Central civil government - The National Archives

About the Project

To assist departments in reaching the ERMS targets, the National Archives (NA) developed a number of resources, including a statement of generic functional requirements for a credible ERMS.

To assist departments in selecting an ERMS, the NA set up an assessment programme for commercial packages. Vendors could apply to have their ERMS tested to assess whether they complied with the NA Functional Specification requirements. Systems that comply with these requirements are listed on the NA website.

The Approach

AMTEC's involvement in developing the test scripts for Electronic Records Management Systems (ERMS) at The National Archives has given the consulting team an in-depth knowledge of both the functional requirements and the way in which ERMS packages will be assessed. Having worked on the original test scripts, AMTEC was asked by the NA to develop test scripts for assessing ERMS packages against the earlier functional requirements. Building on knowledge and experience gained in the first assignment, AMTEC developed both a structure for the testing and detailed test scripts.

Based on the generic functional requirements, testing must be both objective and subjective, as packages will have differing strengths in particular areas or approach the meeting of similar requirements in different ways. Because the NA does not assume a particular approach to system design by software developers, automating the testing is problematic. AMTEC is also helping to develop the most effective process for testing and recording the results.