The Maturity model

Introductuion to the Maturity model

Following a surveillance survey on the state’s records and records management, conducted in 2012, it was decided to put its results into a tangible and comparable form. A special Maturity model was created and the entities were given points depending on how they obliged to the laws, regulations and requirements for archiving and records management. The Maturity model shows how entities are performing compared to others and how the state of archiving and records management is as a whole or at individual groups of entities. The Maturity levels are five and each level is representative for the archiving and records management of an entity who has given answers in surveys conducted by the National Archives of Iceland. A scorecard was also created for the responses of individual entities to obtain the total scores of each entity obliged to transfer their records to the National Archives.

Maturity levels – definitions

Maturity level 0. No conscious archiving and records management. 0 - 4 points. There is no records manager or special employee who does archiving and records management for the entity. There have been no or little communication with the National Archives, i.e. electronic databases have not been notified, archives storages have not been approved, there is no approved filing system and no application has been made for permission to dispose of records. The entity does not seem to attend to archiving and records management at all.

Maturity level 1. Insufficient archiving and records management. 5 - 9 points. The records manager or special employee handles archiving and records management of the entity. Some communication have been with the National Archives. The entity is more aware of archiving and records management and practices the correct working methods to some extent. Employees register cases that they receive and an approved filing system exists. Electronic databases have not been notified, and the entity is default still in paper archiving.

Maturity level 2. Traditional archiving and records management. 10 - 14 points. The records manager is responsible for the archiving and records management of the entity. He has attended courses at the National Archives and is generally aware of laws and regulations on archiving and records management that the entity must oblige to. Reasonable amount of communications have been with the National Archives. Electronic databases are used and notifications about them have been sent to the National Archives. The entity has an approved filing system and has applied for permission to dispose of records.

Maturity level 3. Professional archiving and records management. 15 - 19 points. The records manager carries out archiving and records management of the entity. He/she has attended the courses available at the National Archives. The entity has an approved filing system and files cases in an electronic database that has been approved by the National Archives. Furthermore, other electronic databases have been notified, and their preservation value has been determined. The entity has started electronic archiving and operates according to a valid records schedule that has been approved by the National Archives. An application has been made for disposing of record and has been completed according to those permissions. All paper records of the entity, 30 years of age or older, have been packed and registered according to the rules of the National Archives and transferred to a public archive for permanent preservation.

Maturity level 4. Exemplary archiving and records management. 20 - 25 points. The archiving and records management of the entity is exemplary. The records manager is responsible for the archiving and records management and has attended courses available at the National Archives. The entity has an approved filing plan and files cases in an electronic database that has been approved by the National Archives. Furthermore, other electronic databases, including obsolete databases, have been notified and their preservation value has been decided. The entity has transformed into electronic archiving and operates according to a valid records schedule that has been approved by the National Archives. The repositories of the entity have been approved by the National Archives. Authorisations for disposing of records have been obtained for and records are disposed of according to those authorisations. All paper documents of the entity 30 years or older have been packed and registered according to the rules of the National Archives and transferred to the National Archives for permanent preservation.

Maturity model - scoreboard

When processing the information from the surveillance surveys and adding them to the Maturity model, a point is given for each factor that is present according to the entity answers.

Content	Factors to the point	Level
Filing plan - 2 points possible
	Does the entity use a filing plan to classify their case files	0/1
	Has the filing plan been approved by the National Archives	0/1
Registry - 2 points possible
	Does the entity register information about cases in accordance to regulation no. 85/2018, paragraph 3?	0/1
	Does the entity register information about documents in accordance to regulation no. 85/2018, paragraph 4?	0/1
Electronic data - 7 points possible
	Does the entity use electronic database with documents in their archiving and records management?	0/1
	Has the database been notified to the National Archives?	0/1
	Has the database been approved by the National Archives?	0/1
	Do handbooks or guides about the use of the database exsist?	0/1
	Has a database without documents been notified to the National Archives?	0/1
	Have all electronic databases been notified?	0/1
	Have obsolete databases been notified?	0/1
	Does not apply, no obsolete database present.	0/1
Preservation - 2 points possible
	Are electronic documents, that should be preserved, printed out and archived?	0/1
	Is the records management fully electronic (e.g. with approved electronic database)?	0/1
	Does the entity use paper that fulfills ISO standards?	0/1
Records schedule - 2 points possible
	Does the entity work according to a records schedule?	0/1
	Is the records schedule approved by the National Archives?	0/1
Appraisal - 2 points possible
	Has the entity disposed of records according to special rules or approval of the National Archives of Iceland?	0/1
	Does the entity register what records are being disposed each time?	0/1
Repository - 2 points possible
	Has the entity packed and filed paper archives methodically according to record retention period?	0/1
	Has the entity transferred all of its paper records older that thirty years of age to the National Archives?	0/1
	Does not apply, the entity has not reached thirty years since established.	0/1
Finish - 1 point possible
	Has the person responsible for the submission of documents delivered all paper documents older than 30 years to the National Archives?	0/1
	Not applicable, the person subject to delivery has not reached 30 years.	0/1
National Archives of Iceland educational program - 3 points possible
	Has the entities records manager/employee taken courses provided by the National Archives of Iceland?	0/1
	Has the entities records manager/employee attended conferences held by the National Archives of Iceland, e.g. yearly National Archives spring conference?	0/1
	Does the entity use the National Archives rules and instructions?	0/1


	Conclusion (total score is 25 points)	0-25

2020 Maturity levels of Entities obligated to transfer their archive

The developmental stage of the individual state delivery obligations in 2020 can be found here:

The main results of a surveillance survey conducted in the first half of 2020 show that the archiving and document management of the State's delivery obligations is moving in the right direction as can be seen in the attached figure. Only 7% of the delivery obligations or 13 parties were measured at maturity level 0, which is the lowest level. It is not desirable for any delivery obligation to be measured at this maturity level.

At maturity level 1, which is inadequate documentation and records management, 32% of the parties were required to submit documents or 58 parties. At maturity level 2, which is traditional documentation and records management, 44% of the parties were required to submit documents or 80 parties and at maturity level 3, professional documentation and records management, 17% of the parties were required to submit documents or a total of 30 parties.

No delegated entities reached maturity stage 4, which is the model for archiving and document management. It is likely that in the next surveillance survey of state archiving and document management, which will be conducted in 2024, delegated entities will reach maturity stage 4.

The National Archives of Iceland’s long-term goal is that no deliverable entity is measured at maturity levels 0 or 1. Both levels are insufficient and in fact mean that the deliverable entity is not complying with the laws and regulations that apply to the records management and archiving of deliverable entities.

Total distribution of the State's delivery obligations to maturity in 2020.

If the distribution is further examined by size of the delivery obligation, it turns out that small parties with 25 or fewer employees came out worse than larger delivery obligation parties. A total of 52% of smaller delivery obligation parties were measured in the 0 and 1 developmental stages. This result was in accordance with the results of previous surveys. This has been attributed mainly to the fact that smaller delivery obligation parties have less special records manager or employee who does the records and records management and often have less resources to do the job properly.

The larger submission entities were similar in their developmental stages, but submission entities with 50 or more employees seemed to be the best organizations in the field of records management.

The developmental stage of the State's delivery obligations in 2020 depending on the size of the delivery obligations.

When the categories of the parties (issues) were examined, 70% of ministries were measured at maturity level 3, professional archiving and records management, and 30% at maturity level 2, traditional archiving and records management. 60% of the courts were measured at maturity level 1, inadequate archiving and records management, and 40% at maturity level 2. Similarly, almost half of the county and police departments, or 46%, were measured at maturity levels 0 and 1, which was a concern. Half of the healthcare institutions were measured at maturity level 2 and half at maturity levels 0 and 1. The same can be said about secondary schools, but they are a little better, with 54% of them being measured at maturity levels 2 and 3.

Total distribution by institutional categories of State-mandated bodies in 2020.

Maturity levels of Entities obligated to transfer their archive 2016

The status of archiving and records management in the State's delegated entities in 2016 was as follows: at maturity level 0 (no conscious archiving and records management) 17% of the State's delegated entities were delegated, at maturity level 1 (inadequate archiving and records management) 36%, at maturity level 2 (traditional archiving and records management) 38% of the State's delegated entities were delegated, and at maturity level 3 (professional archiving and records management) 9% of the delegated entities were delegated. There was also no delegated State entity at maturity level 4 (model archiving and records management).

Distribution of the total number of State delivery entities in the development stage in 2016.

When the distribution of the size of the delivery parties was examined it was found that the middle-sized parties came out best while delivery parties with 25 employees or fewer came out worst.

Developmental stage of the State's delivery obligations in 2016 by size of the delivery obligations.

The results of the survey in 2012 showed that schools and healthcare institutions were in poor shape in the field of records management. The status of these state-mandated entities improved between the surveys in 2012 and 2016. 61% of secondary schools in Iceland were in the 0 and 35% in the 1 level. 40% of healthcare institutions were in the 0 and 60% in the 1 level. The following chart shows how some groups of state-mandated entities came out of the survey. Of these groups, the ministries came out best, as in the previous survey.

Total distribution by institutional categories of State submission obligation in 2016.

Maturity levels of Entities obligated to transfer their archive 2012

In 2012 the status of archiving and document management in the State's delegated entities was that 34% of all delegated entities were in the developmental stage 0 (no conscious archiving and document management), 30% in the developmental stage 1 (inadequate archiving and document management), 32% in the developmental stage 2 (traditional archiving and document management) and only 3% in the developmental stage 3 (professional archiving and document management). No delegated entity had reached the developmental stage 4 (model archiving and document management).

Total distribution of the State's delivery obligations at maturity in 2012.

When the distribution was further examined by size of the delivery parties, it was found that medium-sized delivery parties came out best while parties with 25 employees or fewer came out worst.

Developmental stage of the State's delivery obligations in 2012 by size of the delivery obligations.

When the results of the survey were analysed, it was revealed that schools and health institutions were generally poorly represented. 85% of secondary schools in Iceland were in the 0 th and 15% in the 1 th th. Similar figures were among health institutions in the whole country or 86% in the 0 th. The following chart shows how several groups of delegated persons came out of the survey. Of these groups, the ministries came out best, as there is a long tradition of archiving and document management within those institutions and there are active records managers in all ministries. Most of the delegated persons do not have a dedicated employee who does the archiving and document management and this underlined the importance of having such an employee.

Total distribution by institutional categories of State-mandated bodies in 2012.

Comparison of the Maturity levels of Entities obligated to transfer their archive 2012-2020

If the results of the surveillance surveys 2012, 2016 and 2020 on the state’s records management and records management are examined, it can be seen how the developmental stage of the data subjects has changed from lower to higher. It can therefore be seen how data subjects have been improving their compliance and ensuring that their records management and records management comply with the laws and regulations that apply to them.

Comparison of the total distribution of the state’s delivery obligation on maturity scores between the surveys in 2012, 2016 and 2020.

As can be seen in the chart, the number of State accounts in maturity 0 has decreased significantly from 34% in 2012 to 7% in 2020. This is a very positive development and it is the goal of the National Archives that no accounts are measured at this level in the future, as this means that there is no organized archiving and document management at these accounts. Furthermore, it is pleasing to see the number of accounts decrease slightly at maturity 1 after a small increase in the 2016 survey. But this can probably be explained by how many accounts were moving from maturity 0 to maturity 1 in the 2016 survey. In the surveillance survey in 2020, this shift was still significant but on the other hand, there are also more accounts moving to maturity 3.

It is also a positive development to see a growth in the 2nd and 3rd stages of development, which are traditional and professional archiving and records management. The main difference between the deliverables measured at these two stages is that in professional archiving and records management, the deliverables are usually in the approved electronic archiving, but in traditional archiving and records management, the deliverables have usually not yet taken the step of notifying electronic databases and getting them approved.

At maturity level 1, insufficient documentation and document management, the number of State Party submission obligations has been relatively stable throughout the surveys. This can probably be considered normal if we consider the large number of submission obligations at maturity level 0 in the survey in 2012. This number has been moving to maturity level 1. Only a slower shift has been to maturity level 2, but we can see a fairly safe growth there. All of these are steps in the right direction and in general we can say that we are pleased to see a relatively steady shift of State Party submission obligations from lower levels to the next maturity level. With such a continuing trend, it will not be long before all State Party submission obligations are measured in satisfactory documentation and document management and compliance will generally be good.

In the 2012 survey, 85% of secondary schools in Iceland were measured at the 0 and 15% at the 1 level, which meant that the secondary schools were not conducting records management and records management in accordance with the law. The results of the survey in 2020 show that the secondary schools have made a big leap forward but there has been a significant improvement in their status in records management and records management. In 2020 only 8% of secondary schools were measured at the 0 and 38% at the 1 level. More than half of secondary schools or 54% were measured at the 2 and 3 level, and were therefore in the traditional or professional records management and records management.

Comparison of the overall distribution of secondary schools in the years 2012, 2016 and 2020 between the two surveys.

Healthcare institutions are another area where there has been a positive development. In the survey in 2012 86% of healthcare institutions in Iceland were in the 0 th developmental stage and had no organized records management. Immediately four years later, in the survey in 2016, more than half of the population was in the 0 th developmental stage and in the survey in 2020 17% of the population was in the 0 th developmental stage. Although it is still quite high, this is a step in the right direction. In addition, the proportion of healthcare institutions that are in the 2 th developmental stage has increased dramatically, from 7% in 2012 to 50% in 2020.

Comparison of the overall distribution of the population in the healthcare system between the years 2012, 2016 and 2020.

In recent years, the offices of the District Commissioners and the police have made significant improvements in the archiving and records management. In the survey in 2012 19% of offices were measured at maturity level 0 and 50% at maturity level 1. In the next survey in 2016 no office was measured at maturity level 0 but then 8% again in the survey in 2020. This can be explained by the fact that after the archiving period ends, approvals for e.g. case keys and electronic databases had to be renewed. If a delegated party does not fulfill the obligation to renew the approvals, the relevant party may lose a level between surveys and move down to maturity level. Furthermore, the offices have undergone a lot of changes during this period, but the number of offices of the District Commissioners was reduced from 24 to nine by the law no. 50/2015 on executive powers and administrative authority of the state in the district and the police offices from 15 to eight by the amendment to the police law no. 90/1996. Such changes inevitably affect the archiving and records management of the offices. One task that is faced when delegated parties merge or projects are transferred between them is to renew approvals to the National Archives.

Comparison of the total distribution of the districts and the police on the developmental stages between the surveys in 2012, 2016 and 2020.

Justices were not well represented in the surveillance survey in 2012. Justices have been ranked at maturity level 1, although with the positive trend that more and more people are moving to maturity level 2. For evidence of progress, in 2012 17% of justices were at maturity level 0, but in the following survey, in 2016, no justices were at maturity level 0.

Comparison of the total distribution of the courts’ sentences between the years 2012, 2016 and 2020

The ministries have always been well measured in the National Archives of Iceland’s surveillance surveys. The Government of Iceland has a long tradition of archiving and document management and employs qualified records managers and archivists. The ministries rank at maturity stage 2 and 3. Development since 2012 has been that they have been moving from maturity stage 2 to maturity stage 3, with 70% of ministries measuring at maturity stage 3 (professional archiving and document management) in 2020 and only 30% in 2012. It is likely that the ministries will move up to maturity stage 4 in the next surveillance survey, which is scheduled to be in 2024.

Comparison of the total distribution of the ministries of developmental studies between the years 2012, 2016 and 2020.

Maturity levels of municipalities obligated to transfer their archive for 2017

The developmental stage of the individual municipal offices that are required to be delivered to the state in 2017 can be found here:

Local government offices obliged to deliver to the National Archives in 2017

The National Archives conducted a controlled survey on the archiving and records management of municipal offices that are required to be delivered to the National Archives in 2017. The main results of the survey were that the archiving was acceptable. In total, 20% of municipal offices (3 municipal offices) were in the developmental stage 0 (no conscious archiving and records management) and 13% (2 municipal offices) were in the developmental stage 1 (insufficient archiving and records management). In the developmental stage 2 (traditional archiving and records management) 60% of municipal offices (9 municipal offices) and in the developmental stage 3 (professional archiving and records management) 7% of municipal offices (1 municipal office). No municipal offices were ranked in the developmental stage 4 (model archiving and records management).