Clause 7.3: Awareness
People working under the organization's control have to be aware of the records policy, how their work contributes to the records system, what their responsibilities are and what the consequences of not meeting them are.
What clause 7.3 asks
People working under the organization's control have to be aware of the records policy, how their work contributes to the records system, what their responsibilities are and what the consequences of not meeting them are. The 2019 edition dropped the earlier demand for a standing training programme; what remains is the outcome, that people know what to do with the records they handle. Awareness is tested by behaviour at the point of capture, not by a slide deck.
Awareness is tested at the point of capture. A person who can recite the policy but cannot say which records they must keep is not aware in the sense the clause means.
Reading it in practice
Awareness is best tested by asking the people who create records. They should be able to say which records their work produces, where those records go and who may change or delete them. If the answer depends on the individual rather than the process, the awareness requirement is being met by accident.
The third edition is at stage 50.00 and its clause text is not public. No public draft wording. The 2019 edition dropped the 2011 requirement for a standing training programme and kept the outcome: people know the policy, their contribution, their responsibilities and the consequences.
Status: not shown in the public record. The 2019 requirement above is the one a certificate is issued against. No draft requirement is asserted.
Evidence for clause 7.3
Expect onboarding and refresher material that names the policy and the person's duties, and some sampling that shows people can explain them.
- Awareness Onboarding and refresher material that names the policy and the person's records duties
- Awareness Sampling or survey evidence that staff can explain their capture and access duties
- Awareness Communications issued when a records rule changes
Where clause 7.3 commonly fails
- Awareness measured only by completion of an e-learning module
- Staff who can recite the policy but cannot say which records they must keep
What to do about clause 7.3 before the revision
Ask five creators three questions: which records do you keep, where do they go, who can delete them. Fix the answer that is wrong. Update the onboarding note with the real answer.
Read across from clause 7.3
Open the full index. The revision record shows the public stage record and the proven 2011 to 2019 changes.
Source for clause 7.3: ISO 30301:2019, ISO 30301:2019, Clause 7.3, retrieved 22 October 2026. The requirement, evidence and gaps are written from our clause record; the draft status rests on the ISO/PRF 30301 page 89772. Every source.