Archives may be part of a library, museum, or historical society, or may exist as a distinct unit within an organisation or company. Archivists consider any medium containing recorded information as documents, including letters, books, and other paper documents, photographs, blueprints, audio-visual materials, and computer records. Any document that reflects organisational transactions, hierarchy, or procedures can be considered a record. Archivists often specialise in an area of history or technology so they can better determine what records in that area qualify for retention and should become part of the archives. Archivists also may work with specialised forms of records, such as manuscripts, electronic records, photographs, cartographic records, motion pictures, and sound recordings.

Computers are increasingly used to generate and maintain archival records. Professional standards for use of computers in handling archival records are still evolving. However, computers are expected to transform many aspects of archival collections as computer capabilities, including multimedia and world-wide web use, expand and allow more records to be stored and exhibited electronically.

Nature of the work
Archivists, curators, and museum technicians search for, acquire, appraise, analyse, describe, arrange, catalogue, restore, preserve, exhibit, maintain, and store valuable items that can be used by researchers or for exhibitions, publications, broadcasting, and other educational programs. Depending on the occupation, these items include historical documents, audio-visual materials, institutional records, works of art, coins, stamps, minerals, clothing, maps, living and preserved plants and animals, buildings, computer records, or historic sites.

Archivists and curators plan and oversee the arrangement, cataloguing, and exhibition of collections and, along with technicians and conservators, maintain collections. Archivists and curators may co-ordinate educational and public outreach programs, such as tours, workshops, lectures, and classes, and may work with the boards of institutions to administer plans and policies. They also may research topics or items relevant to their collections. Although some duties of archivists and curators are similar, the types of items they deal with differ. Curators usually handle objects found in cultural, biological, or historical collections, such as sculptures, textiles, and paintings, while archivists mainly handle valuable records, documents, or objects that are retained because they originally accompanied and relate specifically to the document.