Records Management Modernization
- NexGen Technologies
- May 14
- 3 min read
Background
The U.S. Department of the Interior’s Bureau of Trust Funds Administration (BTFA), through its Office of Trust Records (OTR) and Digital Center of Excellence (DCE), oversees more than $5.5 billion in Indian trust funds across 3,600 accounts. Historically, BTFA’s American Indian Records Repository (AIRR) housed vast volumes of paper records critical to managing trust assets. Paper-based operations and manual processes limited accessibility, delayed document retrieval, and hampered long-term record preservation.
Challenge
BTFA faced increasing pressure to modernize its records management operations in response to evolving federal policies and mandates. A primary driver was the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) directive requiring federal agencies to digitize permanent records, manage them electronically, and transfer them to NARA in approved electronic formats with complete metadata. Under this policy, agencies were required to transition to fully electronic recordkeeping by deadlines that also established an end to NARA’s acceptance of paper records for permanent storage.
In addition to NARA’s requirements, BTFA was responding to broader federal IT modernization mandates and departmental objectives emphasizing the transition to cloud-based solutions. The Department of the Interior (DOI) prioritized the use of secure, scalable, and compliant cloud services to meet long-term data management and operational goals.
BTFA’s existing records management system, a legacy on-premises Commercial Off-The-Shelf (COTS) application, was not equipped to meet these requirements. The system was not scalable enough to store and manage millions of digitized records, and its architecture lacked the flexibility to support modern search, retrieval, and integration needs. Reliance on manual processes further delayed operations, audits, and compliance reporting.
Solution
NexGen played a leading role in the design, development, migration, and delivery of the Gateway System, transforming BTFA’s records management from a legacy paper-based system into a modern, secure, scalable, Azure-hosted platform. Gateway allows federal users to capture, search, retrieve, and index classified and unclassified records in electronic format, while meeting NARA record retention schedule requirements.
The solution was developed as a scalable, Azure-native application leveraging Platform-as-a-Service (PaaS) offerings and a microservices-based architecture. This modernization replaced the legacy monolithic system, enabling improved performance, seamless integration, and long-term extensibility within a secure cloud environment.
NexGen conducted a thorough evaluation of the legacy commercial-off-the-shelf (COTS) system to identify architectural and functional limitations. Leveraging our Agile methodology, we executed an incremental cloud migration strategy that combined rehosting, refactoring, and rebuilding to ensure flexibility and responsiveness throughout delivery. The solution was securely deployed across cloud environments, aligned with modern encryption standards and Zero Trust security principles.
As part of the modernization effort, NexGen successfully transitioned over 1.9 million digitized records and metadata into a secure, Azure-based cloud environment. This migration enabled faster, centralized access to trust records while streamlining how new data is ingested, transformed, and integrated using automated cloud-native tools. Automated document processing, including converting raw unstructured data into a structured format with metadata attributes, resulted in significant time and cost savings for federal employees.
To demonstrate the potential of intelligent automation, NexGen introduced AI-powered capabilities that enhanced enterprise search across document content and metadata, laying the foundation for smarter information discovery. For analytics, NexGen delivered dynamic Power BI dashboards that gave administrators real-time visibility into system activity, document volumes, and compliance indicators, turning data into actionable insights.
NexGen also established a modern DevOps framework using secure, cloud-based toolchains to support continuous integration and delivery. This approach accelerated release cycles, improved quality, and strengthened security through enforced multi-factor authentication and automated testing processes.
In parallel with delivery, NexGen provided architecture oversight and strategic guidance to ensure long-term sustainability. Our solution design emphasized scalable SaaS/PaaS integrations, reusable APIs, and alignment with federal enterprise architecture standards, positioning the platform for broader adoption across the Department of the Interior and beyond.
About NexGen:
NexGen Technologies (NexGen) provides the people, processes, and solutions that help make innovative IT transformation possible across your systems and applications.
We specialize in delivering top-tier IT support services, specifically tailored for the unique needs of the federal government. Our dedicated team combines cutting-edge technology with deep industry expertise to ensure your projects meet the highest standards of quality and security.
For more information, please contact NexGen at info@nexgeninc.com or (720) 377-1800.
