Value Proposition for Establishing
Archives or Other Historical Programs in Your Organization
by Glenn Bugos
PART I - The Value Proposition for Corporate History
Why present your history?
- Ensure that accurate, objective information is available
- Teach about what matters to a firm
- Engender pride in employees
- Build trust among your customers and suppliers
- Help policy-makers understand the impact of their decisions
Why build a history program?
- Instill a respect for the past into planning for the future
- Feed a corporate memory, on issues both large and small
- Collect lessons learned from seasoned employees
- Support litigation, protect intellectual property, and ensure
regulatory compliance
- Because it’s fun and interesting
Why engage a professional historian?
- Guide the corporation in defining which moments convey greatest
significance
- Provide a lens through which executives can clarify enduring
corporate values
- Help define the audience and appropriate media for the story
- Anticipate what questions the future may ask of the present
- Move the story efficiently toward presentation
Options for presenting your history
- Books: scholarly, popular or employee-focused
- Focused pieces: articles, white papers, affidavits, case
studies, fact sheets
- Verbally: one-on-one, conferences, or as a prepared part
of executive speeches
- Exhibits: for trade shows or corporate lobbies
- Websites: Timelines and specialized articles
- Videos: in-house or footage made available to film makers
- Employee orientation and training
- Corporate identity materials
- Anniversary handouts
PART II - Getting Started on Corporate History
PART III - Models of Corporate Activity in IT History
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