Archiving and Interviewing

As a first step towards undertaking a corporate history, many companies and organisations commence work on saving their corporate memory by undertaking an archiving and interviewing program.

Archiving in its simplest form is the search, storage and retrieval of information. In the case of heritage, it should be an ongoing activity.

Archiving for the purposes of securing a company's corporate heritage and culture is significantly different from 'knowledge management', although many archivists have become knowledge managers.

Interviewing or 'oral history programs' are an essential piece of any good corporate heritage archive. It is through interviews with key management and employees that the real culture and essence of a company is discovered. A company's facts and figures are usually easy to trace but the dynamics of the ebb and flow of business are really only captured through interviews.

The success of both these activities is highly dependent on securing the right professional to undertake the task.