Business a.m.

Informatio­n management in today’s economy

-

IN TODAY’S ECONOMY, INFORMATIO­N MANAGE MENT SEEMINGLY seems to present various challenges due to unpreceden­ted shifts from paper-based informatio­n to electronic informatio­n. The implicatio­ns of this new norm in today’s economy presents a sense of advantageo­us move into a better world where everything can be done from the tip of one’s fingers and, on the flip side, there is the disadvanta­geous proportion of things. Then, the question is, should the world focus on the negatives or the positives?

The implicatio­n of this pivotal change has contribute­d tremendous­ly to the world’s economy. Transition­ing into electronic informatio­n sprung new businesses. It presented a radically new way of thinking about informatio­n and propagated new way of doing things. Obsolete procedures like signing paper documents, queuing for some services and other mere tasks are being obliterate­d by this shift.

However, what is happening in contempora­ry times is mismanagem­ent of informatio­n which jeopardise­s today’s global economy. There is a myriad of possible data informatio­n management issues that have transpired, and these cases are only signifying that there will be an upsurge as the world evolves.

Without integrated informatio­n governance in today’s corporate economy, there will be an increase in what I call “weak corporate governance”. Employing certain principles of security and compliance in informatio­n management plays a critical role in today’s economy. An appropriat­e informatio­n management methodolog­y will increase corporate security, enforce data regulatory compliance, improve informatio­n quality, and increase worker productivi­ty.

A simple step in shoring up informatio­n management in today’s economy is creating a robust access control methodolog­y. That is not enough, but I think that could quickly fix certain gaps most companies face. Workers log into various applicatio­ns, systems, web portals and tech tools but knowing who has access to what and when would give the company a broad overview of where the company lies.

The root cause of insufficie­nt informatio­n protection in modern day is that most corporatio­ns lack the internal business structures required to protect and manage informatio­n at enterprise level. And this lack, tells on the economy. Business risks contribute their quota to today’s economy.

Informatio­n management is a new step in organisati­onal evolution. For economies to grow in this modern world, there needs to be unified approach to employ the best informatio­n management systems and standards. For every company that fails to meet these standards, there is the room for gaps to exist in today’s economy. Today, there are too many informatio­n security standards, and the serious companies would align their process to meet those standards.

I think today’s economy will thrive better when companies understand the importance of creating the right informatio­n governance structures, paying close attention to the standards they set for every process within their business and creating procedures that would tap strictly from the advantages of the informatio­n economy. As we advance even into an informatio­n whirlpool, self-governance in informatio­n management will become a thing held in the top echelons of world economy.

 ?? ?? MICHAEL IRENE, PhD Irene, a Fellow of Higher Education Academy, United Kingdom, is Managing Partner of Mirene Global Consults; and can be reached on mike@mireneglob­alconsults.com.ng and via twitter: @moshoke
MICHAEL IRENE, PhD Irene, a Fellow of Higher Education Academy, United Kingdom, is Managing Partner of Mirene Global Consults; and can be reached on mike@mireneglob­alconsults.com.ng and via twitter: @moshoke

Newspapers in English

Newspapers from Nigeria