Christina,

I always do two interviews. I do the first interview, which I have
dubbed the "Level I" interview, with the department head and focus on
the mission and operations of the department. In this interview I try
not to talk about records at all, (but the conversation invariably leans
toward and includes them). Then I begin my physical inventory of the
department's records, completing an inventory form for each record
series. After the inventory is complete I then schedule subsequent
interviews (yes, "Level II" interviews, if you must know) with the same
department head, or heads of the various units within the department who
have the detailed knowledge of the records that I need. 

This is an oversimplification to some extent, because each inventory and
even department is unique. But I use one inventory form and need both
physical inventories and interviews to complete it.

Hope that helped,
Gary Link, CRM
Pittsburgh, PA
[log in to unmask]


-----Original Message-----
From: Records Management Program [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On
Behalf Of Christina Zamon
Sent: Monday, February 28, 2011 12:39 PM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Records survey/inventory

This is a follow up question to the one I posted the other week about
drafting an implementation plan.  One of the tasks on my "to do" list is
to "establish best practices for surveying/inventorying departmental
records."  Right now I'm thinking that just means draft some forms to
use when I walk into an office to do an inventory but I feel like there
should be more to it than that.

Right now I'm looking at the records management forms in the SAA/ARMA
forms book in terms of drafting a form to do an inventory but do I also
need to do an interview?  I see forms for that as well.
Maybe I do an interview and then an inventory?

Does anyone have any advice on this front?

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Christina J. Zamon
Head of Archives & Special Collections
Emerson College
(617) 824-8679
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~


List archives at http://lists.ufl.edu/archives/recmgmt-l.html
Contact [log in to unmask] for assistance
To unsubscribe from this list, click the below link. If not already
present, place UNSUBSCRIBE RECMGMT-L or UNSUB RECMGMT-L in the body of
the message.
mailto:[log in to unmask]

List archives at http://lists.ufl.edu/archives/recmgmt-l.html
Contact [log in to unmask] for assistance
To unsubscribe from this list, click the below link. If not already present, place UNSUBSCRIBE RECMGMT-L or UNSUB RECMGMT-L in the body of the message.
mailto:[log in to unmask]