a c t e r i a t i c a i s

t o make it p o s s i b l e f o r s t a f f t o s e a r c h and r e t r i e v e documents when t h e y need t o

and i n a f a i r l y e a s y manner. B e s i d e s t h e a b i l i t y t o r e t r i e v e i n f o r m a t i o n by

s p e c i f y i n g known a t t r i b u t e s of documents, u s e r s w i l l want t o have t h e a b i l i t y t o

s p e c i f y , u s i n g n a t u r a l E n g l i s h - l a n g u a g e e x p r e s s i o n s , g e n e r a l s u b j e c t a r e a s and

be presented w i t h r e l e v a n t information. The e f f e c t i v e n e s s o f f u l l - t e x t r e t r i e v a l

17
e.g. 239.50, and formata s u c h a s SGML, TIFF, A c r o b a t , Word-for-word

LTS C o r p o r a t i o n -20- G: \G
 E l e c t Doc Hgnlt

can be amplified by using a controlled vocabulary akin to the A.I.B. ~hesaurue~~.

In the expectation of an environment of multiple networked document stores,

cross-server institution-wide information access; access to the document stores
from anywhere (global or location-independent retrieval); and content-based
retrieval are desirable functional characteristics of the system.

The latter capability is necessary given the fact that the document stores will
include a mixture of information objects including captioned figures, graphs, and
illustrations that should individually be just as accessible as strings of text.
Furthermore, integration of the retrieval capability with personnel directory or
equivalent, in order to enable transparent cross-server institution-wide
information access, will be needed.

Staff must be able to retrieve a document and be able to view, edit and otherwise
manipulate it at their workstations, irrespective of the application environment
in which it was created. This will require the conversion services that were
mentioned earlier.

5.2.6 Appraise and Dispose Documents

The final set of requirements are those having to do with the value-added
processes that records mangers and archivists perform on behalf of individual
staff members, business units and the institution. These value-added processes
are collectively concerned with preservation of the institutional memory. By
institutional memory, we mean the lessons learned from A.I.D. project activity
around the globe. An additional key requirement would call for describing
information content and associated information about the context in which the

l8 Such a thesaurus could Re ueed ae a b a e i s for defining the core

"concepts" in a concept-based full text retrieval system such as Verity's TOPIC.

LTS Corporation -21- G:\G

 E l e c t Doc Mgmf

i n f o r m a t i o n c o n t e n t i s c a p t u r e d , s t o r e d , and used.

W e mentioned e a r l i e r t h a t n o t a l l documents a r e r e c o r d s . However, t h e i r u n i q u e

c h a r a c t e r and t h e way i n which e l e c t r o n i c documents a r e c r e a t e d , d i s s e m i n a t e d and

used a r e s u c h t h a t t h e Agency's p 0 1 i c y ' ~i s t o manage a l l e l e c t r o n i c documents a s

i f they w e r e records. E l e c t r o n i c documents must b e managed t h r o u g h o u t t h e i r l i f e

cycle so t h a t t h e ultimate s e g r e g a t i o n of r e c o r d s from n o n - r e c o r d s and t h e

d i s p o s i t i o n o f t h e s e two c l a s s e s of documents c a n b e d e t e r m i n e d and c a r r i e d o u t

i n a s y s t e m a t i c way.

The o v e r a r c h i n g j u s t i f i c a t i o n f o r t h e t i m e and r e s o u r c e s t h a t t h e Agency expends

t o p r o p e r l y manage i t s r e c o r d s i s t h a t t h e y a r e needed a s e v i d e n c e o f the

Agency's work programs and a c t i v i t i e s . Thus, p r e s e r v i n g r e c o r d s f o r e v i d e n t i a l

p u r p o s e s r e q u i r e s l i f e c y c l e management o f n o t o n l y t h e r e c o r d s t h e m s e l v e s , b u t

a l s o t h e system t h a t c r e a t e s , d i s s e m i n a t e s and c o n t r o l s t h e i r u s e . Record

systems do n o t j u s t p a s s i v e l y r e f l e c t how t h e i n f o r m a t i o n i s u s e d , t h e y a c t i v e l y

d e t e r m i n e it.

Users need t o b e a s s u r e d a b o u t t h e a u t h e n t i c i t y and c o m p l e t e n e s s of t h e r e c o r d s .

Consequently, information about the documents (metadata), their storage

( i n c l u d i n g t h e hardware and s o f t w a r e environment i n which t h e y w e r e c r e a t e d ) and

u s e must b e p r e s e r v e d . This contextual information is necessary not only f o r

e v i d e n t i a l and a c c o u n t a b i l i t y p u r p o s e s b u t a l e o i n o r d e r f o r a r c h i v i s t e and

r e c o r d s managers t o have it a v a i l a b l e f o r decision-making (i.e. a p p r a i s a l ) about

t h e r e t e n t i o n and d i s p o s i t i o n o f t h e documents.

The m i s s i o n of a r c h i v i s t s and r e c o r d s managers i s t o c a p t u r e , e t o r e , p r e s e r v e ,

and p r o v i d e a c c e s s t o r e c o r d s which are the evidence of t h e programs and

l9
Handbook 2 1 , P a r t 11, C h a p t e r 8

LTS C o r p o r a t i o n -22-
 Elect Doc M g m t

a c t i v i t i e s of t h e o r g a n i z a t i o n over t i m e . Record s y s t e m s must t h e r e f o r e be able

t o ensure c e r t a i n b a s i c t h i n g s about t h e r e c o r d s t h e y c o n t a i n , i f t h e y a r e t o be

t h o u g h t of aa f u l l y s u p p o r t i n g t h e achievement of t h i s m i s s i o n .

5.3 Other Requirements and C o n s i d e r a t i o n s

M a i n t a i n i n g t h e Agency's o f f i c i a l r e c o r d s i n e l e c t r o n i c form w i l l change t h e r o l e

r e l a t i o n s h i p s among i n f o r m a t i o n p r o v i d e r s a s w e l l a s r e l a t i o n s h i p s between end-

u s e r s and i n f o r m a t i o n p r o v i d e r s . S p e c i f i c a l l y , end-users w i l l be a b l e t o a c c e s s

i n f o r m a t i o n c o l l e c t i o n s d i r e c t l y w i t h o u t n e c e s s a r i l y h a v i n g t o go t h r o u g h a

gatekeeper/information specialist, a t l e a s t f o r r o u t i n e i n f o r m a t i o n look-up.

These i n f o r m a t i o n c o l l e c t i o n s w i l l i n c l u d e i n t e r n a l and e x t e r n a l i n f o r m a t i o n
sources (e.g. u n i v e r s i t y l i b r a r y catalogues a v a i l a b l e through I n t e r n e t ) t h a t w i l l
become, c o l l e c t i v e l y , a v i r t u a l l i b r a r y a c c e s s i b l e round-the-clock t o t h e end-

user. U s e r - f r i e n d l y i n t e r f a c e s and t o o l s such a s a p e r s o n n e l d i r e c t o r y w i l l m a k e

t h i s p o s s i b l e by p r o v i d i n g n a v i g a t i o n a l and o t h e r a i d s .

The a c t i v e p a r t i c i p a t i o n of document u s e r s i n managing t h e e l e c t r o n i c documents

and c a r r y i n g o u t more i n f o r m a t i o n s e a r c h e s on t h e i r own d o e s n o t o b v i a t e t h e need

f o r c e n t r a l c o o r d i n a t i o n and o v e r s i g h t by r e c o r d s and i n f o r m a t i o n management

specialists. To t h e c o n t r a r y , a c e n t r a l c o o r d i n a t i o n f u n c t i o n w i t h o u t r e a c h t o

t h e d e c e n t r a l i z e d d e p a r t m e n t a l r e c o r d s l i a i s o n c o o r d i n a t o r s ( R L C S ) ~i s r e q u i r e d

i n o r d e r t o r e a l i z e a key i n s t i t u t i o n a l o b j e c t i v e of making i t s docurnenta more

accessible/shareable by internal and external stakeholders. The central

c o o r d i n a t i o n a c t o r s w o u l d m o n i t o r adherence t o Agency-wide s t a n d a r d s a n d m a i n t a i n
t h e i n s t i t u t i o n a l document s t o r e c o n t a i n i n g r e c o r d s of e n d u r i n g v a l u e . The

d e p a r t m e n t a l RLCs would m o n i t o r and a u d i t t h e d a i l y a c t i v i t i e e of u s e r s o f

i n f o r m a t i o n r e s o u r c e s i n t h e workgroup and b u s i n e s s u n i t domains.

20
Op. c i t . Managing t h e Paper Flood... FY95 A c t i o n P l a n

LTS C o r p o r a t i o n -2 3 - G: \G
 Elect Doc Mgmt

Another iseue of general institutional interest is the matter of standards. The

document management system must not only be compliant with the Agency's open
computing philosophy. Standardized keyword vocabularies and filing schemes must
also be established and maintained. This will require a level of cooperation and
integration that has thus far eluded the organization. The exception is the
controlled vocabulary of the A.I.D. thesaurus compiled and maintained by
PPC/CDIE/DI.

6 .O Document Management System in Context

The document management system is one of an array of workgroup computing tools

(also known as groupware) that make the automation of workflow feasible. One
definition of groupware is that they are products designed to bring disparate
systems and applications together to enhance teamwork among individuals and work
units. Workflow automation on the other hand involves use of workgroup tools to
route information through an application that requires the input of several
people via separate processes.

According to ~unamaker'' there are about five categories of groupware products

which form a sort of continuum:

a. Communication (e.g. e-mail and message-enabled applications),

b. Group memory/information access (e.g. compound documents, shared
database),
c. Coordination (e.g. group scheduling),
d. Development (e.g. object-oriented libraries, etc.), and
e. Collaboration tools (e.g. group authoring, electronic meeting
systems, etc. ) .

Nunmaker, Jay F. Jr. "Corporate Conscioueness: In Search of Group

Memory". Corporate Computing, Dec 1992. pp 203-205.

LTS Corporation -24-

 El- Doc Mgmt

The document management system can be conveniently categorized as belonging to

the group memory/information access class of groupware toolsz. It must be
designed, however, to store and provide access to the various forms of
information that all these tools produce. As a result, it calls for capabilities
beyond those traditional databases tend to have. Several products will thus be
required to work in concert to manage what is largely unstructured information.

7 .O Conclusion

The currency of the Agency is the development experience contained in its

documents. Building a document management architecture to support performance-
based operations (oftentimes subjective and text-based) merits attention equal
to that devoted to the management of structured data within files and databases
of typical accounting systems. It should be understood that a document
management architecture is one that integrates enterprise library services,
document communication methods, and document generation with critical business-
process applications. PPC/CDIE/DI and M/AS/ISS/RM want to continue making their
expertise, substantive leeeons learned over the past decade, and familiarity
with end-user needs available as a resource. Such experience will be invaluable
in defining user requirements for a comprehensive document management
architecture to be implemented by IRM.

22 See also, Shamrock model for client-server topology using open

application interfaces. It emphasizes three major areas: the desktop,
communications and distribution, and enterprise library services.

LTS Corporation -25- G:

 Attachment A
Detailed Document Hanasement System Functional Remiremeets

1.0 Create/Capture Docuent Content

T h i s f u n c t i o n i s concerned w i t h t h e c r e a t i o n of a new document u s i n g d e s k t o p

authoring tools. I t a l s o encompasses t h e e d i t i n g of e x i s t i n g documents, t h e

i m p o r t a t i o n of e l e c t r o n i c documents ( e . g . downloading from I n t e r n e t l i s t s e r v s )

and t h e c a p t u r e i n e l e c t r o n i c form ( t h r o u g h s c a n n i n g ) o f documents r e c e i v e d i n

paper. The f o l l o w i n g r e q u i r e m e n t s e n v i s i o n a p r o c e s s i n which documents c r e a t e d

i n t h e Agency o r i g i n a t e i n t h e p e r a o n a l domain. This holds t r u e f o r j o i n t l y

a u t h o r e d documents t h a t w i l l b e b r o u g h t t o g e t h e r i n t h e workgroup domain where

all c r e a t o r s w i l l b e a b l e t o view and comment on t h e d r a f t s prepared by

colleagues.

1.1. Authoring Tool Features

1.1.1 System Integration

The s t a n d a r d d e s k t o p a u t h o r i n g t o o l s s h o u l d i n t e g r a t e and b e c o m p a t i b l e w i t h t h e
document management system.

1.1.2 Version Control

A document t h a t i a r e t r i e v e d from t h e workgroup, b u s i n e s s u n i t o r i n s t i t u t i o n a l

domains and i s i n any way m o d i f i e d i s c o n s i d e r e d a new v e r s i o n and s h o u l d be

i n d e x e d and s t o r e d a c c o r d i n g l y .

1.1.3 Macros

Ability to select macros and styleeheeta from within document creation

a p p l i c a t i o n s , w i t h o u t i n t e r f e r e n c e from t h e Document Management System. IFW'a

agencywide Word P e r f e c t macros and forma i s a good example.

Doc M g m t Sys: A t t a c h A -1- G:\Global\EDMSl

1.1.4 Compound document tools
Authoring t o o l s should i n c l u d e f e a t u r e s ( e . g . format c o n v e r s i o n ) f o r a c c e p t i n g ,
proceeeing and exchanging documents among a p p l i c a t i o n s and d e v i c e s .

1.1.5 Compound Documents

Many s e p a r a t e f i l e s a r e u l t i m a t e l y assembled f o r t h e purpose of creating a
compound document. The i n d i v i d u a l p a r t s of t h e document might be g e n e r a t e d by

d i f f e r e n t a p p l i c a t i o n s (e.g. Lotus, Warvard Graphics, WP, etc). The system

should a l l o w t h e v a r i o u s t y p e s of o b j e c t s t h a t go t o g e t h e r t o make a compound
document e a s y t o i n t e g r a t e and r e v i s e .

1.1.6 F i l e Folders
C o l l e c t i o n s of r e l a t e d documents should b e a b l e t o be stored w i t h i n l o g i c a l u n i t s
akin t o f i l e folders within a f i l e cabinet. For example, a l l correspondence

r e l a t e d t o a s p e c i f i c p r o j e c t should be r e l a t e d t o one a n o t h e r l o g i c a l l y , g i v i n g
t h e appearance of b e i n g w i t h i n t h e same f i l e " f o l d e r " .

1.1.7 F i l e Conversion

A b i l i t y t o r e t r i e v e , use and e d i t a f i l e c r e a t e d on any o t h e r a p p l i c a t i o n w i t h o u t

any l o s s of d a t a .

1.1.8 Editing / Updating

Updating one of t h e f i l e s of t h e compound document should a u t o m a t i c a l l y u p d a t e
t h e ( c o n t e n t s o f ) compound document i t s e l f . T h i s should be c r o s s - r e f e r e n c e t o

v e r s i o n c o n t r o l f e a t u r e s s o t h a t a l l r e l a t e d elements a r e modified t o r e f l e c t t h e
p r o f i l e of t h e c u r r e n t v e r s i o n .

1.1.9 Group Authoring Raq[lliramenko

a. Workgroup membership i s n o t f i x e d over time. Usere w i l l t h e r e f o r e
want t o be a b l e t o d e f i n e t h e membership of a workgroup dynamically.

b. W r i t t e n comments on documents s e n t t o peer- o r work-groups for

Doc Mgmt Sys: A t t a c h A -2- G: \Global\EDMSl

 review s h o u l d b e c a p t u r e d and m a i n t a i n e d a s s e p a r a t e documents.
c. Documents t h a t c o n s i s t of comments a b o u t o t h e r documente muet b e
handled such t h a t t h e y can be l i n k e d t o t h e s p e c i f i c v e r s i o n of t h e
document b e i n g commented upon.
d. C r e a t o r s who wish t o do s o s h o u l d be a b l e t o e a s i l y add comments t o

t h e r e l e v a n t d r a f t document. Users wish t o have a l l commente, a l o n g

w i t h t h e i n i t i a l s of commentators, i n a s i n g l e document.
e. C r e a t o r s must b e a b l e t o d e l e g a t e e d i t o r i a l d u t i e s ( i - e . f o r m a t t i n g

w i t h o u t changing t h e document c o n t e n t ) .
f. While a t A I D / W , physical s e p a r a t i o n from e a c h o t h e r s h o u l d n o t
p r e c l u d e s t a f f members from c o l l a b o r a t i n g i n t h e p r e p a r a t i o n of a
document a s a member of a workgroup.

g. S t a f f members on TDY s h o u l d be a b l e t o c o l l a b o r a t e w i t h AID/W-based

s t a f f i n t h e p r e p a r a t i o n of a document.
h. The links among t h e various objects that comprise a compound
document s h o u l d be t u r n e d on ( i . e . i n d i v i d u a l o b j e c t s / f i l e s c a n b e
modified) during preparation and information (e-g. workgroup)
review.

1.2 Document C a p t u r e i n Document Management System

1.2.1 Format

The system s h o u l d have t h e a b i l i t y t o c a p t u r e documents encoded i n c h a r a c t e r and

other data representations (e.g. image). Included a r e compound and o t h e r
documents t h a t a r e produced u s i n g common d e s k t o p and workgroup a u t h o r i n g t o o l s .

f .2.2 Version C o n t r o l
Update t h e v e r s i o n of a document a f t e r e a c h e d i t i n g s e e s i o n . Older v e r s i o n s may
b e r e t r i e v e d and e d i t e d t h u s r e s u l t i n g i n a new v e r s i o n .

f .2.3 Accuracy R e g u i r e m e n t ~

Doc M g m t Sys: A t t a c h A -3- G:\Global\EDMSl

 a. The system must accurately capture all of the information that is
recorded by the originator/creator of the document (including
component parts and associated indexes that may be created in
different application packages).
b. The document management system software used to capture document6
should have the capability of preventing one user from overwriting
another's files.

1.2.4 Uniqueness Requirements

a. System should ultimately identify each document.
b. At the time a document is created the system should prompt the user
to supply a minimum set of mandatory attributes for identification
and filing purposes1.
c. These attributes must be captured along with the document content
(see section on indexing for more detailed requirements),

1.2.5 Completeness
a. Capture information structure: The system must capture information
about the software (including the version) used to create a
documentZ.
b. The various versions and macros should be included in the profile of
each document.

1.2.6 Authenticity
a. The system must capture automatically information about who
(individuals or workgroups) creates and/or modifies a document.

Refer to core fields cited previously.

2
Op. cit. CDIE/Dl's draft Electronic Document Submission Requirements

Doc Mgmt Sys: Attach A -4- G:\Global\EDMSI

 D i s t r i b u t e Document

T h i s f u n c t i o n i e concerned w i t h t r a n s f e r r i n g documents i n a t r a c e a b l e way among

domains ( o r document s t o r e s ) and u s e r s ( e . g . members of a workgroup) d u r i n g t h e i r

p e r i o d of a c t i v e use. I t i n c l u d e s many of t h e s o - c a l l e d workflow f e a t u r e s and

i n t e g r a t i o n w i t h groupware t o o l s such a s e-mail.

Two approaches t o making documents a v a i l a b l e t o o t h e r u s e r s a r e t o (1)p h y s i c a l l y

t r a n s f e r t h e i n f o r m a t i o n among heterogeneous systems/document storee or (2)

m a i n t a i n them i n a c e n t r a l document s t o r e and/or d i s t r i b u t e d database with

appropriate multi-user access protocol.

1.3.1 A c t i v i t y Routing

End-users must be a b l e t o s p e c i f y r o u t i n g i n advance a n d / o r o n l y when t h e y a r e

ready t o handoff a document.

1.3.2 D i s t r i b u t i o n Control

D i s t r i b u t i o n of documents w i t h i n a work group should be c o n t r o l l e d by t h e c r e a t o r

of t h e documents u n t i l such p o i n t a s it i s o f f i c i a l l y ' t r a n s f e r r e d ' t o t h e n e x t

s p h e r e of a u t h o r i t y i n t h e approval c y c l e , o r completed. Workflow d e f i n i t i o n

should c l e a r l y d e f i n e a t what p o i n t i n a document's l i f e c y c l e , "ownershipn i s

t r a n s f e r r e d t o t h e l a r g e r o r g a n i z a t i o n a l system.

1.3.3 Document I d e n t i f i c a t i o n

I t should be r e l a t i v e l y e a s y f o r a u s e r t o i d e n t i f y a document ( o r f i l e ) t h a t he

o r s h e wishes t o r o u t e o r d i s t r i b u t e .

1.3.4 Distribution Lists

Locally-maintained d i s t r i b u t i o n l i s t s muet be updated a u t o m a t i c a l l y w i t h t h e

c o r r e c t a d d r e s s e s and o t h e r l o c a t i o n i n f o r m a t i o n by t h e network-wide d i r e c t o r y ,

whenever t h e l o c a l l i s t i s executedjinvoked.

Doc Mgmt Sys: A t t a c h A -5- G:\Global\EDMSl

1.3.5 Undeliverable Address
Sender should be notified of addressees to whom mail is undeliverable.

1.3.6 Document tifscycls Tracking

Document tracking services should allow users to follow a document throughout its
lifecycle, including distribution and revision and final disposition.

1.3.7 Circulation Control

System should keep track of who has the latest version of a document.

1.3.8 Compound Document Distribution

System should support the mailing of compound documents. Specifically, during
routing/distribution, it must preserve the links among the various objects that
comprise a compound document.

1.3.9 Read-only Compound Document Access

The links among the various objects that comprise a compound document should be
frozen (i.e. individual objects/files are read-only and cannot be modified)
following informal (e.g. workgroup) review.

1.3.10 Distribution Recall

Provide users the ability to recall a document sent by mistake, as long as it is
not opened by recipient(s).

1.3.11 Integrate with messaging services.

Ability to distribute documents as attachment to mail/messages.

It should be possible to transfer ownership of a file. For example, the author

of a chapter of a report that ie being jointly prepared with several individual6

Doc Mgmt Sys: Attach A -6- ~:\Global\EDMSl

should b e t r a n s f e r a b l e t o a t a s k manager f o r e d i t i n g and assembly i n t o t h e f i n a l
composite document.

2.0 Index, F i l e / S t o r e Document

A f t e r a document i s c r e a t e d , i t s c r e a t o r w i l l b e r e q u i r e d and a s s i s t e d t o s u p p l y
c e r t a i n b a s i c i d e n t i f y i n g i n f o r m a t i o n t o a l l o w it t o b e f i l e d i n t h e r i g h t p l a c e
and be managed p r o p e r l y t h r o u g h o u t i t s l i f e c y c l e . The c o n t e n t s (and index
i n f o r m a t i o n ) of documents need t o b e s t o r e d i n a n e a s i l y a c c e s s i b l e way, t h a t i s ,

s o t h a t t h e y c a n be r e a c h e d from v a r i o u s g e o g r a p h i c l o c a t i o n s by m u l t i p l e

concurrent ueers. The s t o r a g e f u n c t i o n a l s o encompasses c o n v e r s i o n s e r v i c e 6 t h a t

e n a b l e documents t o b e s t o r e d i n c o n s i s t e n t f o r m a t s and t o be t r a n s f o r m e d i n t o
o t h e r f o r m a t s b a s e d on u s e r demand a t t h e t i m e of r e t r i e v a l .

I n d e x i n g ( P r o f i l i n g ) Requirements

2.1.1 Index

Document c r e a t o r s must have t h e a b i l i t y t o a t t a c h a b a s i c set o f a t t r i b u t e e t o

t h e document t h e y c r e a t e .

2.1.2 Naming Conventions

System s h o u l d s u p p o r t t h e u s e of c o n v e n t i o n s f o r document naming and d e s c r i p t i o n

i n o r d e r t o e a s i l y l o c a t e and r e t r i e v e f i l e s .

2.1.3 Read-only S t o r a g e
Once a document i a f i n a l ( i . e . no more v e r s i o n s e x p e c t e d t o b e p r o d u c e d ) , no one
s h o u l d b e a b l e t o modify it ( o r modify i t e p r o f i l e ) .

2.1.4 Signature Verification

S i g n a t u r e v e r i f i c a t i o n and a u t h e n t i c a t i o n p r o c e d u r e s s h o u l d b e p a r t of t h e s y s t e m

Doc M g m t Sys: A t t a c h A -7- G:\Global\EDMSl

package.

2.1.5 Document Type S t a n d a r d i z a t i o n

Supply s t a n d a r d p r o f i l e s f o r each document t y p e .

2.1.6 Search Support

Allow information professionals (e.g. record liaison coordinators, records

management c l i e n t a n a l y s t s ) t o augment p r o f i l i n g i n f o r m a t i o n provided by document

creators.

2.1.7 Repeating F i e l d s

One s h o u l d be allowed t o e n t e r m u l t i p l e v a l u e s i n each f i e l d . (e.g. Descriptors)

2.1.8 User-definable F i e l d s

A d i v i s i o n o r department s h o u l d have t h e c a p a b i l i t y t o d e f i n e f i e l d s t h a t u s e r s

have t o f i l l i n , o t h e r w i s e t h e y cannot s a v e t h e i r documents (mandatory f i e l d s ) .

2.1.9 Profile Extensibility

System must o f f e r p o s s i b i l i t y of adding new p r o f i l e s f o r e x i s t i n g e l e c t r o n i c

documents imported i n t o t h e document management system.

2.1.10 Hardcopy Management

System must o f f e r c a p a b i l i t y t o manage documents s t o r e d i n f o r m a t s t h a t a r e n o t

accessible online (e.g. paper)).

2.1.11 Online Index

System must m a i n t a i n an index of documents t h a t a r e s t o r e d i n e l e c t r o n i c media

( e . g . image s t o r e ) o t h e r t h a n an document management system s e r v e r .

3
Op. c i t . "Automated Records Management Systemn

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2.1.12 Ahinistration
System must e n a b l e t h e d a t a b a s e a d m i n i s t r a t o r , a t t h e l e a s t , t o add new i n d e x

f i e l d s o r r e d e f i n e e x i s t i n g ones. I t i s recommended t h a t a c o r e set o f a t l e a s t

aeven f i e l d s b e emphaaized t o p r o v i d e a minimal document p r o f i l e 4 Local f i e l d

t e c h n i c i a n s s h o u l d have t h e c a p a b i l i t y t o add o r modify f i e l d s t o m e e t l o c a l

c i r c u m s t a n c e s and needs.

2.1.13 Authority F i l e s

System must p r o v i d e o n l i n e a s s i s t a n c e ( e . g . lookup t a b l e s of document t y p e s ,

e t c . ) t o u s e r s i n s e l e c t i n g and v a l i d a t i n g p r o f i l i n g i n f o r m a t i o n .

2.1.14 Extended Filenames

System must s u p p o r t a b i l i t y t o i d e n t i f y a document u s i n g r e c o g n i z a b l e t i t l e s and
f i l e n a m e s i n s t e a d of a c r y p t i c o r a b b r e v i a t e d e i g h t c h a r a c t e r DOS f i l e n a m e o r

s e r i a l number. An extended name w i t h a minimum of 60 c h a r a c t e r s , p r e f e r a b l y 256

c h a r a c t e r s , w i l l g i v e u s e r s enough f l e x i b i l i t y t o d e s c r i b e t h e i r documents.

2.1.15 V a r i a b l e Length F i e l d s

System must s u p p o r t s t r u c t u r e d f i e l d s o f v a r i a b l e l e n g t h .

2.1.16 Import

The document management syatem must p e r m i t one-time i m p o r t a t i o n of document

p r o f i l e s from e x i s t i n g l e g a c y d a t a b a s e management aystems f o r documents t o b e

s t o r e d i n t h e new system. I t must a l s o have t h e c a p a c i t y t o s u p p o r t i m p o r t a t i o n

of document p r o f i l e d a t a from o t h e r s y s t e m s a s w e l l on a n ongoing b a a i s o r a a

needed.

2.1.17 Hierarchical Retrieval

Document a u t h o r , document t i t l e , document t y p e , p r o j e c t number,

i n s t r u m e n t number ( c o n t r a c t , g r a n t , l o a n , PIO, TA, e t c . ) , c o n t r a c t o r / v e n d o r name,
document/signature date.

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System must p r o v i d e f e a t u r e s t h a t a l l o w documents t o b e p r o f i l e d s u c h t h a t t h e y

can be r e t r i e v e d / p r e s e n t e d i n a h i e r a r c h i c a l s t r u c t u r e (e.g. d i r e c t o r y - l i k e ) t h a t

i s meaningful t o u s e r s . S u p p o r t f o r development and u s e o f a s t a n d a r d u s e r

i n t e r f a c e should be a v a i l a b l e .

2.1.18 Automatic F i l e Format R e c o g n i t i o n

System must s u p p o r t a u t o m a t i c r e c o g n i t i o n and r e c o r d i n g o f t h e f i l e f o r m a t s a n d

a p p l i c a t i o n programs i n which documents a r e c r e a t e d .

2.2 User-Created P r o f i l e a

2.2.1 Automated I n d e x i n g

Minimize t h e amount o f i n d e x i n g t h a t t h e document c r e a t o r i s r e q u i r e d t o p e r f o r m

by:

a. a u t o m a t i c a l l y c a p t u r i n g i n t h e document p r o f i l e a t t r i b u t e s s u c h a s

d a t e o f c r e a t i o n , d e p a r t m e n t , d i v i s i o n , and o r i g i n a t o r / c r e a t o r t h a t

might b e c a p t u r e d v i a d e f a u l t log-on a c t i v i t i e s .

b. e x t r a c t i n g i n f o r m a t i o n from e t y l e a h e e t s .

c. e n a b l i n g t h e u s e r t o s e t up d e f a u l t p r i o r i t i e s (e.g. if someone

works m o s t l y on documents r e l a t e d t o Honduras t h e d e f a u l t p r o f i l e

s h o u l d have t h e c o u n t r y and r e g i o n f i e l d s f i l l e d i n a u t o m a t i c a l l y ) .

d. obviating t h e need f o r users t o re-profile a document that is

r e t r i e v e d f r o m t h e document s t o r e and e d i t e d b u t whose a t t r i b u t e s do

n o t change a s a r e s u l t o f i t s b e i n g e d i t e d .

e. making it p o s s i b l e f o r one t o a t t a c h a n e x i s t i n g p r o f i l e t o a newly

c r e a t e d document ( e . g . a new c h a p t e r ) t h a t i s p a r t of an e x i s t i n g

document.

2.2.2 User Keywords

The u s e r s h o u l d a l e o b e a b l e t o u s e r t h e i r own keywords t o d e s c r i b e a document.

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2.2.3 User Group P r o f i l e s

Have d i f f e r e n t p m f i l e s f o r d i f f e r e n t t y p e s of u s e r s .

2.2.4 Minimal Data Entry

The u s e r s h o u l d n o t have t o f i l l i n more t h a n 7 f i e l d s w i t h t h e h e l p of t a b l e s

o r 4 f i e l d s without t a b l e s .

2.2.5 User P r o f i l e C r e a t i o n

Users s h o u l d be a b l e t o complete a g e n e r i c p r o f i l e f o r a document t y p e t h a t has

not been p r e v i o u s l y e n t e r e d ( r e c o g n i z e d ) i n t h e system.

2.2.6 Copy P r o f i l e f o r S i m i l a r Document Type

C r e a t o r s of new documents should n o t be o b l i g e d t o complete a l l mandatory p r o f i l e

a t t r i b u t e s u n t i l t h e document i s moved from one domain t o a n o t h e r . Users want

t h e o p t i o n of d e c i d i n g which f i e l d s g e t f i l l e d i n f o r documents s t o r e d i n t h e

p e r s o n a l domain.

2.2.7 "Memo"-Type E q u i v a l e n t F i e l d

A b i l i t y f o r u s e r s t o d e s c r i b e o r c l a s s i f y documents i n more d e t a i l e d terms t h a n

allowed i n t h e d e f a u l t p r o f i l e f o r g i v e n document t y p e s . For example, u s e r s

should be a b l e t o add a t t r i b u t e s n o t i n t h e d e f a u l t p r o f i l e .

2.2.8 Global Changes

A b i l i t y t o g l o b a l l y change i n f o r m a t i o n c o n t a i n e d i n c e r t a i n f i e l d s ( e . g . t h e

r e t e n t i o n p e r i o d i n t h e document t y p e f i e l d ) .

2.2.9 Common D e f a u l t P r o f i l e s

Document c r e a t o r s must be a b l e t o r e a d i l y s t o r e and invoke d e f a u l t p r o f i l e s of

t h e most commonly g e n e r a t e d documents.

2.2.10 S t o r a g e Location "Stamp"

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Each document should be automatically stamped on the bottom of the firat or last
page with minimum profile attributes that connect the printed documen~with its
online analog to enable users to find the online copy without necessarily having
to use the information retrieval capability of the system.

2.3 Filing / Storage Requirements

2.3.1 Combining Electronic Files

Provide for combining/linking many electronic files that originate from many
different authoring tools in a single logical electronic version of a document.

2.3.2 Automatic Migration

Documents should be automatically migrated to the institutional domain based on
the retention/disposition rules determined by adherence of Agency records
management guidance cited in Handbook 21, Part 11.

2.3.3 Email
System should capture and store e-mail and documents in other representations
(e.g. image, voice, video, etc.) in the common institutional document store.

2.3.4 User Directory Definition

Users should be allowed to select the way they wish to present the organization
of documents in their personal domain.

2.3.5 Profile Management

Information specialists must be able to file and manage documenta in the
institutional document store based on the document profiling information provided
by document creators.

2.4 Integrity / Accountability Requirements

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2.4.1 Environment P r e s e r v a t i o n

The information content (i.e. the document itself) plus any structured

information s u p p l i e d a u t o m a t i c a l l y by t h e s o f t w a r e ( e . g . filesize, software

version, etc.) o r p r o v i d e d b y document c r e a t o r s ( e . g . keywords, distribution

l i s t s ) must be preserved.

2.4.2 Central Storage

Documents must b e s t o r e d i n t h e i n s t i t u t i o n a l domain i n a way which p r e s e r v e s a

r e c o r d o f t h e s u b s t a n t i v e b u s i n e s s p r o c e s s e s i n which t h e y p a r t i c i p a t e d .

2.4.3 S e c u r i t y (1)

The s y s t e m must p r e v e n t u s e r s o t h e r t h a n t h e c r e a t o r o f t h e document from

o v e r w r i t i n g f i l e s s t o r e d i n workgroup domains.

2.4.4 S e c u r i t y (2)

Documents i n t h e i n s t i t u t i o n a l domain must n o t b e m o d i f i a b l e by a n y o n e , i n c l u d i n g

t h e authors.

2.4.5 Disaster Recoveq

The system must s t o r e documents so they a r e protected from accidental or

i n t e n t i o n a l damage o r d e s t r u c t i o n .

Document R e t r i e v a l

A key t e s t o f t h e e f f e c t i v e n e s s of a document management s y s t e m i s w h e t h e r it

makes it p o s s i b l e f o r s t a f f t o s e a r c h f o r and r e t r i e v e documents from a n y

document s t o r e on t h e n e t w o r k , when t h e y need t o , and i n a f a i r l y e a s y manner.

3.1 I n g e n e r a l , t h e system should a l l o w t h e u s e r t o s p e c i f y p r o f i l e a t t r i b u t e s

a n d b e p r e s e n t e d w i t h a l i s t of documents t h a t s a t i s f y them.

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3.2 Ability to use natural English language expressions to search for
information.

3.3 Institution-wide transparent access to document store.

3.4 Location-independent (physical) access to documents in all domains.

3.5 From within the document management system, users should be able to browse
the list of most actively used, or most recently accessed or edited,
documents and make a selection without necessarily having to specifically
employ the system's information search and retrieval tools.

3.6 The system should allow users the flexibility to set the sort sequence of
default lists of retrieved documents.

3.7 Ability to open the document and launch its associated application by
simply clicking on document selection(8).

3.8 Users should be able to view documents (including earlier versions)

without having to launch the application in which they were created.

3.9 The document management system must not interfere with authoring tool
function that allows users to open more than one document at a time.

3.10 The document management system must support user access from remote sites,
particularly those on TDY. They must be able to retrieve and use
documents prepared and stored within the system.

3.11 Retain live links among all files that make up the compound document.

3.12 The software version of the authoring tool should be one element of the

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 p r o f i l e i n f o r m a t i o n t h a t i s p r i n t e d o n hardcopy v e r s i o n s o f documents.

3.13 Audit t r a i l c a p a b i l i t y : u s e r s should be a b l e t o r e t r i e v e earlier v e r s i o n s

of t h e i r f i l e s .

3.14 Read-only a c c e s s by m u l t i p l e , c o n c u r r e n t u s e r s t o documents i n s h a r e d

areas.

3.15 I n t h e c a s e o f m u l t i p l e e n t r i e s f o r t h e same f i e l d , e a c h e n t r y s h o u l d b e

s e a r c h a b l e and r e t r i e v a b l e e i t h e r i n d i v i d u a l l y o r as a group.

3.16 The s y s t e m s h o u l d a l l o w t h e f o l l o w i n g :

a. Word s e a r c h i n g

b. Phrase searching

c. Concept ( t h e s a u r u s ) s e a r c h i n g

d. Reduction of the number of records retrieved by searching

s e q u e n t i a l l y on s u b s e t s of s e l e c t e d r e c o r d s .

e. Complex s e a r c h e s u s i n g l o g i c a l Boolean o p e r a t o r s .

f. Date range s e a r c h i n g

9- Proximity searching
h. Wild c a r d t r u n c a t i o n a t t h e b e g i n n i n g and m i d d l e o f a word

i. R i g h t t r u n c a t i o n o f a word

j- Searching on system generated fields (e.g. date of

c r e a t i o n / r e v i s i o n , author, a p p l i c a t i o n used, e t c . ) . A l l such f i e l d s

a r e assumed t o b e i n c l u d e d i n t h e p r o f i l e .

k. Case i n s e n s i t i v e s e a r c h i n g

1. QBE c a p a b i l i t y : s e l e c t i o n of a specific file for retrieval of

s i m i l a r f i l e s , r a n k e d by o r d e r of r e l e v a n c e ( b y number of f i e l d s and

number of i n d e x e s i n common).

m. Query by Form (QBF)

n. Punctuation i n s e n s i t i v e searching

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 0. Content-based r e t r i e v a l , s i n c e t h e c o l l e c t i v e document store w i l l be

c o n t a i n mixed o b j e c t t y p e s ( e . g . images, g r a p h i c s )

P. R e t r i e v e p r o f i l e i n f o r m a t i o n and t h e document c o n t e n t s i m u l t a n e o u s l y

q. R e t r i e v e p r o f i l e i n f o r m a t i o n and t h e document c o n t e n t i n d i v i d u a l l y

3.17 The t e r m i n o l o g y and t h e i n t e r f a c e f o r s e a r c h i n g s h o u l d b e s i m p l e , u e e r -

friendly, and intuitive, tailored to users of different levels of

sophistication.

3.18 C i r c u l a t i o n : Check-in / Check-Out

a. When a document i s checked out, t h e f i l e should be locked and

a v a i l a b l e t o o t h e r u s e r s on a r e a d - o n l y b a s i s .

b. When u s e r s t r y t o open a f i l e t h a t i s checked-out, they should g e t

message i n d i c a t i n g t h e f a c t t h a t t h e f i l e h a s been checked o u t and

is locked o r "write-protected". The l o c k e d v e r s i o n c a n b e c o p i e d ,

c r e a t i n g a new, e d i t a b l e v e r s i o n .

c. S y n c h r o n i z e f i l e s t h a t a r e m a i n t a i n e d b o t h i n a notebook computer

and i n a d e s k t o p PC ( r e m o t e / m o b i l e computing r e q u i r e m e n t ) .

3.19 I n c l u d e f e a t u r e t o o p t i o n a l l y l i m i t s e a r c h e s o n l y t o f i e l d s g o v e r n e d by

c o n t r o l l e d vocabulary.

3.20 Ability to establish user-defined hyperlinks to retrieve relevant

information.

3.21 U s e r s s h o u l d have t h e o p t i o n o f s e a r c h i n g using codes o r corresponding

names (e.g. o f f i c i a l project document "bibliographic types"). Usere.

s h o u l d n o t have t o memorize c o d e s i n o r d e r t o p e r f o r m s e a r c h e s .

3.22 Users s h o u l d b e a b l e t o u s e a common i n t e r f a c e l s e a r c h t o o l t o r e t r i e v e a l l

t h e i r files/documents, i n c l u d i n ~t h e i r e-mail messages.

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3.23 Allow u s e r s t o p r i n t t h e complete document p r o f i l e .

3.24 Users must have t h e o p t i o n of p r i n t i n g t h e c o n t e n t o f a document w i t h o r

without t h e p r o f i l e .

3.25 Documents downloaded from o t h e r domains t o t h e d e s k t o p must r e t a i n t h e i r

p r o f i l i n g information.

3.26 Format c o n v e r s i o n s e r v i c e s t o t r a n s l a t e a document from o n e f o r m a t t o

a n o t h e r s h o u l d i d e a l l y b e p r o v i d e d by t h e a u t h o r i n g t o o l s . The document
management s y s t e m , s h o u l d , however p r o v i d e v i e w e r s f o r a l l commonly u s e d
document f o r m a t s i n t h e o r g a n i z a t i o n s , s o t h a t a u s e r who wishee t o c a n

view a document r e g a r d l e s s of i t s n a t i v e f o r m a t . Format c o n v e r s i o n c a n b e

viewed as an intermediate step t o the i m p l e m e n t a t i o n of a compound

document a r c h i t e c t u r e ( e . g . ODA/ODIF') w i t h which t h e v a r i e t y of document

management a p p l i c a t i o n p r o d u c t s and t o o l s a r e c o m p l i a n t .

4.0 Appraise and Dispose Document

Over t h e c o u r s e o f t h e i r l i f e c y c l e , documents t y p i c a l l y move from a n a c t i v e t o

l e s s a c t i v e usage s t a t u s . Timely d i s p o s i t i o n i s r e q u i r e d t o e n s u r e t h a t t h o s e

documents t h a t a r e o f c o n t i n u i n g v a l u e a r e p r e s e r v e d and t h o s e t h a t s h o u l d be

destroyed a r e disposed of a t t h e appropriate t i m e . Maintaining l i t t l e used

documents t o g e t h e r w i t h t h o s e more a c t i v e l y r e t r i e v e d c o u l d s l o w r e t r i e v a l of t h e

latter.

A p p r a i s a l i s t h e p r o c e s s f o r d e v e l o p i n g and a p p l y i n g t h e c r i t e r i a f o r d e c i d i n g
how l o n g documents a r e r e t a i n e d and t h e i r u l t i m a t e d i s p o s i t i o n .

S t r a t e g i c I s s u e s f o r E l e c t r o n i c Records Management: Towarde Open S y s t e m s

I n t e r c o n n e c t i o n . ACCIS: 1992

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4.1 Appraisal

4.1.1 D i s p o s i t i o n c r i t e r i a w i l l be a p p l i e d t o each document ( i. e. each

document t y p e w i l l be a p p r a i s e d ) a t t h e time of i t s c r e a t i o n .

4.1.2 D i s p o s i t i o n a c t i o n should be a u t o m a t i c a l l y determined based on t h e

document p r o f i l e information and t h e r e l e v a n t r u l e s recorded i n t h e p r o f i l e (e.g.
andb book 21, P a r t I1 record s e r i e s d e f i n i t i o n s , and d i s p o s i t i o n i n s t r u c t i o n s ) .

4.1.3 Records of enduring v a l u e must be t r a n s f e r r e d t o t h e i n s t i t u t i o n a l

domain.

4.1.4 Document retention and disposition rules must be defined and

maintained.

4.1.5 R e t e n t i o n and d i s p o s i t i o n requirements ( s c h e d u l e s ) should be l i n k e d

to each document f o r subsequent execution.

4.2 Expartability
AIL data aasociated with a document, including the content, structural
r e p r e s e n t a t i o n , c o n t e x t u a l information such a s addresses, and d i s t r i b u t i o n l i s t s

muut be p o r t a b l e . The aim i s long-term software and hardware independence.

4,J Disposability
4.5.1 Documents must be s e g r e g a b l e i n t o c l a s s e s ( e . g . by r e t e n t i o n p e r i o d ,
bu6iness p r o c e s s , r e c o r d s e r i e s , e t c . ) i n o r d e r t o apply r e t e n t i o n / d i s p o e i t i o n
nc tledules6.

Record s e r i e s perform t h i s f u n c t i o n . For t h e Agency, t h e y a r e c a t a l o g e d

Handbook 21, P a r t 11, Chapters 6-9.

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4.3.2 D i s p o s a l n o t i c e s f o r a c t i o n t o be t a k e n by t h e c u s t o d i a n of documents
i n workgroups and b u s i n e s s u n i t domains ehould be a u t o m a t i c a l l y g e n e r a t e d .

4.3.3 A r e c o r d of a u t o m a t i c d i s p o s i t i o n a c t i o n s should be maintained by t h e

system.

4.3.4 The system a d m i n i s t r a t o r should have t h e o p t i o n of d i s p a t c h e s n o t i c e s

of d i s p o s i t i o n a c t i o n s b e f o r e such a c t i o n s a r e t a k e n .

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 D e t a i l e d F u n c t i o n Reauirements:

1. The document management s y s t e m must p r o v i d e f o r t h e management of documents

a c r o s s t h e h e t e r o g e n e o u s e n t e r p r i s e network.

2. The document manager s h o u l d t a k e no more t h a n 15-20 seconds t o s t a r t u p

(initialize). F a s t system response r e q u i r e d d u r i n g o p e r a t i o n .

3. The s y s t e m must be s c a l a b l e , from b e i n g a b l e t o s u p p o r t document management

o p e r a t i o n s f o r a s m a l l workgroup t o h a n d l i n g o p e r a t i o n s on a n e n t e r p r i s e - w i d e

b a s i s ( u p t o 3,000+ u s e r s ) , w i t h o u t performance d e g r a d a t i o n .

Bunran F a c t o r s / I n t e r f a c e

4. I n t e l l i g i b l e e r r o r and h e l p messages.

5. The s y s t e m s h o u l d i n t e g r a t e s e a m l e s s l y w i t h s t a n d a r d d e s k t o p a p p l i c a t i o n s

(e.g. e-mail, word p r o c e s s i n g , e t c . ) i n u s e i n t h e o r g a n i z a t i o n .

6. The s y s t e m s h o u l d c a t e r t o t h e f r e q u e n t a s w e l l a s i n f r e q u e n t u s e r . In

o t h e r words, human/machine i n t e r a c t i o n must be i n t u i t i v e i n n a t u r e .

7. Users s h o u l d have t h e o p t i o n o f i n t e r a c t i n g w i t h t h e s y s t e m v i a k e y b o a r d

o r mouse.

8. L e a r n i n g t o u s e t h e s y s t e m s h o u l d r e q u i r e no more t h a n two h o u r s o f

t r a i n i n g f o r one t o become r e a s o n a b l y p r o f i c i e n t .

9. O n l i n e documentation a n d c o n t e x t u a l h e l p f e a t u r e s are r e q u i r e d .

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10. Should b e e a s y t o n a v i g a t e w i t h i n documenta on t h e s y s t e m ( e . g . page

up/down) .

Privacy and S e c u r i t y

11. A c r o s s t h e network, a c c e s s t o documents should be c o n t r o l l e d a t t h e

document l e v e l , c o n s i s t e n t w i t h o r g a n i z a t i o n p o l i c y .

12. Access p r i v i l e g e s need t o b e s c a l a b l e a n d modular. The s y s t e m must s u p p o r t

contouring authority t o assign access privileges t o r e f l e c t administrative
r e a l i t i e s of t h e workgroups environment.

13. The c r e a t o r o f t h e document must b e a b l e t o s p e c i f y who c a n r e a d y , modify

o r d e l e t e it.

14. The a c c e s s r i g h t s s h o u l d be d e f i n a b l e o r r e v i s a b l e on a n a d hoc b a s i s ,

i n s t e a d o f h a v i n g t o be p r e - d e f i n e d by t h e document c r e a t o r .

15. Each document s h o u l d b e l i n k e d t o t h e a c t u a l d i s t r i b u t i o n l i s t u s e d f o r

d i s t r i b u t i o n ( s i m i l a r t o envelope f o r d e s k t o p e-mail).

16. Network u s e r s must b e p r o v i d e d a n e a e y way t o s h a r e documents, c o n s i s t e n t

with e x i s t i n g network s e c u r i t y p r o v i s i o n s .

17. The exchange and s h a r i n g of documents o v e r t h e network must n o t d e g r a d e

d a t a r e l i a b i l i t y and i n t e g r i t y .

18. The s y s t e m must a t o r e documente s o t h e y a r e p r o t e c t e d from a c c i d e n t a l o r

i n t e n t i o n a l damage o r d e s t r u c t i o n .

19. The o r i g i n a t o r o f a document must have t h e c a p a b i l i t y of defining a

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document as non-forwardable.

20. The system must have a well-developed disaster recovery plan. Users must
have access at all times (e.g. even in the event of the network or institutional

server failure) t o a current list of their locally-maintained documents. They

must be able t o retrieve documents even when they don't have access to the server

portion of the document management eystem. Use of a properly rated UPS which can
be used for a phased shutdown or backup of the eystem is highly desirable.

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