On Tue, 15 Mar 2005 20:02:28 -0800, Sharon Burnett <[log in to unmask]> wrote:
> Not that there needs to be sides, but I am also in agreement with BobD. The
> freedom to innovate, to create, to think outside of the norm would only
> serve to be stifled by causing ISO standards (i.e. best practices) to be
> legislated and enforced. Shall we all then wear lavender and dye our hair
> orange?

Since the topic has strayed from Business Classification schema to
standards and best practices. it is a good practice to change the
subject header so on we go

Standards are more than just best practices. by definition a standard is

Something established for use as a rule or basis of comparison in
measuring quantity, quality, value, etc.

Document, established by consensus and approved by a recognized body,
that provides, for common and repeated use, rules, guidelines or
characteristics for activities or their results, aimed at the
achievement of the optimum degree of order in a given context EN
45020:1998, 3.2 GD - Standards and Regulations
www.cenorm.be/BOSS/help/glossary.htm

A generic, all-encompassing term used to describe documents that
provide a specified set of mandatory or discretionary rules,
requirements, or conditions concerned with performance, design,
operation, or measurements of quality to accomplish a specific task.
Standards may include federal laws, regulations, state laws, federal
agency directives, national and internal technical standards, codes of
conduct, or organizational "internal use only" documents.
www.llnl.gov/es_and_h/hsm/doc_5.01/doc5-01.html

that being said standards do not stifle innovation they provide a
common grounds from which one can compare two or more operations,
processes whatever.

Standards are not set in concrete, the key word in standards
development is consensus. (Consensus decision making requires that
everyone agrees with a decision; not just a majority as occurs in
majority-rule processes. In consensus-based processes, people must
work together to develop an agreement that is good enough (though not
necessarily perfect) that all of the people at the table are willing
to agree to it.
www.colorado.edu/conflict/peace/glossary.htm). Consensus building is
not easy, but it is necessary in making sure a standard is widely
adopted.

If standards are so restrictive then why does ARMA expend the time and
effort in developing standards such as the recently issued "Managing
Electronic Messages as Records"

A standard is but one more tool for us to use as we work to advance
the profession of records management.

I've found over time that if you can point to a standard non-RM folks
are much more amenable to what we do.

peterk

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