Abstract:
Records which are managed as part of an appropriate records management programme will help the organization to conduct business in an efficient, accountable manner, deliver services consistently, support managerial decision making and transparent policy formation and ensure continuity in policy execution, management and administration. Ineffective records management systems usually lead to long customer waiting times before they are served. Workers in the Ministry usually end up not rendering certain services because the documents of the client are not contained in ministry files.
This study sought to investigate the role of records management and service delivery at the ministry of Industrialization. The study was guided by the following specific objectives: To establish how records are managed in the ministry of industrialization during their entire life-cycle, to establish extent to which current state of records management facilitates/undermines service delivery, to find out the challenges faced in managing records in support of service delivery and to propose recommendations to the challenges identified by the study..
The study applied a case study research design. The study targeted a total population of 10 employees in the ministry of industrialization. The study applied purposive sampling design and used questionnaires and interview schedules to collect data. The researcher used qualitative data analysis with the aid of SPSS.
The study established that the Ministry of Industrialization has adopted both paper and electronic records management systems to manage its records during their entire life-cycle. Officials in the Ministry of Industrialization never attended formal records management training and no formal records management training was offered to records management staff in the institutions. This negatively affects service delivery in the ministry. The Ministry of Industrialization did not have enough guiding documents for the administration of client records. They had no standard norm for turnaround times for the retrieval of client records in the Ministry of Industrialization. There was also no disposal plan for e-records. The Ministry of Industrialization should adopt and implement an effective records system to minimize too much paper work.
Based on the findings and conclusions of the study, the researcher recommends that the Ministry of Industrialization should develop and implement a standard reasonable time frame for returning clients records when clients borrow files to prevent files from going missing. They should also develop policies, procedures, norms and standard documents that specifically govern clients’ records management. The study suggests that further research should be carried out to determine the requirements and processes of developing an effective, modern and advanced records management system, particularly electronic records management system.