Government

Inputs to Stage 1: IM Planning

Since good foundations are needed to plan your Information Management initiatives, IM practitioners will get key inputs from a wide variety of sources, including:

• worldwide government, business and academic communities who are driving global trends in IM;
• Government of Canada;
• your department; and
• Library and Archives Canada.

Worldwide Government, Business and Academic Communities who are Driving Global Trends in IM
There are many international organizations that are leading the way in IM standards and best practices. Among them are the International Standards Organization (ISO), Internet luminaries, business leaders, technology innovators, Information Technology researcher and development teams, and electronic recordkeeping specialists. The emerging field of Information Management is becoming increasingly important as we all learn to share information within secure public networks via the Internet.

Government of Canada
Since your IM initiatives are within the boundaries of the Government of Canada's jurisdiction, you'll need to be familiar with government-wide initiatives such as:

• strategic IM (Information Management) and IT (Information Technology) directions
• Treasury Board Secretariat's IM policy
• Treasury Board Secretariat's security policy
• other Treasury Board policies
• legislation through the Department of Justice such as:
  • Acces to Information Act
  • Privacy Act
  • Library and Archives Canada Act
• court decisions on Jurisprudence
• Statistics Canada's collection methodologies
• Government of Canada IM standards and related standards such as Information Technology Standards
• IM best practices and guidelines
• intergovernmental agreements

Each of these resources provides a different facet that may have an impact on your IM planning initiatives.

Your Department
Your IM planning may be impacted by a number of department-specific issues or initiatives, including:

• legislation and regulations;
• strategic and operational business plans;
• IM policies and related policies, such as Information Technology policies;
• departmental standards;
• departmental practices and guidelines;
• business process models;
• service delivery strategies;
• identification of information assets;
• business resumption plans;
• concept of legal control in the context of your department;
• intergovernmental agreements;
• interdepartmental agreements; and
• governance and accountability frameworks.

When undertaking IM planning, ask for these or other documents, such as mission, mandate, and vision statements that may impact your planning efforts.

Library and Archives Canada
As a National Centre of Excellence, Library and Archives Canada encourages and supports your IM program. It has specific roles and responsibilities related to the management of information, which include:

• identifying, selecting, acquiring and preserving government records, in all media, considered to be of enduring value to Canada;
• issuing Records Disposition Authorities to enable federal government institutions to dispose of records, in all media, that no longer have operational value, by permitting their destruction (at the discretion of institutions), by requiring their transfer to Library and Archives Canada, or by agreeing to their alienation from the control of the Government of Canada;
• providing direction and assistance in records and information life cycle management;
• developing tools, standards, guidelines, and practices to support government-wide and institution-specific records and information life cycle management initiatives;
• serving as a leader in building records management capacity in the Government of Canada and as a credible resource on records management;
• managing and protecting less frequently referenced and essential records of federal government institutions in a network of federal records centres across Canada;
• preserving the published heritage of the nation and of the Government of Canada;
• receiving for deposit all newly published information, in all formats, from federal government institutions and monitoring its deposit with the institution's library;
• assisting federal government institutions to ensure that all of their published information is easily accessible to decision-makers and available to the public;
• monitoring the management of published information produced by federal government institutions, and reporting and advising on its long-term access and preservation;
• managing a system of redistribution of library information declared surplus by libraries of federal government institutions; and
• co-coordinating the library services of federal government institutions.

The Library and Archives of Canada provides general input to all facets of IM planning as well as specific inputs related to records retention and disposition. Contact us for more information or check our IM planning resources to help guide your IM planning initiatives.

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