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Te Aromatawai i te Pakeke o te Whakahaere Mōhiohio 
Information Management Maturity Assessment

Read about and download the Information Management Maturity Assessment and guide. Use the tool to self-assess your organisation's information management maturity.

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About the Information Management Maturity Assessment

We created the Information Management Maturity Assessment (IM Maturity Assessment) as part of our leadership in IM across government. The assessment's 2 main purposes are to:

  • help New Zealand public offices and local authorities assess how mature their current IM practices are

  • support the Public Records Act 2005 audit programme.

Based on a tool from Public Record Office Victoria (Australia)

The original structure was adapted from the IM3 (Information Management Maturity Measurement) tool developed by the Public Record Office Victoria.

We’re grateful for their support in allowing us to build on their model.

Who should use it

The assessment is designed for IM practitioners. Input from others, such as ICT staff and Executive Sponsors, may be needed.

The IM Maturity Assessment is based on the requirements of the:

Benefits of using the IM Maturity Assessment

Using the IM Maturity Assessment helps public offices and local authorities:

  • identify areas for improvement

  • track progress over time (if used regularly)

  • gather valuable data to support IM strategies, planning and business cases for investment.

Using the IM Maturity Assessment for self-assessment is optional. However, public offices must complete an IM maturity assessment before their scheduled PRA audit.

We expect the tool to have more uses as our regulatory role evolves.

Assessing your organisation’s level

We recognise that public sector organisations vary in size and the types of information they manage. Our expectations for IM maturity will also vary depending on:

  • the size of the organisation, and

  • the amount of high-value and high-risk information the organisation manages.

For guidance, read: High-value and high-risk information and records.

We expect organisations that assess their maturity at:

  • Beginning or Progressing: need more focus and priority on managing information.

  • Managing: are broadly meeting the minimum requirements under the mandatory standard.

  • Maturing or Optimising: are working towards greater organisation-wide consistency, alignment and effectiveness.

  • Optimising: recognise the strategic importance of information to their organisation and to the accountability and transparency of government.

Note that ‘Managing’ is the level that the Chief Archivist expects organisations to meet or exceed in all topics.

Updated September 2025 version released

After 5 years of use in the audit programme, we’ve made some minor updates and improvements. These changes include:

  • better alignment with the requirements of our mandatory Standard.

  • editing or removing duplicate or conflicting descriptor statements

  • adding statements that clarify the Executive Sponsor’s role and responsibilities (topics 3 and 9)

  • adding statements about appraisal and sentencing processes (topics 10, 11 and 21).

Download the assessment and guide

Information Management Maturity Assessment 21/G19 (PDF, 1.9 MB) — a fillable form.

User guide for the assessment 21/G20 (PDF, 366 KB).

Questions or feedback

Email us if you have any questions or feedback at: rkadvice@dia.govt.nz.