45 CHAPTER 5 Establishment of an Information-Management System Another major activity at the preparatory phase of setting up trial-monitoring operations relates to the organization of reports, notes, documents and other relevant records. Managers have to anticipate the types and amount of information that will be obtained through the programme’s activities, to develop a system for the efficient organization and circulation of these records internally as well as their effective external communication. With all of this in mind, managers must choose a suitable information-management system for collecting, storing, systematizing and easily retrieving the information gathered. It is usually the scale and complexity of the trial-monitoring programme that determines which type of informationmanagement system is chosen. Possibilities range from simple information-storage systems, such as case-registration charts, to more sophisticated sorting systems that generate statistics and enable searches, or to truly advanced information-management systems that offer even more complex functions. Depending on their degree of sophistication, these systems can: • collect, store and systematize information; • provide an overview of cases monitored; • provide a list of available documentation; • facilitate the finding and accessing of previously collected information and reports; • generate statistics; • sort qualitative and quantitative types of information; • enable thematic information searches and compilations of findings; • provide guidance and training for monitoring staff’s reporting and first-level analysis; • facilitate systematic analysis and well-founded reporting; and • help measure the progress of justice reforms and the impact of programmes. The more perceptive and discerning a programme manager is at the planning phase, the less are the chances of losing information or wasting time and effort to find it later. Functional and needsbased information-management systems should help to secure the overall quality and efficiency of the programme. Experience on good practices and lessons learned from OSCE trial-monitoring programmes is discussed in this chapter. 5.1 Case-registration charts For programmes with a narrow focus that draw findings and recommendations from limited amounts of information, a simple information-management system that keeps a register of cases and a corresponding filing system, either electronically or in hard copy, may be adequate. If monitoring is limited in its scope (i.e., a relatively small number and type of cases monitored or focus of