Authorities have approved a new plan for the federal government to source multiple digital records management solutions.

The Department of Finance had hoped to move the Australian Public Service (APS) to a single cloud-based government-wide digital records platform, but could not find a single, off-the-shelf design that would cover all its needs.

Instead, it will establish a whole-of-government arrangement for agencies to procure technology for “modernised records management capabilities”.

The co-design process will rely on “face-to-face user research sessions” and workshops with relevant stakeholders.

The finance department is putting together a multidisciplinary team of enterprise architects, service designers, user researchers, policy experts and subject matter experts for the project.

A number of senior user research and senior service designer contracts will be issued too.