Situation
Our client was a public sector government Ministry that focuses on supporting Ontario’s commitment to creating an inclusive society where everyone is given equal opportunity to contribute to and benefit from economic growth and prosperity.
In order to meet the policy and legal obligations of the Ontario Government and Archives of Ontario, the organization required a restructured shared drive that would have the capacity to better manage all recorded information, including paper and electronic records and provide it with a good foundation for future document management.
Requirement
Within this context, Schroeder & Schroeder was commissioned to evaluate the organization’s current Shared Drive Structure and develop recommendations for a new functional-based structure. They were also hired to engage with organization’s staff through group interviews and training sessions in order to help with change management and implementation sustainability.
Challenges
The main challenges faced on this project included:
- Very tight timeline – after a delayed start date, our team had to provide the project deliverables within a very tight timeline
- Evolving requirements – being the first project of its kind within the Ministry, there was confusion and miscommunication around the current state and what was actually required, versus what was stated.
- Multiple stakeholders – this projected had many stakeholders involved from all areas of the Directorate and Ministry. Our team had to use extensive “art” to navigate this landscape.
Actions
After analyzing the project requirements above, our consultants performed the following actions:
- Identified Project Scope and Developed a Project Plan – held a meeting to introduce the project consultants, review the project timeline, and define the working relationship with the staff.
- Developed a Functional Classification Scheme and File Plan – conducted needs assessment interviews, presented findings and developed the classification scheme based on defined functions and the defined activities within each function; and defined record series and file plan produced from each activity.
- Performed an Analysis of Directorate: Specific Retention Schedule – analyzed Directorate specific record schedules for accuracy and relevancy, and analyzed the retention schedule based on common record series and program-specific needs.
- Developed of a Transition Plan – mapped out the old filing structure to the new Function Based Common Records Series (FBCRS) to harmonize the new record series across functions.
- Developed of New Shared Drive Structure – a new share drive, that mirrored the classification scheme for the shared drives, the physical records, and the SharePoint sites, was created.
- Developed Business Processes and Rules – email management policies, granting and removing shared drive access policies, standard naming conventions, process for classifying and managing electronic records, and processes for implementing records scheduling requirements were established.
- Developed a Migration and Implementation Plan – the new classification structure and file plan configuration was developed for the new drive, so content could be migrated to this drive by the users after training and a clean-up of unwanted content.
- Developed and Delivered RM Training and On-going Support – developed training modules content designated for individuals that were accountable for ensuring that the classification structure would not be modified without procedures in place.
Results
At the end of the project, Schroeder & Schroeder Inc. provided the organization with a distinct sets of deliverables:
- A project plan developed in consultation with the Directorate project team
- A functional records management classification scheme based on the Directorate’s core functions using the foundational principles for functional classification in the OPS
- A Migration and Implementation Plan to move from the old to new shared structure that included recommendations for cleaning up existing records
- Training materials and the delivery of training and on-going support
- A final report summarizing the products and recommendations of the project deliverables, including:
- An organizational framework requirements for success
- The organizational requirements for a Record Information Management (RIM) infrastructure
- Compliance and quality requirements
At the conclusion of the project all the key success factors had been achieved, and the client was highly satisfied with the project deliverables and the value added by Schroeder & Schroeder Inc.