Manual for the Design and Implementation of Recordkeeping Systems (dirks)

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Applying the implementation strategy Overview Design or redesign work processes Develop a training strategy
Design or redesign work processes
Case study
Manage change and involve users
Tip: Discuss changes with users

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Applying the implementation strategy

Overview

Design or redesign work processes

Develop a training strategy

Overview

If in Step E: Identification of strategies for recordkeeping, you selected implementation as a strategy that would be of use to your department/section, this section examines how you can develop and use a range of implementation options as means to improve recordkeeping.

This section looks at revising work processes and training as two key implementation options. It concludes with a case study that demonstrates how implementation can be used as a stand-alone strategy, and as a means to promote all the changes you've made to your recordkeeping system to the staff of your department/section.
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Design or redesign work processes

Your work to date may have revealed that you need to:

design new processes and work flows that incorporate recordkeeping functionality, and/or
redesign existing processes and work flows to incorporate recordkeeping functionality.

Step F is the point in the methodology where you look at redesigning work processes so that they encompass adequate recordkeeping.

Example:

Your work in Step D: Assessment of existing systems may have revealed that changes should be made to business processes to eliminate existing problems, such as:

information bottlenecks and duplication
information double-handling, and
inability to quickly locate and retrieve important information (including records).

You would design approaches to eliminate such problems in the course of your Step F work.

Case study

Example: Business process improvement

An organization has worked through the DIRKS methodology and realized that its current business processes are contributing to its poor recordkeeping practices.

In their Step B analysis they documented their current workflows.

In Step D they identified that in no point of the workflow for the complaints management process or the policies surrounding this process were staff required to formally create a record of their responses to a complaint. This had resulted in a number of significant business inconveniences to the organization. It also meant that the organization was not complying with its Charter of Public Service. The Step D analysis revealed that technical applications were appropriate and required no configuration - people had just not been instructed in how to use them appropriately.

In Step E the organization decided to adopt the policy and implementation strategies to rectify the issues they had identified.

In Step F the organization redesigned the work process underpinning its complaints management process, as part of its application of the implementation strategy. After consultation with staff, the following workflow was decided upon:

Receive complaint
Register date and nature of complaint in complaints management system
Research complaint
Formulate response
Respond to complainant verbally or in writing
Capture details and date of response in complaints management system

As part of the implementation strategy, the organization also decided to develop training for staff involved in complaints management, to explain why complaints need to be documented and how this documentation should be achieved. This training was tailored to those staff that managed complaints management, and was designed to provide a very practical overview of how the new process worked. A number of case studies and practical examples were used in the training to help accustom people to the new practice.

In applying the policy strategy, the organization chose in Step F to develop corporate procedures for complaints management.

Manage change and involve users

Changes to business processes will result in the creation of new, or the modification of old, business rules. More importantly, it will result in new ways of working for staff. Changes to business processes must have clear management backing, and be supported by:

the assignment and documentation of new roles and responsibilities;
timely modification or development of guidelines and operating procedures, and
training in new responsibilities, processes and procedures.

Tip: Use policy, training or system design to implement changes to business process

Try to support any changes you make to business processes by:

issuing policies and procedures that support or explain your revised business processes,
developing detailed or minor training to help staff understand the changes, and/or
incorporating aspects of your business process redesign into any technical work you are undertaking. You may be able to automate aspects of business processes, or make certain steps in a workflow mandatory.

Supporting business change in this way will help staff to understand and implement the new processes you are requiring.

There is significant potential for business process change to cause major disruption to staff (and, hence, to business). Any redesign of workflows and business processes should be handled sensitively and within a change management framework.

^ Tip: Discuss changes with users

If you are redesigning work processes for a particular work group, it may be useful to verify your recommendations using a formal review process. You could convene a meeting with affected staff and go through your redesign of work processes, explain what you have done and why you have done it, and show how the changes you have made enable the group and the department/section to better meet their requirements. At the meeting users and other stakeholders could be given the opportunity to ask questions, comment, criticize or suggest alternatives to the design you have developed. Remember, involving users in the process is crucial to any effective system redesign.