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The long awaited MoReq2010 was officially announced this week by the DLM-Forum www.dlm-forum.eu and can be downloaded from www.moreq2010.eu.

There are some fascinating and revolutionary new concepts within the specification that should set it apart from any of the other standards that exist today.

Core to the specification is the concept of interoperability. Everyone who has migrated from one vendor's EDRMS system to another will know the pain involved.  If MoReq2010 is adopted and supported by the vendor community (several, including Automated Intelligence, are making positive noises about doing so) some of these issues may start to become a thing of the past.

Another very interesting concept is the separation of the classification of records from the aggregation of the records (in other words: separating what they are and how they are retained from where they live day to day). While this concept may not be new, it's great to see it being formally recognised in MoReq2010. When implemented by customers it should allow a much more seamless and - dare I say it - usable interface between users and records custodians.

The entire specification has been built around a service-based architecture, which lends itself much more readily to the reality that most organisations find themselves in today. As more and more core information management functions move out of the data centre and into cloud environments, this innovative approach should provide a framework for maintaining control in the new paradigm.

When you read the specification, you can easily see why it's taken longer than expected to be delivered.  I had the privilege of being part of the project team involved in reviewing the specification during development and I can say that the level of thought, effort and rigour involved in creating Moreq2010 was incredible.  Not only is it conceptually different than everything that has gone before, but it also goes to great lengths to explain records management terminology and concepts in a concise, meaningful and accessible manner. 

Time will tell how successful MoReq2010 will be in re-engaging and re-invigorating the world of ERM with its new thinking.  I personally believe it has the potential to become much more than the niche European focused specification that its predecessors have been.