Information Management Issues

Information Management Issues

Too Much Information? The core problem of information management seems to be overload: determining the existence and location of resources in the chaotic repository that is the Internet, trying to learn the nuances of different software, retrieving far too many hits. However, some people question whether the problem really is overload. It may actually be the multiplicity of communication channels. Unlike earlier eras, new technologies are not replacing but adding to the host of media choices (Gilster 1997). The Web has simply removed natural barriers between people and information they would otherwise never see, and information now comes directly at us from multiple directions. Unfortunately, most traditional information management practices are too linear and specific: they were pipes developed for a stream, not an ocean (Alesandrini 1992).

Perhaps the issue is not too much information, but information that is not usable or meaningful. To master information you must understand the relationship between data, information, and knowledge: data are raw facts and figures, information is data organized into a meaningful context, and knowledge is organized data (i.e., information) that have been understood and applied. A resource such as the Internet requires the user to build content from its vast resources (Gilster 1997). People may perceive overload because the information they receive does not fit into their current mental models for understanding the world. A constructivist approach - interpreting new information in terms of existing knowledge structures and revising those structures accordingly - can help move those "analog" models into the digital world (ibid.).

I've Got to Keep Up! The twin demons of speed and quantity create an artificial sense of urgency: with e-mail, voice mail, fax, and the Web, continuous streams of data are possible 24 hours per day at work, at home, and during the commute between. The consensus of many sources is to forget about keeping up. Focus instead on what you really need to know and for what purpose, and understand that the question will evolve as you gather information. Ideal information is current, timely, and sufficient for the task at hand, not necessarily "complete" (Lively 1996). The goal of information seeking should be finding the answers to personally meaningful questions.

It's All on the Web. One myth rapidly taking hold is that the World Wide Web is a one-stop source for all information needs and the secret to information management is in knowing how to navigate it.