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OVERVIEW
The Toronto Chapter of ARMA International was chartered in January 28th, 1969. With almost 300 members registered, we serve RIM professionals in the Greater Toronto Area.
We are the second largest Chapter in Canada and fourth largest Chapter internationally. With Toronto being the largest commercial and educational centre in the country, our membership demographics touches on all of the key business segments in the public and private sectors. As a result Toronto Chapter maintains a close relationship with our educational institutions and many of the like-minded organizations affiliated with records and information management.
We are governed by registered bylaws with an elected Board of Directors. Those voting positions are: President, Treasurer, Secretary, Meeting Chair & Elections Officer, Programs, IMS Conference Coordinator, Membership, Communications, Public Relations, Marketing, Newsletter Editor and Member-at-large.
MISSION
The mission of ARMA is to:
 Provide education, research, and networking opportunities to information professionals;
Enable members to use their skills and experience to leverage the value of records, information and knowledge as corporate assets and as contributors to organizational success.
VISION
At ARMA, we recognize that information is a vital asset of every organization. Our vision is to provide leadership in education, research and networking for the benefit of information professionals.
VALUES
We believe . . .
That our members come first in everything we do
In respecting each other as equals
In affording members and staff the opportunity for professional development
In actively soliciting and welcoming input from others
That individual contributions are both valued and recognized
In recognizing members and staff as partners on our team
In providing the right information to all requests at the right time
In doing business with respect, integrity, and professionalism
In the power of sharing what we know
CONSTITUTION - Updated June 25, 2008
Article I - Name
This association chapter shall be known as the ASSOCIATION OF RECORDS MANAGERS AND ADMINISTRATORS - TORONTO CHAPTER, hereafter referred to as the 'Toronto Chapter'. The Association of Records Managers and Administrators International Inc. (ARMA) will be referred to as the 'Association'.
Article II - Objectives
The Toronto Chapter is an educational, not-for-profit organization whose purpose is:
To promote and advance the improvement of records and information management and its related fields through study, education and research.
To advance professional knowledge and techniques by sharing and exchanging experiences and information in the field of records and information management.
To develop and advance standards of professional competence in the field of records and information management.
For the complete Constitution document in PDF format, please go to www.armatoronto.on.ca/docs/ARMAConstitution2008.pdf.
HISTORY OF ARMA IN CANADA
by Bob Morin
Records management in Canada became a reality in the middle 1950's when the Federal government initiated records management legislation through the Public Archives of Canada. The legislation stated that every federal department establish a standard Records Management Program.
The field of records management evolved slowly into the sixties. A federal Records Management Institute was formed in the sixties and it's role in conjunction with the National Archives was to discuss the records management issues and address them. In the late sixties, records management advocates such as Bill Gray, RM Consultant (Montreal), Denis Deslongchamps, Hydro Quebec (Montreal), Don Barber and Jim Coulson both of Datafile, (now known as TAB) (Toronto), and Judi Harvey (Vancouver) promoted records management as a system to file and find without searching a record for hours.
The ARMA membership dues in Canadian dollars was initiated with the leadership of Denis Deslongchamps, Bill Gray, Don Barber, Region VIII Vice-President and Bill Benedon, Executive Secretary, ARMA. Subsequently an ARMA bank account was established at a Toronto Bank. In Eastern Canada, the Montreal Chapter was the first Eastern Chapter in 1968, immediately followed by Toronto (1968) within days. Montreal and Toronto Chapter were grouped in Region IV which included Detroit, and Vancouver and Victoria were the first western chapters, but in Region X which covered Seattle among others.
The Ottawa chapter followed in 1971. The Kingston chapter chartered in the middle 80's and has recently disbanded due to lack of members. Western Canada Chapters emerged in the mid 1970's such as Edmonton, Calgary and Winnipeg. The second group of chapters that emerged in 1980 - 1990's era were Southwestern Ontario, Saskatchewan and the Maritimes. The first ARMA Canadian Conference was held at Banff, Alberta in 1980 with representatives from every province and territory with an attendance of 252.
The issue of paying in Canadian dues was raised in 1980 by the ARMA Board and successfully agreed to allow Canadians to continue paying in Canadian dollars. The Canadian dollar issue was raised again in 1998 and is currently being discussed. Canadian Chapters became stronger in the last two decades. Canadian ARMA International Presidents such as John Moss Smith, Jim Spokes, Rick Weinholdt and Christine Ardern were very active in changing the direction of ARMA.
The records management profession is moving into the technology age. Many records management colleagues have disappeared as result of automation. The records management profession has a new experience available in their organizations which will lead us into the technology world. The challenge is to migrate not with information technology staff but to seize the opportunity to move into Electronic Document Management ourselves. The tools are available, it's up to records management professionals to buy into this opportunity.
Remember the 60's when the clerks and the managers had problems finding records and now we have so many excellent records management systems and technology such as e-filing, imaging and workflow. We have to tackle the volume of records and everytime you ask yourself what direction should we take it is...jump into the world of Knowledge Management and EDMS (Electronic Document Management Systems).
About the Author: Bob Morin holds the position of Canadian Mentor on the Region VIII Leadership Committee. Bob has decades of experience and is an active and visible participant at all National and International Conferen
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