In the world today, most organizations are faced with a variety of issues related to creation and retention of information, primarily brewed by the greatly growing electronic information volumes, complex regulatory and rigid constraints, and storage issues.
Extant literature demonstrates that as contemporary organizations continue to rely more and more on electronic technology to generate, process, store, communicate, and use information in their everyday engagements, the volume of the records being created in electronic format continues to increase exponentially (Lin et al., 2003), as is the need to urgently address the issue of how these large volumes of electronic data could be electronically archived for future use (Abbot, 2002).
Yet, a strand of existing literature (e.g., Abbot, 2002; Philips, 2001) demonstrates that most organizations continue to be held back by an intricate web of challenges in their attempt to implement an effective electronic archival infrastructure, with most of the challenges resonating along the continuum of technological limitations, monetary constraints, and skills shortages.
The present paper seeks to illuminate critical knowledge on how modern-day organizations can go about implementing an effective electronic archiving infrastructure to preserve their electronic records, as well as the challenges that these organizations can possibly face during implementation.
In addition, the paper will address some germane issues which could assist organizations circumvent the challenges and lay the framework for the implementation of a successful electronic archiving infrastructure.
While electronic archiving is relatively new as a retention technique in the business scene, organizations operating in the 21st century have no option than to embrace it if they are to remain competitive and results-oriented.
Seadle (2006) cited in Moghaddam (2008) notes that the word ‘archiving’ refers to the integrated “…process of storing physical objects, generally though not exclusively paper-based, in a physical location, such as a room or a building, to maintain that object’s physical integrity and its intellectual context as could be represented by other objects within an archive” (p. 84).
1 hour!
The minimum time our certified writers need to delivera 100% original paper
Electronic archiving, however, is marginally associated with physical objects and physical storage as it utilizes emerging information and communications technologies (ICTs) to preserve large volumes of data in virtual environments (Ashkhoj et al., 2011).
Consequently, electronic archiving delineates “…all activities employed to ensure continued access to digital resources which have retained properties of authenticity, integrity and functionality” (Moghaddam, 2008, p. 84).
As noted in the literature, computer science, or more specifically the computer-based information technology, acts as the core framework or facilitator to electronic archiving, not only due to its capacity to connect nations globally but also its efficiency in ensuring that ideas are shared easily and effectively (Laha, 2011; Castell, 1999).
IT-based support environments for electronic archiving, also known as digital preservation, have complex multifaceted nature and scope involving not only the technological facets making up the infrastructure, but also the social, cultural, and behavioral characteristics which to a large extent inform the needs and aspirations of respective organizations and their employees (Laha, 2011).
The intersection between technological aspects of the electronic archiving on the one hand and the socio-cultural and behavioral aspects of the enterprise and its workers on the other is, therefore, a fundamental aspect of any effective implementation of the infrastructure.
For instance, organizations that make immense investments to put in place a state-of-the-art electronic archiving system without taking the initiative to train its workers on the use and functionality of the system will possibly fail to reap the benefits accruing from the infrastructure, such as reduced operational costs as well as ensuring the safety and integrity of the electronic documents held in such an infrastructure (Stamatiadis, 2005). It, therefore, follows that such organizations cannot remain competitive.
An effective infrastructure in electronic archiving needs to be implemented in such a manner that the global communication needs of the relevant stakeholders will be sufficiently
Order this paper