WORKING DRAFT

SCIENTIFIC TRANSACTION DOCUMENTATION

SYSTEMS MANAGEMENT THEORY
Scientific (systematic) “transaction” document or record development,
management, control, storage, retrieval, and retirement (the model used
in this essay) as a presumed independent branch of the science of
management is probably one of the least understood, studied, and taught
operations in the subject of human administrative endeavors. The rapid
growth of the size of the federal government and the equally rapid
growth of the private corporation and their vast amounts of business
transactions after the civil war set the current administrative
environment.

Recent discoveries in billions of dollars in inappropriate payments in

unemployment insurance and Medicare fraud annually, and failing
economic institutions as examples, should have provided the catalyst for
increased attention to transaction document science by academics and
practitioners in order to resolve such societal concerns. To date, the true
importance of the transactional documentation issue has not been fully
appreciated and acknowledged by either camp.

President Calvin Coolidge once said: “The viciousness of waste and the
value of thrift must continue to be learned and understood.” The
systematic study of records systems and subsequent professional
practice provides a potent vehicle by which to greatly reduce waste and
increase thrift. Thus, records management, the “handling” or
“administration” of transaction documents (and the systems they create)
is one of the most important factors in hanging the administrative tissue
on the skeleton of science in general and record processes specifically.
Graduate students studying administration are in an ideal position to
critically examine and test the theory academically, and later as
practitioners to implement its strategies professionally in business.

Copyright © 2010 by Dr. Steven L. Ray

Working papers are in draft form. This working paper is distributed for purposes of comment and
discussion only. It may not be reproduced without permission of the copyright holder. Copies of working
papers are available from the author.

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Documentation describes and frames important situations (transactions)
and provides the evidence of occurrence in both the public and private
sectors. Transaction documents serve to establish and preserve
organizational memory. The managerial intent should be to move
beyond the “what” and to answer and capture the “why”. It also
provides a road map for human thought and behavior. The thesis of this
essay is that in academia, Scientific Transaction Documentation
Systems Management Theory (records/files/cases/ portfolios) should be
considered an important aspect of the administrative sciences.

In addition to the model used in this essay, documentation (records)

management is generally defined (for many government and library
records) as the practice of identifying, classifying, archiving, preserving,
retrieving, and destroying records if necessary. The International
Standard on records management, ISO 15489: 2001 defines records
management as, "The field of management responsible for the efficient
and systematic control of the creation, receipt, maintenance, use and
disposition of records, including the processes for capturing and
maintaining evidence of and information about business activities and
transactions in the form of records." The “people’s” business of records
management has implied roots in the United States Constitution.
Therefore, the formal requirement for some degree of national
systematic records management is as least as old as the Constitution.
As you will see below, the Constitution is replete with language
(bolded) that anticipates some form of administrative action.

The preamble to the Constitution states:

"We the people of the United States, in order to form a more perfect union,
establish justice, insure domestic tranquility, provide for the common
defense, promote the general welfare, and secure the blessings of liberty to
ourselves and our posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the
United States of America."

Article 1, Section 5 of the Constitution states:

“Each House shall keep a Journal of its Proceedings, and from time to time
publish the same, excepting such Parts as may in their Judgement require
Secrecy; and the Yeas and Nays of the Members of either House on any

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question shall, at the Desire of one fifth of those Present, be entered on the
Journal.”

Article 1, Section 8 of the Constitution states:

"The Congress shall have Power To lay and collect Taxes, Duties, Imposts
and Excises, to pay the Debts and provide for the common Defence and
general Welfare of the United States; but all Duties, Imposts and Excises
shall be uniform throughout the United States."

President Woodrow Wilson, the sometimes recognized “Father of

Administration,” stated in an article in the Political Science Quarterly (Jun,
1887) that “Administration is the most obvious part of government; it is
government in action…”. If this point is correct, then proper, accurate,
complete, and systematic transaction documentation are the tangible
evidence of the actions we refer to as administration. Dr. Wilson went on to
say that “…law should be administered with enlightenment, with equity,
with speed, and without friction, was put aside as “practical detail” which
clerks could arrange after doctors had agreed upon principles.”

That being said, the modern world, as we know it today, is far too complex/
sophisticated and administrative errors far too costly to allow control (with
enlightenment, with equity, with speed, and without friction) of important
transaction documentation to be left to mere “clerks” vice professional
administrators. The professional administrator is in the best position to be
able to see and operate through the fog of transaction administration, not just
create and participate in it. In addition, they must be able to precisely link
the realities with possible anticipated outcomes.

With a national annual budget in the trillions of dollars and a servicing

population of approximately 350 million strong, federal agencies are
required by law to establish a process independent of program responsibility,
to evaluate proposed collections of information, manage information
resources to reduce information collection burdens on the public, and ensure
that the public has timely and equitable access to information, products, and
services. Perhaps the time has arrived when the policy/decision makers in
the public and private sectors must recognize the current environment
appears to dictate the necessity for professional administrative performance
(thought and deed) in standardized and systematic transaction document
management.

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Systematic transaction records management has the capability of
transforming abstract executive and individual thought and action into hard
evidence. Supporting this notion, Wilson continued by stating, “This is the
reason why administrative tasks have nowadays to be studiously and
systematically adjusted to carefully tested standards of policy, the reason
why we are having now what we have never had before, a science of
administration.” Hence, earlier in this essay Wilson articulated the reason
why we must now also have a science of transaction documentation
management for professional administrators, which we have not had before.
This author believes diminishing local, national, and global resources
demand scientific investment in the subject.

Few completely anticipated the miraculous and rapid rise of this modern
nation state...the United States of America. Bringing with it, a global rise in
accountability that now dictates a more formal (scientific) administrative
structure in both the public and private sectors. For example, the
Constitution (a record that instructs generations) also offers subtle insight
into the external growth direction of the new nation by granting certain
powers to Congress that could extend beyond its physical shores and
boundaries in Section 8: “To define and punish Piracies and Felonies
committed on the high Seas, and Offenses against the Law of Nations; To
declare War, grant Letters of Marque and Reprisal, and make Rules
concerning Captures on land and Water”. Also, the Monroe Doctrine and
the Roosevelt corollary to it provided further executive signals (documented
notion) to future generations of government and business defenders and
expanders (academics and administrators) of potential national and
international administration requirements.

In less than 250 years, this nation has experienced unprecedented growth.
For example the populating of unpopulated or sparsely populated lands, in
land and sea transportation, in mass manufacturing and agricultural
production, the implementation of the assembly line concept, the appearance
of major cities (establishment of the corporation) over the small town or
settlement model. Also, the public was introduced to life altering inventions
such as the steam engine, telephone, telegraph, personal computer,
automobile, and the discovery of oil. With these incursions also came the
growth of the federal government to guide and regulate, and the federal
military to protect the entire enterprise from a strategic standpoint.

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Whether all of this and more were as a result of divine intervention, human
ingenuity, or some combination of both...the end result so far is the presence
of the greatest country and business enterprise ever known to humankind.
President Coolidge also said that: “…the chief business of the American
people is business…”. America is both a land of democracy and capitalism
that in theory provides nearly unbounded opportunities for all citizens, to
include a continuous redistribution of wealth. With these modern “man-
made” miracles came the ever growing need for thoughtful, systematic, and
rigorous documentation and its management. Over time, important
transaction documentation and its administration have now become an
inescapable reality of private and business life destined to be worthy of
scientific attention.

With so much at stake, why then has records management been trivialized
and marginalized to the extent of nearly being taken for granted? Wilson
answered that question above. In essence, it is considered a trivial and
mundane matter (left to clerks) with which the “professional” should not
have to be concerned. It was and is now literally an after thought of
professional practice. Given the rising importance of school records, legal
documents, medical records, engineering plans, military matters, financial
portfolios, etc.; can professional societies continue to view important
transaction documentation as an issue to be left in the cellar of professional
concern/attention?

A major problem with “paperwork” lack of attention is that unqualified

people get government benefits while qualified people do not, innocent folks
go to jail while dangerous prisoners are mistakenly released, medical doctors
operate on the wrong patient or organ, and important legal cases are
incorrectly decided on technicalities. Also, military weapons of mass
destruction are incorrectly routed, huge sums of money are placed into the
wrong account, new born babies are mixed up at the hospitals and given to
the wrong parents, space shuttles explode in mid-air, suspected terrorists are
improperly released from detention, domestic interlopers invade the white
house, national economies collapse, massive government fraud runs
rampant, etc. because in many cases “lowly” transaction documentation is
not handled properly in important matters.

Historically, the administration of “paperwork” has not received an

appreciable degree of scholarly attention as previously mentioned. A review
of the pertinent scholarly literature or general lack thereof supports this
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assertion and contributes to the impression that the subject has not been
worthy of such attention. However, on the functional level, Congress saw
the need to replace the Federal Reports Act of 1942 with the Paperwork
Reduction Act of 1980 largely to relieve the public and private sector of the
mounting information collection and reporting “burden” required by the
federal government. The perspective of a paperwork burden (related to
records management) on the part of government officials may have much to
do with the lack of engagement with the subject by academia, especially by
those in the fields of graduate public and business administration.

The CRS Report to Congress titled “Paperwork Reduction Act

Reauthorization and Government Information Management Issues” Updated
January 4, 2007 stated:

“In the years following the end of World War I, the provision of new
personal benefits to the public added to federal reporting and record-keeper
requirements. First came veterans’ programs and the establishment of the
Veterans Administration in 1930. Next was the arrival of the New Deal in
1933, with the subsequent provision of a variety of old age security,
unemployment, disability, and welfare benefits. The New Deal also
engendered a variety of new financial, banking, industrial, farming,
communications, housing, and public works regulatory programs. Finally,
the outbreak of war in Europe in 1939 and the entry of the United States into
World War II in 1941 brought a variety of new reporting and record-keeper
requirements for virtually all sectors of the nation and its citizens.”

The Final Summary Report, Commission on Federal Paperwork stated:

“By the early 1970s, the Federal Government’s growing need for
information led to complaints from the public about paperwork burden.
A legislative debate began on how to make the Federal Reports Act work
more effectively and usefully to reduce burdens on respondents. In 1974,
Congress passed P.L. 93-566 to establish the Commission on Federal
Paperwork, stating as its concern that “Federal information reporting
requirements have placed an unprecedented paperwork burden upon
private citizens, recipients of Federal assistance, businesses, governmental
contractors, and State and local governments.” Three years later, in
October 1977, the Commission on Federal Paperwork concluded that the
total costs of Federal paperwork were “more than $100 billion a year, or
about $500 for each person in this country”— $43 billion for the Federal
Government; $25 to $32 billion for private industry; $5 to 9 billion for
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State and local governments; $8.7 billion for individuals; $350 million for
farmers; and $75 million for labor organizations.” Yet, the need to reduce
the paperwork burden must also be carefully balanced against the need to
combat fraud, waste, and abuse due to the lack of proper systemic controls
in the processes of transaction documentation.

Switching from a historical view to a Development perspective of

systematic transaction records management, one should consider that all
“records” theoretically have a beginning, a middle, and an end. The
decision to establish and develop a transaction record is primarily a
business decision. In private business customers present needs and wants
for goods and services. Potential business owners determine market
opportunities and then endeavor to offer goods and services to meet the
needs and wants of potential customers. If the market responds favorably
to the offered goods and services, then business owners develop strategies
to keep and increase goods and services market share. Every transaction
potentially provides the opportunity to record the important details of the
event for future reference. Transaction records theoretically provide the
basis (positive or negative) for business analysis and strategy planning.

To establish a public record, an administrator needs official qualification

criteria (issued by the institutional authority) and verifiable personal or
business information (provided by the applicant)…especially on records
that will establish qualification for benefits. The application part and
supporting documents of the record must be tied to a legal entity, typically
this will be a person or a company/corporation. Identity must be
positively established, i.e. a name and face. The federal government
normally requires other information such as sex, age, race/ethnicity, social
security number, address, phone number, height, weight, hair color,
education, etc. In addition to the normally required demographic
information, one will more than likely be required to submit supporting,
official documents and possibly the signed statements from other
knowledgeable and credible individuals.

Anyone can make application, but who has legitimate access to the
nation’s resources? Thomas Jefferson (1776) in the Declaration of
Independence offers what could be a clue into the early criteria for entities
attempting to advance on and access America’s shared resources (the
Commons). He wrote in this landmark document; “we mutually pledge to
each other our Lives, our Fortunes and our sacred Honor…”. Here the
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potential test is lives, fortunes, and honor. The theory is if you risk
something of value for this nation then, possibly, there is a leg up for
monetary or service entitlements from the Commons over other citizens
who do not.

Establishment of legitimate access formally begins with the appropriate

information collected via forms, applications, intake interviews or some
other means by an administrator. The qualification or verification process
commences with a completed application. Verification documents are
generally required to be submitted with the application. Sometimes these
documents are authentic and sometimes they are fraudulent, hence the
reason for tenaciousness on the part of the administrator to extract the truth
through research and verification. The desire for a speedy process
completion and the demand for authentication must be carefully weighed
and balanced. The key is that the resources of the “people” must be
protected against encroachment. For example, the Department of Veterans
Affairs (VA) requires that all applicants for disability benefits meet a
qualification test. A 2006 CRS Report for Congress titled, Veterans Affairs:
Benefits for Service-Connected Disabilities stated:

“A claim for disability compensation is initially analyzed by the VA at the

local level to determine: 1) whether the claimant is considered a “veteran”
(eligible for benefits); 2) whether the veteran qualifies for disability
compensation (entitled to benefits); 3) the extent of the impairment and the
“rate” of the disability; and 4) the effective date for the compensation.
Three requirements to qualify for disability compensation are: 1) medical
diagnosis of the current impairment; 2) evidence of an in-service occurrence
or an aggravation of the disease or injury; and 3) medical proof of a
connection between the in-service incident or aggravation of an injury or
illness and the current disability. The requisite standard of proof and certain
medical presumptions are set by statute. The VA is required to provide
assistance to the veteran in his/her case preparation by providing records and
medical examinations. Special rules have been established for certain
specific situations involving combat veterans, prisoners of war, and veterans
exposed to Agent Orange.”

The completed application defines a scenario about the state of being of

the individual’s or institution’s past, present, and future potential. The
applicant is seeking a benefit or remedy from the resources of a greater
institution. An agent or agents of the greater institution will analyze the
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certified and verified information in the application/supporting
documentation, and render a decision on behalf of the institution whether
the benefits (amount and extent) will be granted or denied. The VA, for
instance, will encourage volunteer organizations to assist the applicant
with qualifying document collection and application completion. This is
done in order to provide the applicant with advocacy and some degree of
administrative support. However, the VA also benefits administratively
by having an external agency prepare and review applications, supporting
the theory and expectation they will receive a completed or nearly
completed application (reducing their administrative burden) ready for
near immediate processing. Administrators need to be professionally
cognizant of the tension and friction that naturally exists between those
who make demands on the institution’s resources and the institution’s
response to those demands…positive or negative.

Qualification processes to gain access to the “Commons” are not easy to

negotiate and are not necessarily intended to be. The administrative
gauntlet involves a rigorous process to ensure only those deemed qualified
gain either temporary or long term benefits from the nation's resources.
The administrative qualifying process is intimidating, frustrating, and
restrictive by its very nature. Lengthy application documents, confusing
or limited information and instructions, condescending administrators,
processing fees, long lines and waiting times, rejections, guilt and self
doubt, etc. all comprise the castle's mote.

For example, Gardner-Webb (a university in North Carolina) in their

posting for those considering applying for the education doctorate required
potential candidates to start the consideration process by accomplishing
the following:

“Admission Prerequisites

Applicants must hold an entry-level license in school administration, possess

a master's degree, and have a minimum of three years successful
administrative/teaching experience.

Admission Requirements

1. Complete the application, including a copy of your current teaching

license or letter verifying appropriate experience.

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 2. Attach a $25.00 non-refundable application fee, either check or
money order – no cash.
3. Contact five (5) people who know your potential and work as an
educator or graduate student. Have them fill out the recommendation
form, put it in a sealed envelope, and sign across the seal. (Be sure
you have filled out the top part of the reference form first.) You must
collect and send these five unopened envelopes with your application.
4. Arrange to have an official transcript of all master’s level work sent
to you in an envelope sealed by the registrar. Include the sealed
envelope(s) with your application.
5. Write a personal essay explaining your purpose in wanting to earn a
doctoral degree.
6. Arrange to take the Graduate Record Exam (General Test) and have
those scores sent to the Graduate School Office from the testing
agency.

Please enclose items 1-5 above in a large envelope and mail or bring it to the
following address:

Graduate School
PO Box 5168
Gardner-Webb University
Boiling Springs, North Carolina 28017
When your application folder is complete, it will be sent to the School of
Education for admission consideration. Applicants with the highest profile
ranking will be invited to participate in interviews with the Ed.D.
Admissions Committee.”

As you can see, there are three admission prerequisites and six admission
requirements that must be met, and only those with the “highest profile
ranking” will be invited to interviews with the admissions committee. If one
reads carefully through both the prerequisites and admission requirements, it
can be seen that a great amount of attention to detail in preparing the entire
application is necessary. The “prereqs” ask for an entry-level license in
school administration; does this mean a teaching certificate? Three years of
successful experience means what? Though not specified above, there is a
minimum composite score required on the GRE. These are examples of
confusing or missing institutional information needed by the applicant.

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Also, though not specified, completion of a cover letter introducing the
completed package and identifying the required attachments would be wise.
The presentation of the completed application must be professional in
appearance. It may be helpful for the applicant to contact the school and ask
for details that are not readily apparent in the instructions. Any missing
information in the application preparation process will probably lower the
profile score and will almost certainly end in rejection and disappointment
for the potential candidate. In this example there is an implied level of
administrative expertise involved.

In September 2007, Dr. Robert H. Foglesong, then President of Mississippi

State University had a vision that professional administrators for veteran's
disabilities issues needed to be developed. As a result he hired Darryl
Kehrer, MPA, a consultant to conduct an exploratory study to determine
how creating the degree concentration or certificate program in Veterans’
Programs Administration would address a public service need. The
exploratory paper stated that:

“The government’s financial obligation to military veterans is very large,

and it is growing. The federal benefits programs for veterans of the U.S.
armed forces are unique. VA is the primary organization that administers
these programs. Veterans’ benefits policy encompasses a large body of
statutes, regulations, court decisions, internal legal opinions, and procedural
guidance. Knowledge of other federal programs is not readily transferable
to veterans’ programs. For example, Social Security and other major
disability programs are typically based on a fairly broad entitlement
determination: the applicant is determined to be either “disabled,” and
therefore entitled to benefits, or “not disabled,” and therefore not entitled to
benefits. Rules governing VA’s disability program recognize, and pay
benefits based upon, small differences in disability. Disability compensation
is payable for partial disability in increments of 10 percent. It is not
necessary to be “totally” disabled to receive benefits under this
program...specialized training in veterans’ programs administration could
lead to the development of national guidelines for such specializations as
well as occupational, credentialing requirements for veterans’ programs
administrators. In this way, the academic concentration could contribute to
defining the professional discipline of veterans’ programs administration.”

Management of an established record equates to routine (house keeping)

administration, but it does not necessarily require routine maintenance of the
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record over the course of its active life. However, some records or files such
as medical and contractual do require regular administrative oversight and
continuous documentation. For example, in the case of the VA, once the
claim has been decided; the record stays virtually in a suspended state unless
there is an appeal or some other query causes the record to be reactivated.
Similarly, in the case of court records; once the case has been adjudicated,
the record is retired but not destroyed in case it needs to be made available
later. Medical records are an example of potentially lifetime maintenance
requirements. Likewise, contract documents require regular administration
throughout the performance of the contract action. In cases where the
administrator is required to follow up on activities and update the record
with documents and chronological comments; these records are prone, as
they ought to be, to internal and external audits to insure compliance and
accuracy. Managers of administrators must be cognizant of the fact that
records production is “mind numbing” work day in and day out.
Administrator morale must be continually monitored for lapses in
performance and production due to redundancy and possible burnout.

The automotive industry is increasingly using the concept of records

maintenance for new and previously owned automobiles. Nearly every
automobile service company, whether a dealership or the secondary repair
industry, uses computer tracking to keep up with oil changes or other
scheduled maintenance to keep automobiles in proper working order and to
increase profit. When purchasing a previously owned vehicle, potential
owners are encouraged to order a CARFAX report on that vehicle which
attempts to track and document any major repairs performed on the vehicle
or major accidents it has been involved in to assist in the purchasing
decision. The key is to inform the potential buyer of defects that could alter
their decision in buying a possible “lemon” automobile. The theory is to
save the buyer hundreds or thousands of dollars in expensive repair costs or
inform of a vehicle that may not perform as required if they are seriously
considering purchasing the vehicle.

President Calvin Coolidge (1923) in a speech titled Destiny of America said:

“There are two fundamental motives which inspire human action. The first
and most important, to which all else is subordinate, is that of righteousness.
There is that in mankind, stronger than all else, which requires them to do
right. When that requirement is satisfied, the next motive is that of gain.
These are the moral motive and the material motive. While in some
particular instance they might seem to be antagonistic, yet always, when

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broadly considered or applied to society as a whole, they are in harmony.
American institutions meet the test of these two standards. They are
founded on righteousness, they are productive of material prosperity. They
compel the loyalty and support of the people because such action is right and
because it is profitable.”

However, the Founding Fathers and the framers of the Constitution of the
United States of America were not so trusting of righteousness, because they
established a government supported by a system of checks and balances; the
Executive, Legislative and Judicial. Adam Smith (1776) in An Inquiry Into
the Nature And Causes of the Wealth of Nations posited the theory of the
"invisible hand," the idea that an individual who "intends only his own
gain," is, as it were, "led by an invisible hand to promote…the public
interest." This author theorizes that the professional administrator possesses
Smith’s “invisible hand” in a system of checks and balances.

Fraud, waste, and abuse are ever present in the processes of records
management. The behaviors that constitute them are inherently human and
are always in operation. In a capitalistic society, the profit motive is alive
and well. Because of this, it is not adequate for administrators to simply file
chronological documents, conduct random site visits, or other cursory
routine maintenance activities. Transaction records systems must be
standardized and systematized to facilitate treatment by the professional.
Skepticism and tenacity must be a part of the successful administrator's
personality. Administrators must also perform trend analysis functions (on
records systems) in an attempt to provide process oversight and reduce the
instances of criminal drain on the institutions’ resources. The Constitution
requires officers of the state to protect the people from all enemies, foreign
and domestic. Does the behavior of perpetrators of fraud, waste, and abuse
make them domestic enemies of the people?

On the other hand, a certain level of fraud, waste, and abuse appears to be
tolerated by the system, because analysis, enforcement and adjudication
resources are not adequately allocated to the identification and prevention of
documentation problems. Does this signal approval by omission? President
Coolidge does not believe so; he stated: “It is only through industry that
there is any hope for individual development. The viciousness of waste and
the value of thrift must continue to be learned and understood. Civilization
rests on conservation. To these there must be added religion, education, and

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obedience to law. These are the foundation of all character in the individual
and all hope in the nation…”.

Garrett James Hardin (1968) in an article titled: The Tragedy of the

Commons stated: “As a rational being, each herdsman seeks to maximize
his gain. Explicitly or implicitly, more or less consciously, he asks, "What is
the utility to me of adding one more animal to my herd?" This utility has one
negative and one positive component.

1. The positive component is a function of the increment of one animal.

Since the herdsman receives all the proceeds from the sale of the additional
animal, the positive utility is nearly + 1.

2. The negative component is a function of the additional overgrazing

created by one more animal. Since, however, the effects of overgrazing are
shared by all the herdsmen, the negative utility for any particular decision
making herdsman is only a fraction of - 1.

Adding together the component partial utilities, the rational herdsman

concludes that the only sensible course for him to pursue is to add another
animal to his herd. And another.... But this is the conclusion reached by each
and every rational herdsman sharing a commons. Therein is the tragedy.
Each man is locked into a system that compels him to increase his herd
without limit -- in a world that is limited. Ruin is the destination toward
which all men rush, each pursuing his own best interest in a society that
believes in the freedom of the commons. Freedom in a commons brings ruin
to all.

Some would say that this is a platitude. Would that it were! In a sense, it was
learned thousands of years ago, but natural selection favors the forces of
psychological denial. The individual benefits as an individual from his
ability to deny the truth even though society as a whole, of which he is a
part, suffers. Education can counteract the natural tendency to do the wrong
thing, but the inexorable succession of generations requires that the basis for
this knowledge be constantly refreshed.”

Adam Smith (1776) further stated: “But this proportion must in every nation
be regulated by two different circumstances: first, by the skill, dexterity, and
judgment with which its labour is generally applied; and, secondly, by the
proportion between the number of those who are employed in useful labour,
and that of those who are not so employed. Whatever be the soil, climate, or
14
extent of territory of any particular nation, the abundance or scantiness of its
annual supply must, in that particular situation, depend upon those two
circumstances. The abundance or scantiness of this supply, too, seems to
depend more upon the former of those two circumstances than upon the
latter. Among the savage nations of hunters and fishers, every individual
who is able to work is more or less employed in useful labour, and
endeavours to provide, as well as he can, the necessaries and conveniences
of life, for himself, and such of his family or tribe as are either too old, or
too young, or too infirm, to go a hunting and fishing. Such nations, however,
are so miserably poor, that, from mere want, they are frequently reduced, or
at least think themselves reduced, to the necessity sometimes of directly
destroying, and sometimes of abandoning their infants, their old people and
those afflicted with lingering diseases, to perish with hunger, or to be
devoured by wild beasts. Among civilized and thriving nations, on the
contrary, though a great number of people do not labour at all, many of
whom consume the produce of ten times, frequently of a hundred times,
more labour than the greater part of those who work; yet the produce of the
whole labour of the society is so great, that all are often abundantly supplied;
and a workman, even of the lowest and poorest order, if he is frugal and
industrious, may enjoy a greater share of the necessaries and conveniences
of life than it is possible for any savage to acquire.”

The conundrum is that America is both a democratic and a capitalist society

at the same time. Democracy theorizes that we are all created equal (shared
experience) and are able to pursue happiness as we see fit, as long as the
boundaries of others are recognized and respected. On the other hand in
practicing capitalism greed is good! Greed implies that individuals will
pursue resources and their own happiness, across boundaries
(encroachment), in such a manner that harm may come to other individuals
in particular or the nation in general. Administrators further serve as
mediators in their transaction records management role using scientific
analysis techniques in records and processes to balance the good and the bad
in protecting the best interest of all. Need and greed must be deliberately
mediated though the nation makes provisions for both.

Control is more than just restricting access to records inventory. It is taking

personal responsibility for all aspects of transaction documentation and the
processes associated with it. Also, control is the process of determining the
efficiency and effectiveness of the organization through analysis of the

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transaction documentation. Accountability must also be established and
maintained on the process flow as well.

For instance, in VA claims processing, there is never a single person that a

veteran can contact related to a specific claim once filed. The record seems
to belong to the “system” with what appears to the applicant to be a secret
accountability system. The only information sources are a centralized e-mail
and telephone system. If a record is lost (and it does occur with great
frequency), there is no specific individual responsible for the misplaced file.
Construction of these records is no simple matter; they involve a lengthy
application, voluminous medical records, personal and witness statements,
etc. There are also substantial costs to the veteran in administrative time,
reproduction, shipping, and transportation. At the same time, there is no
sense of who has access to the information contained in the record.
Information can be compromised at any point in the process and there is
little or nothing the veteran can do to restrict unauthorized access. Who
owns the record, the applicant or the system?

In a report to the Secretary of Veterans Affairs by the VA Claims Processing

Task Force (2001); the chairman of the task force stated: “The C&P claims
process was designed as a serial work flow: establish the claim, collect and
develop evidence, evaluate and rate the issues or make a non-rating decision,
award the benefit, pay the veteran, and then work on the next claim. This
process was not designed to deal efficiently with rework that is continually
reintroduced into the workflow...flaws exist in Accountability,
Communications, and Change Management. There are other topics
described in Part I of the report, but these three are the critical ones that, if
not addressed properly, will ensure that VBA continues to be perceived as a
reactive, short-term focused, uncoordinated entity. If prompt comprehensive
corrective action is not taken, the veteran’s attention will be dominated by
delays and irritations rather than on the basic high purpose of the
organization and the dedicated hard working VBA employees, many of
whom are themselves veterans.” In theory and practice there is no guarantee
of records security and positive flow control of sensitive information. The
applicant is basically impotent in this entire process. However, analysis of
the documentation is the key to continuous improvement of the single
transaction document and the system overall.

The Storage of records, for the most part, is now a problem of technology.
In the past, records were generally kept in filing cabinets in an office or

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warehouse. These records were physical objects, most often paper. Today,
transaction records can be either paper, electronic, magnetic or a
combination of either. More and more records storage is trending toward
paperless electronic means. The problem is that society has passed through
several generations of electronic devices. There is no end in sight in the
progression of these devices and whether the information stored on them
will migrate from one new development to the next. This constant
development and migration in technology threatens the longevity of
historical transaction documents.

Security of the stored information is also a major problem. News abounds

with stories of electronically stored information that has been compromised
by encroachment. Lasting measures of information security must be
explored and implemented.

Retrieval of records is an extraordinary function made easier in modern

times with the use of computers. One must be able to access documents
within minutes at times, and without a well-designed system of classification
and filing of documents in a business or organization it would be nearly
impossible to retrieve single documents or records upon demand. The
classification of documents may differ from record type to record type. As
previously stated, computers have made classification and retrieval easier,
and perhaps has tended to minimize the need to access original documents.
The need to access the original document is still a concept with which to be
reckoned. Modern methods allow for original documents to be reproduced
and electronically stored. These electronic documents can also demonstrate
signatures and certifications…yet the legal question of original signature or
stamp is challenged. The current potential answer to this key question is the
adoption of the electronic signature or certification. Authenticity must be
settled to establish legitimacy. However, records must be able to be
retrieved efficiently in many cases.

When should one consider the Retirement of a document or record? Does

retirement mean that the record will be moved to an inactive status or
destroyed? If a document is to be retired, where will it reside? Should an
important document ever be destroyed? The answers to these questions are
probably the domain of both management and legal. This essay presumes
that important documents will be preserved into perpetuity.

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CONCLUSIONS:

Development in the establishment of transaction records is not universally

systematic. The lack of a systematic approach to the fundamentals of
information gathering in order to establish a complete decision making
document is a major drain on the nation's resources. There appears to be a
general lack of professional attention (academic and practitioner) to a
professional approach to transaction record design and establishment.

Management in the maintenance of an established record appears

haphazard, because the task is considered to be mundane and not worthy of a
professional's time. Administrator’s are not specifically educated in the
subject of transaction records. It further appears no single managerial
person in some organizations is totally responsible for a single record.
Record entries can be made by several individuals with little or no
coordination between them. Without specific ownership, there is no actual
responsibility or accountability for the house-keeping of important records.

Control (closely related to management) of established records is about the

systematic monitoring of information systems to measure the efficiency and
effectiveness of the organization against established standards of operations
and making the appropriate business adjustments based upon factual
information. This creates a situation where a single person or department
should be responsible and accountable for the quality, efficiency, and
effectiveness of the transaction record or records system overall.
Transaction records are the substance that should assist greatly in charting
the course of an organization. Security of sensitive information is too an
issue because there is no clear indication of who “owns” access. The
integrity of substance and access by a single responsible source must be
established and maintained.

Storage appears to be a problem of space and technology. Electronic

storage has provided a partial solution to this aspect of records management,
but what is still left to be solved is the space for a physical record and the
proliferation of technology that has a short shelf life that threatens the
transferability of documents already stored on electronic media. Because
single storage systems may not be adequate to safeguard information from
loss, backup systems should be identified.

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Retrieval is closely tied to storage. Source documents comprising a single
record and multiple records need to be accessed in minutes (whether
electronic or physical), especially where the production of records in a
decision making process impacts the entitlements of a deserving and anxious
population.

Retirement of a record appears to be a management decision based upon

possibly legal considerations and is closely tied to storage. If a record is
temporary then a year to 18 months retention might be considered. If a
record is permanent, then storage and retrieval becomes a management
action. Again, this essay presumes that important records will be continued
into perpetuity.

After careful consideration of the research, the thesis of this essay is

affirmed. In academia, Scientific Transaction Documentation Systems
Management Theory (records/files/cases/portfolios) should be considered an
important aspect of the administrative sciences. The significant impact of
documents, positive and negative, on lives and resources appears to demand
it.

Theory…proper, accurate, complete, and systematic transaction

documentation management and important document systems administration
defines, frames, systematizes, and maximizes key human thought and action
in order to influence business quality, effectiveness, and efficiency, thus
maximizing use and preserving the world’s scarce resources.

RECOMMENDATIONS:

Establish a systematic standard for transaction records management

Development for both academia and business. Academia should take the
lead and establish theoretical models for the development processes related
to records establishment. Scientific Transaction Document Management
should be added to academic study in order to prevent or limit the drain on
the nation’s resources.

Management or maintenance processes of records should be a primary

concern of management. Professional administrators should be educated in
the maintenance and analysis of transaction records. A single record should
have a single record manager who is accountable and responsible for the
integrity of the record.

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Control of transaction records is the substance of organizational quality,
effectiveness, and efficiency. Thus, routine audit should be performed on
each record and careful analysis should be performed on the record system.

Develop Storage and Retrieval technology that promotes seamless and

rapid transition from one new technology advancement to the next. The
time to retrieve a record should be less than one hour. Also, adequate
records backup should also be created.

Policy should be established to govern the Retirement of records.

Provisions should be made to continue important records into perpetuity.

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