Authoritative records and information are authentic and reliable, have integrity, and are useable. Organisations can rely on authoritative records and information to function as trustworthy evidence of business transactions.
In order to be authoritative, records and information must possess metadata recording:
- a description of the content of records and information
- the structure of records and information
- the business context in which records and information were created or received and used
- relationships with other records, information and metadata
- business actions and events
- information that may be needed to retrieve and present records and information
This metadata must be configured in systems and carried forward through system changes in order to sustain records immediately and through time.
This minimum metadata set can be applied to entire systems (such as transactional systems in which all the records and information have the same management requirements) or to individual records or groupings of records (such as files in an electronic document and records management system (EDRMS)).
Many traditional recordkeeping systems, such as EDRMS, may capture and keep the minimum metadata for records and information by default. For other systems, your organisation may need to determine how it will capture and keep the minimum metadata, and at what level this will be done.
AS/NZS 5478:2015 Recordkeeping Metadata Property Reference Set (RMPRS) provides a reference set of recordkeeping metadata to support systems interoperability and records sustainability. We have developed a mapping between the RMPRS and the minimum metadata required for authoritative records and information.
The metadata described here is the minimum necessary for authoritative records and information. Your organisation may determine the need to create and capture further metadata to ensure that records and information are full and accurate and to establish a complete context for them or to prove their authenticity. Such needs will be identified as part of an appraisal process.
Metadata for records and information can also facilitate the management of records and information over time.
Back to topMetadata must record a description of the content of records and information
In order to be authoritative, records and information must possess metadata recording a description of their content. Records and information that do not possess such metadata lack the characteristics of authoritative records.
For documents, this metadata might take the form of a title or an abstract. For data in transactional systems, this metadata might take the form of information about the purpose of the system and how it is used.
Example: Email message subject lines
The subject line of an email message should provide a good summary of the contents of the message. If it does not, and the message is captured into a separate system such as an EDRMS or enterprise content management (ECM) system, you should provide a more appropriate and suggestive title for the message.
Back to topMetadata must record the structure of records and information
In order to be authoritative, records and information must possess metadata recording their form and format, and the relationships between the components which comprise them. Records and information that do not possess such metadata lack the characteristics of authoritative records.
Example: File format
Information about a digital object’s format can be crucial for its ongoing management. This information enables your organisation to identify the technology needed to view or render an object, and plan for its ongoing storage. Information about format can be captured as part of an object’s metadata.
The content of records and information and their associated metadata may be managed in multiple coexistent locations and systems or a single location and system. If records and information and their associated metadata are not kept in a single location and system, logical relationships or linkages between content and metadata should be created and maintained.
Back to topMetadata must record the business context in which records and information were created or received and used
In order to be authoritative, records and information must possess metadata recording the business context in which they were created or received and used. Contextual metadata enables records and information to be interpreted, understood, validated, trusted and reused, both now and over time. Records and information that do not possess such metadata lack the characteristics of authoritative records.
This metadata might take the form of information about:
- who created the records
- why they were created
- when they were created or received
- how they have been used and managed.
Example: Business systems provide context
For line of business systems processing uniform transactions, the context of the business operations and computing environment in which records and information were created can be derived from the system and its documentation. Maintaining information about the way in which the system operated and was used is therefore one way of preserving information about the business context of records and information in the system.
Back to topMetadata must record relationships with other records, information and metadata
In order to be authoritative, records and information must possess metadata recording relationships with other records and information, and other metadata. Records and information that do not possess such metadata lack the characteristics of authoritative records.
Example: Workflow rules
A customer management system may have established rules for how each interaction with a customer progresses. These rules may change over time, and knowing which rules were in place at the time of a particular interaction would be key to understanding the information captured and how separate pieces of content connect to form a record of the interaction. Keeping a record of the rules and the time periods during which they were applicable is important for high risk systems, as is being able to link customer transactions with the rules which applied at the time they occurred.
Back to topMetadata must record business actions and events
In order to be authoritative, records and information must possess metadata recording the business actions and events involving records and information throughout their existence. This metadata must include the date and time of the actions, changes to the metadata and the agents undertaking the actions. Records and information that do not possess such metadata lack the characteristics of authoritative records.
Example: Social media posts
Many organisations are active users of social media. When capturing records of their social media activities, they may identify the need to document when a post was approved, published, edited, commented on and/or removed. This metadata should identify who took the action and when.
Back to topMetadata must record information that may be needed to retrieve and present records and information
In order to be authoritative, records and information must possess metadata that may be needed for retrieving and presenting the records and information. Records and information that do not possess such metadata lack the characteristics of authoritative records.
Where appropriate, this metadata should include a permanent unique identifier.
Example: Different types of records and information will have different types of identifiers
Unique identifiers can take different forms, depending on the systems in which the records and information are created and kept:
- Documents kept in an EDRMS or ECM system may have an automatically generated unique number.
- Contracts managed in a contract management system may have an automatically generated contract number.
- Organisations with which your organisation does business may be identified by their name.
The types of metadata which are required to retrieve records and information can also be reused for a range of purposes, including analysis, reporting, service improvement and service monitoring. These additional uses of this type of metadata present opportunities for gaining maximum business value from implementing metadata for records and information.
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Published November 2015 / Updated June 2019
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