IM BLOG: Data as a Treasure: Why Records and Information Managers Matter More Than Ever

It is simply a cost. A liability. A growing collection of digital clutter consuming storage, increasing risk and creating uncertainty.

For records and information managers, our role has never really been about storing information. It has always been about ensuring that information can be relied upon when decisions need to be made. In an age of data analytics, artificial intelligence and digital transformation, that responsibility has become more important not less.

When information fails

One of the clearest modern examples is Australia's Robodebt program. The issue was not simply technology. It was not even data. At its core, the controversy exposed weaknesses in evidence, accountability and information governance. Questions emerged about what decisions had been made, what advice had been given, what records existed and whether those records could support the actions taken.

The lesson is an uncomfortable one.

Records do not merely document decisions after they happen. They provide the evidence that allows organisations to explain, defend and justify those decisions when challenged. Without reliable records, confidence disappears.

A lesson from Antarctica

To understand why trusted information matters, it is worth looking much further back than the digital age.

In 1916, following the loss of the Endurance in Antarctic ice, Sir Ernest Shackleton and a small crew attempted one of the most remarkable survival journeys in history.

Their goal was simple: sail the tiny lifeboat James Caird across some of the most dangerous seas on earth to reach South Georgia and organise the rescue of the men stranded on Elephant Island.

The voyage depended heavily on one man: navigator Frank Worsley. Worsley did not have access to sophisticated technology. He had only a handful of opportunities to obtain accurate navigational readings. Much of the voyage was conducted through storms, cloud cover and conditions that made measurement difficult. Success depended on careful observation, disciplined recordkeeping and informed judgement.

The crew did not survive because they had more data than anyone else. They survived because they knew which information they could trust.

The modern navigator

Every organisation eventually faces its own version of the James Caird voyage. A major investment decision. A regulatory investigation. A cyber incident. A legal dispute. A reputational crisis.

In these moments, leaders need reliable information. They need evidence. They need confidence that the information before them is accurate, complete and trustworthy. This is where records and information managers become essential.

We are the people who help ensure the information:

• exists
• can be trusted
• can be found
• can be understood
• can be used when it matters

Without these foundations, decisions are still made. They are simply made with less certainty and greater risk.

A profession with a broader purpose

For many years, records and information management has sometimes been viewed as an administrative or compliance function. That view no longer reflects reality.

Modern organisations operate in environments characterised by growing volumes of information, increasing regulatory obligations, heightened public scrutiny and rapid technological change. Information has become both a strategic asset and a significant source of organisational risk.

In this environment, records and information managers are not simply custodians of documents. They are stewards of organisational memory, curators of trusted information and enablers of confident decision-making. Our work influences accountability, transparency, risk management and organisational resilience.

When governance is understood as the framework through which organisations make decisions, records management becomes the discipline that makes those decisions possible.

Questions worth asking

As information professionals, there are several questions we should regularly ask ourselves and our organisations:

• Can decision-makers easily find the information they need?
• Can they trust the information they find?
• Do we understand which information is genuinely valuable?
• Are we preserving evidence of decisions as well as the decisions themselves?
• Could we confidently explain and defend our actions years from now?

These questions sit at the heart of effective information governance. They are also increasingly central to organisational success.

Looking ahead

The information profession is often described in terms of systems, technologies and compliance requirements. But they are not the reason the profession exists. Our real purpose is to help organisations make better decisions by ensuring that information remains reliable, accessible and trustworthy.

The navigators of Shackleton's era relied on disciplined observation and accurate records to find their way through uncertainty. Today's organisations face different challenges but the principle remains the same. When the stakes are high, trusted information is what guides the journey. And that is why records and information managers matter more than ever.

Meet your blog author:

 

Gail Creighton-Davies FGIA, CPPE, MSc, MAICD 

Value Architect: Turning failing projects into winners by hooking benefits to strategic outcomes