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Re: organization



I'm in the same spot that Daniel is in. Theory is nice, but some situations defy the
application of theory. One thing I enjoy about this job is the challenge of how to
adapt archival theory to the amazing problems our collections present.

Best wishes,

Thomas Berry, Archivist
Historical Construction Equipment Association
16623 Liberty Hi Road
Bowling Green, Ohio 43402
419-352-5616
tberry@wcnet.org
http://www.bigtoy.com



Daniel Sokolow wrote:

> From: Daniel Sokolow@MCGRAW-HILL on 05/11/2000 11:04 AM
>
> To:   archives@listserv.muohio.edu
> cc:
> Subject:  organization
>
> Here's my take on it.  I'm in the middle of a reorganization now (only two years
> in, with many more to go - I keep getting interrupted), and my company
> reorganizes itself every five weeks.  Rather than trying to keep up with the
> changes, I've decided to organize by subject matter rather than organizational
> structure (similar, I think, to Dean's approach).  This way, whether Business
> Week is simply BW, part of MH Publications Company, Information and Media
> Services, or whatever other idea they come up with, it's all simply under the
> "Publications" Record Group, in a series on Business Publications.
>
> I know this isn't entirely consistent with archival theory, but this collection
> has developed so haphazardly anyway that trying to stick to theory would be
> impossible.  I'm concerned more with usability than anything else, and if I and
> the users can find things more easily this way, then to blazes with theory.
>
> One other thought - if your retrieval system (i.e., your database or electronic
> guide to your collection) is structured properly, you can call things whatever
> or place things wherever you want without a problem; just make sure your
> different sections of the same types of material are linked intellectually
> (through a "see also" reference or using the same keywords) in your database,
> everything will appear when you do your searches.  If you're not on a DB system,
> you're in more trouble, but I suppose you could do that sort of thing on paper
> too.
>
> DS
>
> Daniel Sokolow
> Corporate Archivist
> The McGraw-Hill Companies
> 1221 Avenue of the Americas
> New York, NY 10020
> daniel_sokolow@mcgraw-hill.com
>
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A posting from the Archives & Archivists LISTSERV List!

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Or to do *anything* (and enjoy doing it!), use the web interface at
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Problems?  Send e-mail to Robert F Schmidt <rschmidt@lib.muohio.edu>