The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) is expanding the role of its archives and information management services to encompass the full information lifecycle. This includes acquiring and preserving archives, records management, information governance, and providing support services across the organization. The ICRC's strategic plans emphasize improving information sharing and management. As a result, the archives and information management unit is developing an information management program and taking on new responsibilities like managing collaboration tools and digital workspaces. This positions information management as a strategic partner and changes its relationship with both business units and the IT department.

1. From collecting archives to managing
information: new activities and new roles for
an archives service
Alexandre Garcia – agarcia@icrc.org
Brigitte Troyon Borgeaud – btroyon@icrc.org

2. The ICRC and its archives
 Since 1863
 15’000 employees
in 80 countries
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 A organization valuing its
history and memory
 http://grandeguerre.icrc.org/
 Archives and IM: 42 FTE

3. A broader scope of our mission
Acquiring and
preserving archives
Records
management
Information
governance
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4. Information management as part of the
institutional strategy
ICRC Strategic Orientations 2011-2014
[…] the organization will further develop its information
management capacity, channelling, synthesizing, and
sharing information so as to facilitate decision-making and
to guide the process of adapting its humanitarian response
to constantly changing situations. It will also better
incorporate the use of new technologies in its work.
ICRC Strategy 2015-2018
[…] Improve collaboration and mobility throughout the
organization and with partners by reinforcing the systems
and tools for information management and exchange.
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5. Information Management Program
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Communication
tools
Collaboration
Enterprise
Search
Records
management
IM

6. Managing the full information lifecycle
Collaborate
Share
Search
Preserve
Create
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7. An extended solution portfolio
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 Digital workspaces
 Office applications
 Messaging systems
 Webinar tools
 Enterprise search engine
 Intranet CMS
 ERMS
 Library and archives
systems
New role: business owner of these
applications
 In charge of rules, processes, support,
evolution

8. New relationship with users
 More services intended for business units
 Advice and support tasks covering the full
information lifecycle
 Access rules, classification, workflows,
metadata, information architecture…
 IM as a partner for the day-to-day work
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 Better understanding of business
functions and information flows: a benefit
for all the IM and archives activities

9. New relationship with IT Department
 From a client to a partner
 Integration of IM roles in IT processes:
 Project steering committees
 IM team associated in helpdesk workflows as a
2nd level of support
 Application management (technical vs.
functional): responsibilities are not always well
defined
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10. New institutional positioning
 Implementation of an institutional strategy – ICRC
Information Environment Strategy
 Functional supervision of and support to staff with IM
tasks in each business unit (pool of assistants)
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Enhanced collaboration with other entities involved in
information governance
• ICT
• Personal data protection office
• Information security
• Master data management
• Business intelligence

11. Archives collections in a Information
Management perspective
 Capitalize on archives as information assets for
the current ICRC operations
 Reallocation of archivists positions from
acquisition tasks to description, analysis and
communication (intended to internal staff)
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12. Implementing these new services
 Organizational and/or HR challenge?
 New roles, more focused on specific activities
 risk of silos
 Recruitment and training
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Information Management Unit: 16 employees
(archivists, records managers, project
managers/analysts, webdesigner, support officers,
pool manager)
+ 8 information management advisers in the field

13. Team know-how / skills
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To enhance
• Project management
• Business analysis
• Application
management
To capitalize on
• Information analysis
• Metadata
management
• Institutional memory
• Network
IM, RM, archivists: we are all information
professionals

14. Future perspectives
Support the ICRC digital transition
 Continuous improvement of IM policies and
solutions
 Paperless processes
 Long-term digital preservation
 Data management
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15. 15
Thank you!
Contact
Alexandre Garcia, Head of project
agarcia@icrc.org
Brigitte Troyon Borgeaud, Head of the Archives and
Information Management Division
btroyon@icrc.org