INFORMATION
MANAGEMENT
Convener:
Associate Professor Dr. Alexandra Dipchikova
Presenter: Dr.
Judith Broady-Preston, University of Wales, Aberystwth, “Information
Management in the Corporate Sector: An Analysis of the Training and Education
Needs in the Age of the Internet.”
Dr. Judith Broady-Preston
Why information
management: in our society we are undergoing huge change in the corporate
sector. What role will information play in this environment? She looked at
banking in the UK because prior to 1986 and passing of the Financial Services
Act there was a static business environment. In 1986 the government opened the
sector for competition, causing turbulence in the sector--takeovers and new
players not previously acting in the banking sector. In a highly competitive
environment, the right kind of information is needed to formulate strategy.
Strategic planning as we knew it (e.g., as described by Mintzberg) which was
set in concrete, was dead; needed is an organic plan.
This paper is
based on a research project undertaken in 1998-99. The top 20 retail banks
were subjects in the study. They looked for newcomers in the banking industry.
The researcher
surveyed strategic managers and got a 70% response rate, with 50% agreeing to
be interviewed. Also, she surveyed information professionals and received a
response rate of 85% with 76% agreeing to
later interviews.
Findings:
Strategic managers identified blockages in strategic information flow.
Information was fragmented and not shared. There was a need for intranets to
enhance information sharing. There was a lack of coherent corporate databases.
Strategy
formulation is an information management activity. Strategists’ perceptions
of the information professional role saw information professionals as having a
support role, but there was no support for a global “black box.” They
preferred information brought in from an external supplier. The strategist saw
no role for information professionals in information gathering and analysis.
The researcher
talked with information professionals and found they had a changing role in
this sector to be more proactive. There’s a sense that they need to be more
proactive and to have an internal marketing role, to sell their role in the
organization. Most have been relocated into marketing departments. None was in
an information center or library.
Asked what skills
are required of newly hired information professionals, information
professionals indicated a need for market research skills, business
qualifications, business awareness (degree and business awareness--how
business operates). They need graduates who are numerate--who can inspect
balance sheets and understand and extract information. They were looking for
people who can organize themselves and can analyze information. They want
people with good communication skills--perhaps the most important factor. They
need to be able to work with people in teams. They must be able to sell
themselves. Library and information studies qualifications are not essential.
They want people who are curious--all of the characteristics above.
Conclusions:
Information is a critical component in strategy formulation. Information
gathering and analysis is an element of all managers’ work. They expect all
managers to gather and analyze information. The support role of the
information worker is an archaic role, as is the concept of a library.
Developing is a hybrid manager with information skills. There is a pressing
need for development of a more symbiotic relationship between strategist and
information professionals.
Question: Give
examples of the use of failed strategic planning.
There were no
examples of failure. There is a failure of planning in banking as evidenced by
failure of branches. The presenter was allowed to examine documents with the
promise of confidentiality and cannot identify examples by name.
Presenter: Susan
Fowler, S. G. Fowler and Associates, “Information Brokering Opportunities”
Information Professional Ms. Susan Fowler adjusts the
microphone as she prepares to speak.
She speaks as a
full-time practitioner and six years experience. Information brokering is a
profession with a high level of service expected. Diagnosis is a critical part
of this work. It consists of listening to needs, implementing solutions, and
evaluating results.
The professional
uses diagnosis to develop a strategy to identify client needs. Customizing
information is the essential ingredient of information service. It takes less
time to conduct the diagnostic interview and to conduct a careful search is
less time consuming than to search for information without a careful
diagnosis.
A variety of
services can be delivered, including preservation, data base design, etc.
Information is comprised of a philosophy which sees information as integral to
the organization and its mission. Most components are people oriented and use
technology as tools. People remain the most important component in the
information management process, and this links information management with
knowledge management. To have knowledge, there must be a knower.
How can an
information broker help an organization to develop information and knowledge
management system? The new area of knowledge management enables information
professionals to help an organization develop a collegial environment which
will enhance a learning environment. Data bases and computer technology are
important for providing information and knowledge. Data base designers must
anticipate the needs and useable terms which users might find acceptable.
Another challenge
in the realm of document preservation. Because information professionals
understand information management, they can plan preservation and archival
plans. Now the challenge is to include preservation of digital documents.
Paper cannot replicate the multimedia experience of some digital documents.
Needed is a planned conversion of documents from digital to more easily stored
formats.
Conducting
business is a final consideration. Be careful not to under value your time.
Time is your most valuable commodity. We should compare our expertise
with those of other professionals and price ourselves accordingly.
Presenter:
Professor Jitka Hurych, Northern Illinois University, “Knowledge Management
or Information Management? What is the Difference?”
Jitka Hurych takes a peek at her notes
as she discusses the difference between knowledge management and information
management.
Some definitions:
Knowledge management has recently become the topic of much discussion in the
information professions. There are many definitions of knowledge management.
The amount of knowledge now available; in fact, knowledge is considered a
major element in our economy. Knowledge is equated with capital.
Knowledge
management involves evaluating, classifying, and structuring information so
that others may benefit from its full application to a problem or situation.
Knowledge is used by individuals to solve problems. Knowledge is the structure
of information by an individual. Knowledge is human driven. People classify
knowledge and generate it. There is explicit, formal and systematic knowledge;
there is tacit knowledge, represented by individual insight, motivation and
sometimes intuition which is highly personal. Understanding tacit knowledge
requires knowing how people think.
As society moves
to a service driven economy, knowledge has become the main resource. Knowledge
means power and prestige. Tangible assets result in documents and data bases.
According to the Arthur Andersen Company, knowledge equals the combination of
people connected by technology to information, raised to the power of sharing.
(K= (P=I)S.
Knowledge
management uses a variety of electronic systems such as intranets and expert
systems to assist in the sharing of knowledge. Without human support, any
technology will be useless. Technology is not the answer to knowledge
management by itself. Referred to Gilbert Probst, et al., Managing
Knowledge Building Blocks for Success, Wiley, 2000.
An organization
must create a culture that fosters learning. The concept of knowledge
management has been credited with improving the effectiveness of
organizations. Producing and disseminating knowledge historically have been
the business of universities. The rapid development of technology has
influenced the workings of universities, presenting new opportunities for
managing knowledge in universities. Librarians must be facilitators and
organizers--not storers of information.
The library has
been credited as the purest form of knowledge manager, with faculty expertise
at the center.
Davenport’s
Knowledge Management Principles were referred to.
Can we manage
knowledge? It requires management of an environment which knowledge is
created, shared, harnessed, and used for the benefit of an organization and
its people.
Presenter: Dr.
Hilary McLellan, McLellan Wyatt Digital, “Stories in Information and
Knowledge Management.”
Dr. Hilary McLellan
Stories are
important for knowledge management for these reasons:
1. Stories are
good at presenting things sequentially.
2. Stories are
good for presenting things causally.
3. Stories help
us to understand what happened and why.
4. Stories help
make diverse information coherent. Examples follow:
Back
to Conference Notes