Records and value narratives

A narrative is a way of presenting a series of events that reflects and promotes a particular point of view or set of values.

This is just a fancy way of saying that the story you tell your organisation about the value of records is important.

If your narrative is about the importance of records for accountability, you'll get people interested in accountability

If its about value of information, you'll get people interested in valuing the value of information.

Organisational performance - you'll get people interested in organisational performance.

History - you'll get people interested in history.

Risk - risk.

Etc.

You get to choose your value narrative.

When your value narrative delivers something your organisation wants, they'll fund it and give you the power you need to deliver it - as long as they believe that you can deliver it.

One of the real challenges for records if it wants to be fit for the future - and have a future, is that for many people practising it, there's only one narrative - one thing that records is for, and one set of practices deployed in one way.

And one narrative, one set of practices is pretty limited.

There is so much opportunity out in the world for records.

As long as the narrative fits the organisational need.

And the practices can deliver it.