- History
- The National Archives
- The Provincial Archives
- Organisation
- Strategy 2015
- Mission of the National Archives Service
- Operational objectives and methods
- Vision and values
- Changing operational environment
- Management and operational development
- Life-cycle management of documentary information
- Making documentary cultural heritage available
- Administrative services and operational development
- Mission and operations
Life-cycle management of documentary information
Guidance on life-cycle management
Guidance through norms and standards
Information, councelling and training
Reception and acquisition of materials
Private archives
Research and development
Guidance on life-cycle management
Guidance on the life-cycle management of documentary information produced by records creators falling under the Archives Act is a critical task of the National Archives Service. The availability of documentary information with permanent preservation value and its receipt for permanent storage are ensured through guidance, which also makes it possible to destroy other material as soon as it has become redundant.
The tasks and status of the National Archives Service in managing and storing electronic material have been defined as part of the guidelines on information management in public administration.
The norms guiding life-cycle management correspond to international standards and requirements on records management.
Guidance on life-cycle management requires coordination between units of the National Archives Service as well as development of operations in a number of areas of responsibility and objective setting.
Determining the value of documentary information is part of the life-cycle management of records. It includes decision-making on permanent storage of information. Life-cycle management aims at determining the preservation value of documentary information in a way which makes it possible already at an early stage of the life cycle to ensure the availability and preservation of material to be stored permanently, while other materials can be destroyed as soon as it has become redundant. The National Archives Service intends to store an average of 10–15% of the entire output of records by the authorities.
Filing plans, efficient appraisal of material as well as guidance and advisory services promote the management of documentary information and ensure that good records management practices are observed by the authorities.
The Archives Act and terminology of the archival sector will be brought to a level corresponding to the rapid development in electronic records management. National records management standards will be updated in accordance with changes taking into consideration the international development and standardisation.
The Archives Act will be reformed in multilateral cooperation with partners. Current legislation on the life-cycle management of documentary material and the need for updated regulations on records management will be taken into consideration during the preparatory drafting. The interface between responsibilities and powers of the National Archives Service and those of the Ministry of Finance as well as the forms of cooperation will be defined. The status of the National Archives Service within records management of the municipal sector will be evaluated with special regard to the availability of resources. The status and tasks of the Provincial Archives will be defined from the viewpoint of a strategic objective: to increase the efficiency of an integrated National Archives Service.
Guidance through norms and standards
The National Archives Service produces understandable norms and standards for the authorities on records management. They can be easily applied in practice and promote operations. The National Archives Service monitors compliance with the norms and standards that it has issued.
Guidance through norms and standards makes seamless transfer to the National Archives Service of documentary materials to be permanently stored possible, ensuring safe permanent storage and facilitating efficient and reliable information service relating to them.
The policy and strategy on appraisal will be updated, making it possible to capitalize on appraisal opportunities in an electronic environment. An appropriate proportion of the digital documentary information can be preserved due to the electronic storage system.
The status of SÄHKE norms and standards in the public information management architecture has been defined. The practices relating to authorisation of electronic storage have been updated.
Guidance on norms and standards utilizes partnerships in State administration and in the municipal sector which have been specified in the rulings for public ICT governance.
Particular criteria and methods for determining the value of documentary material born digital and for the appraisal of such material will be prepared. Quantitative appraisal targets for documentary material will be specified.
Organizational and information system-specific authorisations of permanent electronic storage will be abandoned and technical and operational certification of systems will be introduced, requiring the suppliers of systems to apply for a SÄHKE certificate for their systems. The National Archives Service will clarify the accreditation procedure for the certifiers.
Information, councelling and training
Information and councelling improves the performance of records management by the authorities, enhances the expertise of individuals responsible for records management, promotes documentary information practices in line with best practices, and safeguards the availability and preservation of documentary cultural heritage.
Guidance through information includes written guidelines and handbooks, advice, consulting and training events as well as examinations.
The National Archives Service supports training on records management and the archival sector given by the universities.
Professional and skilful records management is the best guarantee for preserving the nationally important documentary cultural heritage in an easily accessible form. Guidance provided by the National Archives Service at every stage of the life cycle of a document ensures the competence and reliable records management practice of authorities.
Administrative reforms and the changes in operational culture together with the large turnover of records management staff in public administration are a challenge to guidance through information. It needs to be innovative and flexible, in cooperation with key strategic partners.
The further, continuing training provided by the National Archives Service in the form of courses will be developed in accordance with changes in educational structures and demand. The regional equality of customers and opportunities offered by online teaching will be given special attention when courses and their contents are planned. The offered further courses will focus on current vital themes and on the content of development projects of the National Archives Service.
New operational models will be developed for further training in records management leading to an examination. The comprehensive reform of adult education and opportunities offered by the system of competence-based examinations will be taken into consideration. The National Archives Service will mainly cooperate with the Board of Education and providers of training in the archival sector.
The diversity of training given by the universities is growing. The academic training on the highest level in records management will consequently be transferred from the National Archives Service to the universities. The National Archives Service will support universities in planning, implementing and developing the content of education, and in providing students with practical professional skills in the archival sector. This will ensure good correspondence of degrees taken at universities to the requirements of working life and promote employment of those taking the degrees.
The necessity of a specialized vocational examination in records and archives management will be investigated and the status of the basic examination in records and archives management passed at the National Archives Service will be re-evaluated within the entire scope of archival training.
Reception and acquisition of materials
The Archives Act ensures the definition of official archival material to be stored permanently according to a set of standards and its transfer to the National Archives Service for permanent storage.
In order to curb the increase in the amount of material to be received by the National Archives Service, old decisions on appraisal will be partially re-evaluated. The re-evaluation of appraisal decisions will be incorporated in the archives transfer reception plan.
Archives of the State authorities will be received to the extent possible for storage, subject to a fee, earlier than the normal 40-year transfer cycle would require. The early transfer of materials and destruction of materials to be kept for a fixed period will produce calculated savings for the State enterprise in reduced costs for premises and will improve the services related to older materials.
The arranging and transfer of archives in less satisfactory order of public authorities, a process relating to reforms in regional State administration, has been implemented as separate projects. Regionalisation objectives and opportunities to obtain national and European special funding for projects were taken into account.
As a general rule the National Archives Service will receive paper materials for permanent storage from records creators operating under the Archives Act when the material has reached the age of 40 years. As the authorities switch over to online case management systems they are often prepared to hand over paper material for permanent storage to the National Archives Service earlier than today.
Accelerated transfers of paper materials for permanent storage open possibilities for more efficient space management in public administration and for significant cost savings and operational benefits in terms of State administration as a whole. Such transfers are, however, feasible only when units of the National Archives Service have at their disposal space that is not required for permanent storage of material transferred in accordance with the Archives Act. Storing material received earlier than the common transfer cycle would require is undertaken as a service, subject to a fee. The National Archives Service supports the measures of the Ministry of Finance to make public administration practices more centralised.
Several shelf-kilometres of archives in less satisfactory order remain in the possession of authorities established as a result of the reforms in regional State administration as well as other administrative reforms. Getting these archives in satisfactory transfer condition is being carried out as centralised joint ventures, looking for new cost-effective operational models of organization, financing, labour and work supervision. Experiences gained by the National Archives Service from similar previous projects and solutions relating to them will facilitate the implementation of projects. These projects will take employment objectives into account and will capitalise on existing know-how.
Private archives
Private archives are an essential complement to the view of Finnish society provided by archives of the authorities.
Securing in advance that materials represent key participants from different periods in society in an impartial, authentic and sufficient way is the aim of acquisition of private documentary material.
The National Archives Service guarantees the preservation of scientifically or culturally important documentary material in the possession of private individuals or organizations when the material is in danger of being destroyed or lost. Reception of electronic materials is being developed.
The National Archives is responsible for the developing division of tasks and cooperation between the National Archives Service, the private archives receiving State aid, municipal archives, local heritage archives and other information service institutions that collect and store private archives.
The private archives receiving State aid are responsible for the collecting and storing of nationally important documentary materials in their own special field. The National Archives monitors the effectiveness and impact of the operations of private archives receiving State aid and puts forward proposals to the Ministry of Education and Culture on developing the State aid system.
Private individuals and other private creators of archives have no statutory obligation to hand over their materials to the National Archives Service or any other institution preserving such materials. Archives acquiring private materials should therefore be particularly active. The trust felt towards the National Archives Service is based on strict honouring of principles and operating practices as expressed by donors of archives and compliance with the donation agreements.
The National Archives Service strives through proactive measures to secure the acquisition of scientifically important materials owned by private individuals and organizations. Acquisition of private materials produced by participants in society who are currently under-represented in the archives in comparison with their influence will be emphasized. Other priority areas include the documentation of the war period and the special phenomena of the post-war years, as well as the changes in Finnish society since the 1980s, partcularly immigration issues and the trend towards internationalisation. In order to ensure the preservation of private archival material of exceptional scientific or cultural importance, the National Archives Service exercises the authority granted in the Archives Act to buy or copy the material.
Understanding of the importance of private documentary material for historical research and for national self-understanding is promoted through communication. The National Archives Service promotes cultural aspirations (Kulturwille) that value documentary heritage and handing over of materials for preservation in archives.
The acquisition and processing of private archives requires a disproportionate amount of efforts from institutions storing them in comparison with the archives of authorities. The arranging and cataloguing of archives transferred to the National Archives Service from private organizations should in accordance with the objectives of the strategy period be carried with external financing and utilize strategic partnerships in other ways.
The Advisory Committee on Private Archives of the National Archives promotes cooperation on a national level between institutions receiving private archives. Goals include common principles on acquisition and storage, good coordination of operations between institutions, common registers on materials and strong emphasis on digitising materials and online services. Operational practices are developed for the reception of electronic private material exploiting experiences particularly in the other Nordic countries.
IT features of the national register on private archives maintained by the National Archives Service will be updated. It will at the end of the strategy period include comprehensive reference data on the private archives stored by various memory organisations.
The Act on State Aid for Private Archives (1006/2006) regulates the operations of the National Archives in allocating discretionary State aid. During the strategy period the National Archives will further develop the indicators on effectiveness and impact of operations in private archives which receive State aid. The system of indicators creates the foundation for monitoring the operations of archives receiving State aid and the appropriate allocation of State aid. The system of indicators takes into consideration the special features and tasks of the archives in such a way that the system will further the management of operations in these institution in a cost-effective and efficient way.
During 2011 the National Archives will make a comprehensive study of the cost-effectiveness and impact of the State aid system for private archives. On the basis of the study, the National Archives Service will make a proposal to the Ministry of Education and Culture in 2012 on developing the State aid system. The purpose is to clarify the division of tasks of archives receiving State aid, to increase cooperation and to cut unnecessary costs. The National Archives Service strives to ensure that the funding for archives receiving statutory State aid will not proportionally fall below the development in the resources of the National Archives Service.
Research and development
Archives are a vital infrastructure particularly for research in Humanities and Social Sciences. The National Archives Service promotes research and develops and studies management of archives.
The National Archives Service promotes management of research information and strives to make comprehensive documentary information available for research as easily as possible. Digitisation and online services provide good access to materials in both Finnish and international research. The National Archives Service participates in research and development projects that improve the efficiency of data management with universities and research institutes. The research projects are mainly implemented through external funding which is applied for separately.
The National Archives Service supports the development of academic research on archival science. Promoting postgraduate training in special fields of importance for the National Archives Service is in focus. The skills of experts have been strengthened, especially in managing electronic material.
The National Archives Service participates in international research and development projects that enhance its theoretical expertise, in projects promoting development of international standards and practices and in projects increasing the use of Finnish documentary cultural heritage in international research.
At the start of the strategy period the National Archives Service will draw up in cooperation with universities a comprehensive research strategy for the entire strategy period, paying attention to the functions of the National Archives Service as a research infrastructure.
The National Archives Service is an important national infrastructure for research, preserving materials of particularly vital importance for the research into History and Social Sciences. The digitization strategy of the National Archives Service will be updated during the strategy period in accordance with international developments in research information management practices and in order to provide better availability of data. The National Digital Library creates the framework for digitization and for online use and storage of digitized materials. The National Archives Service is responsible for the developing of a system for permanent storage of the electronic material of the National Digital Library in a manner agreed upon with the Ministry of Education and Culture and other partners.
Changes in online case management require comprehensive redefinitions of archival terminology and key concepts. The strong position of the National Archives Service in the issuing of standards requires guidelines that use clear and unambiguous terminology. Efforts are being made to rapidly improve the level of theoretical expertise so that the National Archives Service can be responsible for the guidance that falls under its responsibility and for the management of research data. Further scientific training of the staff will be supported primarily through employment arrangements.
Research into records management focuses on the entire life cycle of documentary information and how it is managed in organizations in the public and private sector. The research carried out in the National Archives Service is applied research where the object is to further practical development of records management. Universities are responsible for basic research, which is both supported by the National Archives Service and utilized by it in accordance with its own needs.
The position and tasks of the National Archives Service in national and international management of research information will be specified at the start of the strategy period. International know-how will be utilized as effectively as possible.
The National Archives Service supports the development of strong research organizations and units with extensive international contacts and adequate critical mass in research. The National Archives Service participates in the activities and development of Memornet, the Finnish Research Education Network on the Memory Functions of Society, which is the responsibility of the Department of Information Studies of the University of Tampere.
The National Archives Service will finalize a separate research strategy at the start of the strategy period. Particular attention will be attached to research fields that have received little attention in university research, e.g. Conservation and Heraldry. The National Archives, acting as the heraldic office of Finland, will focuse on strengthening expertise in heraldry by capitalising on international cooperation.