GST 114

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INFORMATION AND KNOWLEDGE
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MANAGEMENT
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DR. OGECHI NDULAKA

OVERVIEW/CONCEPT OF USEFUL INFORMATION

Information in its entirety, can be defined as data that has been organized, processed
and structured, in a meaningful way, to convey knowledge, ideas or instructions, as well
as provide contexts, relevance and value, to a user.

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Data on its own, is the collection of individual facts or statistics.

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Example:

“Monthly site visit”

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“The number of users that visit a website”

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“Changes in a website”

These are data. When they have been organized and processed, the information that will

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be derived will be – “Understanding that changes to a website have led to an increase or
decrease in monthly site visitors”. The collection, organization and processing of these
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data now has become meaningful information.
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The key differences between data and information are.

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 Data is a collection of facts, while information put these facts into contexts.
 While data is raw and unorganized, information is processed and organized.
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 Data points are individual and sometimes unrelated. Information maps out that
data to provide a big picture view of how it all fits together.
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 Data, on its own is meaningless. When it is analyzed and interpreted, it becomes

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meaningful information.
 Data does not depend on information. However, information depends on data.
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 Data typically comes in the form of graphs, numbers, figures or statistics.

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Information is typically presented through words, languages, thoughts and ideas.

 Data is not sufficient for decision making, but you can make decisions based on
information.
Information therefore, is a very vital component in our everyday lives. It is the building
block of knowledge. It is the raw material that fuels our decision – making. It enables us
learn and grow, as well as helps us communicate with one another.

Without information, we will struggle to make sense of the world around us.

Information typically comes in two forms – words and images. The words are sequenced

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in written or spoken languages; while images present visual information simultaneously,

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both words and images are crucial in this information and communication Technology
(ICT) age, where digital data transmission and information explosion are the business of

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the day.

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Information can be accessed through various, periodicals, bibliographies, internet, social

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media platforms, etc. These information sources can be primary, secondary, and tertiary,
based on the originality and proximity of the source of the material.
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WHEN IS INFORMATION USEFUL

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Information is useful when it is relevant to the needs of the users. Information is useful
when it positively influences the decisions of users. This could involve either reporting a
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particular relevant information or omitting certain information, whose misstatement could

influence the overall decision of the user.
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Summarily, useful information is anything we know, would like to know or should know,
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that might influence our decision-making, but that is not under our control.
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This includes factual information from the past and judgements about current or future
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situations that help us anticipate the consequences of acting on our alternatives.

In essence, useful information refers to meaningful and relevant findings obtained from
analyzing large data sets, that can help individuals and organization, make informed
decisions, as well as gain valuable insights.
CHARACTERISTICS OF USEFUL INFORMATION

Characteristics simply means a special quality or facts that makes a thing or person
different from others.

The following characterize useful information:

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 It must be relevant

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 It must be accurate and precise
 Useful information must be reliable
 It must be timely

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 It must be complete

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 It must be available and accessible
 It must be verifiable and comparable
 It must be valid and authoritative
 It must be objective and consistent.
 It must be understandable and easy to use O
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 Useful information must be cost effective. It has to be affordable.
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INFORMATION MANAGEMENT

Information management is the systematic process of collecting, organizing, storing,

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distributing, archiving and destruction of information sources, within an organization.

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Destruction in Information management is when a retention schedule has a final

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disposition of destruction. The information no longer needs to be preserved, has become

obsolete, outlived its usefulness or legally stopped existing. It can then be completely
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removed from the record management system.

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Information Management encompasses strategies, technologies and policies to ensure

that information is accessible, secure and effectively used to support decision making.

The central task of Information Management is to strike a balance between the demand
and supply of information to desired users, particularly in this era of overload of
information. Relevant information are filtered to the top, in order to be made available to
the right users and at the right time.

The Library, be it physical or virtual, is not left out of this responsibility or duty of
Information Management. The Library acquires Information resources in a variety of
formats; organizes them by information professionals/experts; provide convenient

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bibliographic or intellectual access; offers targeted services and programs with the

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mission or aim of educating, informing or entertaining a variety of users; and the goal of
stimulating individual learning as well as advancing the society as a whole.

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Succinctly speaking, Libraries play significant and great roles in information and
knowledge management.

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Information management is primarily aimed at ensuring the sustainability of excellent
quality of desired information to users. It focuses on handling information efficiently and
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optimizing information flow. Knowledge management on the other hand involves a deeper
level. It interprets information and applies it to arrive at concrete solutions to accomplish
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tasks. Whereas information management is about the exchange of or access to

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information. Knowledge management uses the knowledge acquired from the use of
available information to offer help and guidance to various processes and procedures.
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Both concepts are important for the long term development of an individual and society.

Information management may seem trivial at first glance, but it actually goes into depth.
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The focus is not only on filing structures and communication, but also on the use of
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information as a strategic resource.

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GOALS/ADVANTAGES OF INFORMATION MANAGEMENT

 Information management increases efficiency. By improving communication and

information flows, desired goals can be achieved in less time
  It improves situational awareness. Complete, clear, accurate, unambiguous and
up-to-date information are made available, allowing the users, good understanding
of decisions or situations.
 It promotes transparency. No matter how well information is prepared, it is of
limited use if the right people do not have access to it. The aim must therefore be

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to save and share information as centrally, visibly and transparently as possible.

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 It increases security and compliance. Sensitive information must not get out and
fall into wrong hands especially where compliance could be jeopardized.
 Information management improves user satisfaction. Information seekers do not

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have to wait long for useful information.
 It reduces cost. Poorly or mismanaged information lead to high cost.

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 It encourages better collaborations. There is a direct correlation between
Information flows and quality of collaborations. If organizations want to collaborate
effectively, they need sufficient information.

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TASKS/METHODS OF INFORMATION MANAGEMENT

In order to achieve the goals of information management, the right methods are needed.
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This involves a number of tasks that organizations should cover as fully as possible.
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 Analyze the information needs or requirements of desired users.

 Check the sources of information and the relevance to the user information needs.
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 Design the processes and systems for effective information flow.

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 Use search tools to document and track retrieval.

 Ensure information quality is guaranteed.
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 Keep information up-to-date.

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 Make the adequate information available.

PRINCIPLES OF INFORMATION MANAGEMENT

Principles simply mean kind of rules, beliefs, ideas, or fundamental/basic truths, that
guide actions and decisions. The principles of information management form the
foundation of an organization’s ability to collect, organize and leverage its information
effectively.

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In an era characterized by the exponential growth of digital information, understanding

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and implementing sound information principles are critical for achieving operational
efficiency, informed decisions and strategic innovations. The principles of information

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management are:

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 ACCURACY/PRECISION
Achieving this involves meticulous attention to detail, during data entry, validation

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process and regular audits to identify and rectify discrepancies.

 COMPLETENESS
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This ensures that the entirety of required data are collected, stored and maintained
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throughout their life cycle.

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 TIMELINESS
Organizations need to make sure that all the collected types of information are up-
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to-date and have the ability to respond quickly to users’ demands.

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 RELEVANCE
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This emphasizes the importance of obtaining the right information aligned to the
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organization’s goals and objectives, which culminate to delivering the right

information to the right user, in the right place and at the right time.
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 ACCESSIBILITY
In today’s digital age it has become a must to ensure that information can be
accessed from anywhere, be it home, office or vacation. This means that the
 information management organization must have secure and reliable systems in
place, to enable authorized users access information remotely.

 INTEGRITY
This involves implementing serious measures to prevent data corruption,

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unauthorized modifications and tampering, to ensure information are always kept

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in their original form.

 SECURITY

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Security stands for the organizations ability to safeguard the integrity and

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confidentiality of the data or information. Cyber threats and data breaches are on
the rise. Organizations establish comprehensive security policies and options,
such as encryptions, user access control and redlining, to safeguard sensitive
information.

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INFORMATION CYCLE

Cycle literally means a series of events that are regularly repeated in the same order.
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Information cycle also known as information timeline, is the progression of information

created about a particular event of report. It is a way information is produced and
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distributed, as well as how it changes overtime. The progression of the information cycle
is directly connected to the amount of time after an event happened.
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Understanding how the information cycle works, helps know what kinds of information
may be available on topics, for easy location and evaluation of research sources. The
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information cycle can be classified under:

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 DAY OF EVENT
(TELEVISION, RADIO, INTERNET) This information contains mostly the basic
facts and reactions. It changes as more reports are gathered, Information here can
be incorrect and not verified, because of the speed and conflicting sources with
which it reaches the public.
  DAYS AFTER EVENT
(NEWSPAPERS, TELEVISION, RADIO, INTERNET) These sources continue to
cover news of events, days after. They can provide more in-depth information and

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finalize details of event

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 WEEKS AFTER EVENT
(MAGAZINES, INTERNET) Articles in popular magazines and internet sites (like

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news sites and blogs) connect the event to lager issues. More details begin to

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come to light. Oftentimes, they contain, interviews and other first-hand accounts.

 MONTHS AFTER EVENTS

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(SCHOLARLY JOURNALS) These journal articles are more in – depth than the
magazines articles. They focus on a specific aspect of event / issue.
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The Authors have had the time to reflect critically on the event or issue, and its
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ramifications.
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 YEARS AFTER EVENT

(BOOKS AND REFERENCE MATERIALS) Because books take a longer time to
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produce, they cannot refer to current events. Instead, they reflect on events /
issues, and place its impact, within larger issues of their disciplines. The event /
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issues will be included in the reference materials and Textbooks, placing the
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event/issue into historic record.

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INFORMATION LIFECYCLE MANAGEMENT

Information lifecycle management (ILM) is the effort to oversee data from creation through
retirement, in order to optimize its utility, lower costs, as well as minimize the legal and
compliance risks that may be introduced, through the data.
PHASES / STAGES OF INFORMATION LIFECYCLE MANAGEMENT

 Data creation and collection

 Data classification and storage
 Data processing and usage

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 Data archiving

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 Data destruction and disposition

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INFORMATION MANAGEMENT SYSTEM (IMS)

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This refers to any framework of software that facilitates the collection, storage,
organization and destruction of information.

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