Information the foundation of business decisions.
Every business manager, in every industry, has the same important job responsibility of making decisions. The key to making good decisions that further the goals and objectives of the organization is good information.
In today’s global village the information required to make decision resides not only within the organization itself, but beyond its boundaries. When there is any need for decision making as regards to competitive, regulatory or product development, for instance, what the manager needs most are facts about other companies and institutions. To find that external information, today’s managers and knowledge workers go online.
The online world is a very big place. Netcraft found in excess of three million active websites. Looking for a particular bit of information among all these websites will not be easy. There is therefore the need for most sophisticated tool to approach the task.
The $107 billion search
Super information about information managers (super 1 – AIM) study conducted by outsells, inc., which was commissioned by Factiva, Dialog and KPMG. said that American Companies spent $107 billions a year paying their employees to search for external information.
Researchers interviewed more than 6,000 American knowledge workers from the Vice president to individual contributors. They were employed at companies selected from twenty (20) different industries, all with annual sales above $10 million. The study finds that knowledge workers spend about four hours per week looking for and gathering information. They spend an additional four hours per week reviewing and applying external information. The average salary for these workers, the study finds, equates to $30 per hour, so searching for and reviewing external information at $240 per person per week is a hefty investment of employee time and corporate resources.
Here are three questions enterprise managers need to ask about this $107 billion information search.
1. Are the organization’s resources being spent wisely?
2. Is the right information being collected?
3. Is the information collected leading to good decision?
The answers depend on the quality of the research tools being used.
Free, Fee and value – added
Three general types of business information providers are available online.
a) Free web sites – Sites that do not charge for information available on them
b) Free – based sites – Sites that offer copyrighted material such as articles or analysis, charging for access
c) Value – added information Services – Web – based providers that offer a wide range of business information – much of it unavailable on the free Web or through fee based Web site – and charge for access
Head – to – head comparison of information sources
Free Web sites, fee-based Web sites, and value-added information services offer varying access to information and different search capabilities. Does it matter?
To find out, Bates conducted a head-to-head comparison of the three types if information providers (Bates, selecting Business intelligence sources). She sought answers to typical business questions on free Web sites, Fee-based Web sites and a value-added information service-Dow Jones interactive, a Factiva product
The result – value – added is faster and better.
The result of the study show significant differences among the three approaches. “In almost every case, complete answers were only available through the value-added service – Dow Jones interactive in this test” Bates report Dow Jones interactive also yielded the answers much more quickly than either free or fee – based services in all but the simplest request.
Bates concludes that the majority of business questions are most effectively answered with a professional online service. The information resources are more comprehensive, deeper and can be searched in a fraction of the time required to search the web. Most of the highest companies in the world make Factiva’s value-added information services available to their employees of all Global Fortune 500 companies 84% have Factiva accounts.
CRITICAL ASSESSMENT OF THE ABOVE SUMMARY.
No information online is actually free when we consider the actual cost for information plus the cost of business professional’s time. In business, time is money. The developed nations of the world have mastered this. They can actually spend in billions to search for value-added information because this is what has given them an edge over the rest of the world. America is superior today because of her information network. They are far ahead in terms of Technology and financial development. They can sponsor any kind of research with end result.
It will be almost impossible for a typical Nigerian business manager to spend huge amount of money as $107bn to search for information on the Web sites. The exposure, commitment and sincerity of purpose may be a mere thought, as against America who may harbour a long time plan strictly based on the quality of online global information.
Power generation i.e. electricity and Information Technology (IT) are not working hand by hand in Nigeria’s quest for development. Power generation and supply is very low which is a total stampid on Information Communication Technology Development. The unstable nature of Nigeria economic and political environment, government apathy towards information service is a great hindrance.
It is important to note that among the three Internet Service providers, i.e. Free Web sites, Free-based web sites and the Value added Information Services, Value-added is faster and better. The result of the study show significant differences among the three approaches. In almost every case complete answers were only available through the Value-added service. Dow Jones Interactive also yielded the answers much more quickly than either free or fee-based services.
Bates went further to calculate the actual total cost of each search – the actual cost of the Information plus the cost of the business professional’s time. “In almost every case” Bates says the true cost of research was lowest when using Dow Jones Interactive and higher when relying on the fee-based sources.
Lawyers in Nigeria for now may be able to afford value-added information services-Web based providers that offer a wide range of business information because of the nature of their work. They are ready to spend to get information in order to defend and win their cases. Finally, it is to note that every Webmaster is free to do what he or she wants. They therefore sometimes give one difficulty or the other. Every body wants freedom because it is a wonderful thing. But on the web, it certainly makes finding a particular fact difficult. How many Nigerian information seekers can afford and endure this?
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ECONOMIC VALUE OF INFORMATION
The economic value of information can be seen as a great “phenomenon” which generates high feeling as regard to how information is considered valuable material in respect of the economic point of view.
This economic value information can be attributed to its usage, traffic and commodity. The economic value of information can be analyzed when the issue of how individuals and organization see it. This can be perceived through different needs and quest the individual and organizations develop in sourcing and utilizing information materials for various decisions making in their respective areas. This can be clarified when we look at how various firms and companies diversify effort in providing various supportive information in enhancing product characteristics as well as product delivery through various automated installations.
When we look at the economic value of information as “traffic” we have to analyze the rate at which information flows or travels from different angle and perspective across the world. The movement of information across various angles makes it tacit to know that a lot of revenue and other economic values are attached to information. The rate at which on-line data-bases are being accessed across the globe, one can be fully optimistic that economic value of information is gathering momentum.
Because information is used in facilitating the necessary changes in in-put and processing through computer – controlled manufacturing equipments. The on-line information and electronic forms of information are growing at a higher rate compared to the print media and thus greatly result in pervasive electronic information demand.
The economic value of information by measuring it as a commodity can be described as how various forms of electronic information facilities encumber the World markets today. This can be seen in respect of how a lot of these information materials are being bought excessably by different individuals and organizations which include millions of PC., and Mainframes. Contemporarily we can see that the software is valued when we discovered that it is marketed, distributed and supported permanently. Because business applications such as spreadsheet and word processors have becomes commodities. This can be seen as how users, especially corporations and other volume purchasers, can negotiate wide ranging enterprise licensing deals at very attractive terms.
The internet, the World’s largest computer networks has emerged as a giant “informant” for future hundreds and thousand of companies across the globe. This was propelled by advances in computer power and packet – switched network, so the internet has poised to become a stapple of modern business communication.
To summarize, we can say that the economic value of information can be seen in respect of how information is being used and sourced in supporting various operations, management and strategic planning, that is why its demand is becoming fervently excessive in the Global Market.
CRITICISM:
Something is said to be valued when it is predominantly and pervasively having total coverage in a given domain. We cannot assert the economic value of information if it does not represent or cover the entire globe. Especially when we look at the contemporary era of “globalization”, we can say that economic value of information can solely be related to the Western developed economies. And more, often then not, African continent, Latin America and greater part of Asia are being sidelined or left behind.
This can be adhered when we look at the fact that almost all the electronic and on-line information industries are situated in the developed economies like the Western Countries and other fast World growing economies like India and China. This can clearly illustrate that developing countries and other third World Nations are not accruing any economic value of information due to various factors of under development.
To this end, I can say that economic value of information is only realized or observed in a littler portion of the World. While in the greater portion of the World, the economic value of information is not something remarkable or worth while.
DANBABALE AMINU
MIM/EDUC/11763/2007-8
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