An approach to preserving accounting and business archival materials: enhancing accessibility to inform research and practice

Business archives can yield invaluable insights into corporate and market behaviour. The benefits of preserving and providing access to such records has become more evident as researchers seek to understand the underlying causes of events such as the Global Financial Crisis. CPA Australia holda a unique collection of records, extending back over 125 years, which has the potential to inform our understanding of the development of the accounting profession, business practices and corporate governance. The aim of the project is to develop a framework for evaluating archives of this kind and protocols for aiding their presenrvation and improving their accessibility. Participation in archive-based research will be enhances by the model developed.