Discharging Records Management Activities Using Artificial Intelligence at the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research, South Africa

Abstract

Artificial intelligence (AI) has been highly dominant universally in the wake of the Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR). 4IR has to do with the application of  Internet of things (IoT), cloud computing, big data, blockchain technology, intelligent robotic machines, and AI for the management of records. AI can be  used to perform records management activities faster than human intelligence (HI). The study sought to investigate how records management activities can be discharged using artificial intelligence (AI) at the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) in South Africa. The study investigated the  state of records at CSIR and identified records management activities that can be managed through AI and intelligent robotic machine. Convergent  mixed-methods research was conducted, and data were collected using interviews and questionnaires. Data were analysed thematically and statistically  and presented in tables and figures. The study reveals that AI can be used to discharge records management functions at the CSIR throughout the life  cycle of records, which includes the creation, digitisation, classification, storage, maintenance, and retrieval of records. The study proposed a framework  that may assist the CSIR to use AI for records management in support of service delivery. It is hoped that the framework proposed may serve as a  benchmark and guideline for the implementation of AI in archives and records management industry.