Effectiveness of human resource records management strategies at a university in Ghana
| DOI | https://doi.org/10.1108/GKMC-04-2021-0059 |
| Published date | 25 October 2021 |
| Date | 25 October 2021 |
| Pages | 972-985 |
| Subject Matter | Library & information science,Information behaviour & retrieval,Information in society,Information literacy,Library & information services |
| Author | Kofi Adom-Nyankey,Raphael Papa Kweku Andoh |
Effectiveness of human resource
records management strategies at
a university in Ghana
Kofi Adom-Nyankey and Raphael Papa Kweku Andoh
University of Cape Coast, Cape Coast, Ghana
Abstract
Purpose –Human resource records are very important in the successful management of organisations.
Despite their importance, they are ignored in records management studies. This studyaims to bring to the
limelight human resource records management issues that are overlooked despitethe numerous studies on
records management by examiningthe effectiveness of human resource records management strategies at a
universityin Ghana.
Design/methodology/approach –A descriptive survey w as used in this study. A com bination of
census and simple random sampling was used to administer questionnaires to administrators who handle
master or working personal files regularly. Data of 228 respondents was processed using SPSS and
analysed in frequenc ies, percentages, mean and st andard deviation.
Findings –This study revealed that while most vitaldocuments were found on staff personal files, some
documents like medical reports, passport picturesand birth certificates were somewhat unavailable. It was
also found thatthe University had no human resource recordspolicy in its corporate strategic thrust,which is
a barrier to effectivehuman resource records management, but the recordscreation strategies were effective.
However, regardingthe maintenance, and retention and disposition of human resourcerecords, the strategies
were ineffective.Overall, the findings fell short of the ISO 15489 framework for managingrecords.
Originality/value –This study seeks to bringto the fore human resource records management issues that
seem to be overlookeddespite the numerous studies on recordsmanagement.
Keywords Employee records, Personal file, Records creation, Records disposition,
Human resource records management, Information management
Paper type Research paper
Introduction
Records are the tangibleand intangible evidence of significant past events and information,
which have been preserved and help in planning the now and the future. According to
Duffus (2017), records provide documented evidence of the activities carried out by
organisations and to achieve their goals, they must capture, organise and manage the
records related to those actions. They seem insignificant until there is the need to visit the
past and/or plan beyond the present. According to Otu et al. (2014), records are very
important sources of informationand knowledge in organisations. In the view of Adu (2014),
records are the most basic, yet one of the essential assets in organisations. Jagersma (2011)
sums its importanceas the starting point of competitive advantagefor organisations.
According to Tagbotoret al. (2015), it is impossible to conductbusiness, account for what
has happened in the past or make judgements about the future until records are kept
efficiently in an organisation. This assertion is echoed with the fact that poor records
The authors acknowledge the support provided by Dr Simon Aheto and Ms Lucy Amoah Abedu
towards the preparation of this article.
GKMC
71,8/9
972
Received5 April 2021
Revised15 June 2021
2 July2021
Accepted3 September 2021
GlobalKnowledge, Memory and
Communication
Vol.71 No. 8/9, 2022
pp. 972-985
© Emerald Publishing Limited
2514-9342
DOI 10.1108/GKMC-04-2021-0059
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