In order to manage the preservation of electronic records over time, and ensure their continued accessibility, agencies must be proactive. They should develop and implement agency-wide strategies to identify, manage, preserve and ensure ongoing access to their electronic records. A preservation strategy is necessary in order to deal with the ever-present problem of technological obsolescence.

Which preservation strategy will work best for your agency will depend upon several factors. Consider the technology you currently have, and what is likely to appear in the near future. You should also to undertake risk and cost-benefit analyses, to determine what strategy is the most financially feasible, while considering your agency’s accountability obligations. Whatever preservation strategy you choose for your electronic records, you should carefully plan its implementation.

An agency’s electronic records preservation strategy must reflect its legislative obligations, industry standards and best practice. In order to develop your strategy, you will therefore need to understand your records requirements.

An effective electronic records preservation strategy should incorporate formal policies and procedures governing the agency’s approach to the long-term management of its electronic records. It should also establish a mechanism to ensure that the policies and procedures are updated as appropriate.

An electronic records preservation strategy should be supported by a plan for its implementation that is promulgated to relevant staff. Implementation can involve:

• policies, procedures and guidelines that provide a formal framework for implementing the strategy
• manuals, information, reference sheets and training for staff to ensure the strategy is correctly implemented – depending on the approach adopted, all operational staff may require training, not only records and IT staff

The National Archives can also provide advice about creating systems in your agency to manage electronic records that you need to keep for a long time. To talk to our digital preservation experts, contact the Agency Service Centre.