Information management: 5 big questions answered

TRP: What role does information management have to play in an organisation's operational efficiency and how does it drive growth?

QT: Without a robust information management strategy, an organisation cannot hope to run efficiently. From employees wasting time trying to locate historical documents, to valuable insights about customers being lost, mislaid or not connected, poor information management can be a hindrance to growth, and end up costing a business millions in lost opportunity.

As the quantities of data increase, so too does the task of managing it. These challenges must be addressed, as every step in the information management process is important - from capturing, to sharing and storing.

With the right information management process in place, businesses can thrive. For example, many organisations still rely on outdated and paper-heavy methods of communication so moving document processing online is a classic example of how information management can drive growth.

By streamlining the use of paper, office spaces can be made smaller and more efficient, with less need for bigger spaces and rise in running costs that this brings. Staff time can be freed up to focus on business growth, rather than endless information processing.

Recent statistics even show that around 45,000 businesses in the UK are still using dial-up connections. Faster broadband for better information management means quicker correspondence with customers and clients and improved response times to ensure the business remains agile and focused on customer satisfaction.

There's no end to the potential that well-managed information could pose for a business.

TRP: What role does the IT department play in this process and how should the CIO be involved?

QT: The info-centric organisation is here to stay. With the management of data rapidly becoming the most significant factor in shaping business growth, the role of the IT department has to step up to meet the challenges of information processing head-on. This is where IT leaders come in.

The role of the CIO - a role that was at one time isolated to a key set of skills and tasks - is predicted to develop so much so that it will combine the skills of statistician, software programme and storyteller in order to extract the golden nuggets of information hidden under mountains of data. The CIO of the future is predicted to be involved in customer experience, communications and information management as part of this evolving role.

Analyst firm IDC has predicted that unstructured data will account for 90 per cent of all data created in the next decade, which means there should be a sense of urgency in the c-suite in particular. The task may be daunting, but the time is now, and the level of intangible data is only going to increase – CIOs must take control, leaving behind the mantle of IT before they're bewildered by an unmanageable and unrestrained amount of information.

TRP: How can leaders effectively communicate information within their business?

QT: The effect of the information surfeit is being felt everywhere and the sheer amount can be difficult to handle. However, businesses should never be lazy with it. It is up to leaders across all functions to make its significance clear and to communicate it properly.

Information is an important asset for any organisation and should always be presented and communicated in a way that decision makers can understand it, engage with it and take action on it.

Data visualisation should tell a clear story in context with information that is relevant. It's also worth considering investing in information management capabilities to help make sense of proliferating data and drive business growth. And perhaps most obviously, the C-Suite must work and confer closely together.

An abundance of information does not always lead to abundance of communication and today, with big data merging the responsibilities of the IT, marketing and finance functions, communication from top to bottom, is the key.