Research Paper of BBA 302
Business Communication Today
TITLE : MANAGING INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION IN ORGANIZATIONS
Written By
CONTENTS :
- Executive summary : Introduction
- Literature Review :
I. Good Information Management Model
I.1 Emphasized on information not on data
I.2 Focus on people
I.3 Focus on processes
I.4 Mixture of information origin
II. Evaluation of Information Management : A Case Study
III. Evaluating the value of communication methods
III.1 According to elements and capabilities
III.2 According to dimension
III.3 Analysis of different communication channels
IV. Overcoming Barriers to Communication
IV.1 Classify the barriers
IV.2 Rationalize resources on the type of medium to be used
IV.3 Improve the face value of one organizational speaker
- Conclusions
- Recommendations
- Bibliography
I. Executive Summary
II. Introduction
A business information system (BIS) is the process of converting raw data to useful information which makes BIS strategies to require cooperation of both managers and rank-and-file employees. It is proved that BIS can improve both the internal efficiency of the organization but also to bring a source of competency (2005). This paper considers the importance of BIS to organizations especially those firms that cannot operate effectively within accurate and reliable information to base their operational and strategic decisions. The company in focus is FInnair, a European company within the airline industry, which will provide a god benchmark for evaluating the performance of BIS in the real corporate settings. The other side of the paper is about communication wherein different channels are evaluated while constructing a model to minimize their weaknesses.
III. Literature Review
III. 1. Good Information Management Model
III. 1. A. Emphasized on information not on data.
One common problem in the workplace is cluttering of papers and other records which is an indication of information bottleneck and record mismanagement. This usually cause managers to sort data by segregating the relevant from the irrelevant which leads to time extensions before coming-up with decisions ( 1984). As a result, the lag between decision-making and implementation impedes the efficient resolution of problems at hand. In addition, the formalized systems of keeping records and other pertinent data in each department can reduce the creativity, entrepreneurial spirit and self-esteem of the workforce ( 2003). Data-mining can also increase the operational costs of the company if it is not efficient and if the workforce does not support such strategy.
According to (2006), data are considered strategic asset if they provide the right information, they are accessible, they are readable and they are available when needed. Due to these features, BIS can provide savings that can be transferred to more productive projects like employee training and monetary incentives. As a proxy to BIS, managers can provide the necessary skills to promote strategic data asset by applying their expertise and experience in segregating and mining data. However, this system limits the ability to of data to become strategic asset due to lack of readability of individual users like rank-and-file employees. Lean and mean management indicates that data should be kept in minimum but considered useful in several purposes (2000).
People, processes and presence of managerial judgment are factors absent in raw data. In addition, strategic data asset can serve as organizational reference in every decision-making effort. As illustration, data on customer orders can have importance to sales team but this same data can impact how the finance department forecast future expenses and income streams. The role of managers is to measure the compatibility of departmental needs to available data and the organizational culture, relationship with other divisions and the level of risk associated in such data especially if discarded. Important data need are not emphasized by simply keeping them in file or database rather those data that become information because the organization are involved in identifying its real users and implementation appropriate systems to control them.
III. B. Focus on people
To succeed in information management, both managers and employees are required to support the engagement. This will necessitate managerial leadership to take-over the front seat to minimize potential resistance to change by staffs ( 2004). Several notes should be taken. First, the workforce should develop concrete idea behind the value-added features of their products. Second, they should understand the limits of their work to efficiently approach the incoming data that they are contacted with. This will not only make them more empowered and accountable but also prevent them on having data overload. The organization can create a culture of responsibility through this system. Lastly, the company can implement certain trainings in information management to integrate individual differences in segregating data from information. This will promote work ethics to individual employees.
III. C. Focus on processes
Policies are inevitable inputs to increase acceptability and compliance of information management. For example, a new approach to network access control (NAC) is developed to integrate access controls with current policies of a firm ( 2006). Even though not intended to strictly punish non-conforming staffs, these will serve as an alarm clock to ring their consciousness every time crucial information came their way. By doing so, it is also inevitable to create a knowledge inventory and information audit to strengthen policy implementation. This involves identifying the cost and benefit of information management in order to place rationale to every involved procedure and eliminate ones that have returns below its costs. As such, scanning the internal as well as external environment becomes necessary (2003). This provides the current variables that can measure the level of importance of a specific knowledge inventory.
III. D. Mixture of information origin
For small organizations, limiting information search using its own employees or noting its own experiences is not only usual but also practical. But for large firms, this thinking can bring devastative effects due to absence of pro-activeness ( 1990). It can be applied with competitive strategies by its competitors without even knowing how it came and for what purpose. The lack of preparation speaks for this problem. They are eaten by competition before they can act. The myopic view of internal information gatherers about the current situation and future consideration is convergent to the adage that “Mirrors are deceptive”. They tend to miss the loopholes of firm operations because they are acting out to prevent or cure them. Hence, gathering relevant data to resolve such issues are unconsciously or consciously undermined.
In this view, information search can reach other firms or industries. By doing so, knowledge inventory are filled with new ideas that can maximize the opportunity to be at a pro-active state. It can be argued that this may lead to burn-out/ overload, however, the processes described will weigh the cost and benefit of deriving and keeping the information. In addition, the approach to people will also hold in such a way that managers will store primary knowledge while considering secondary ones. Further, consultancy services can be tapped in order for a broader look in organizational operations can be conducted and the avoidance of personal biases or hindrance can be invoked. Pepsi succeeded to cut down its operational costs when it hired PA Consultancy Services for advice (2006). This option cannot only bring another alternative information source for the firm but also indicate fresher knowledge guided by theoretical background. This is important to avoid subjectivity in vital managerial decisions.
IV. Discussion/ Result
IV. A. Evaluation of Information Management of FInnair
When one crosses an organizational issue about information, the first thing that comes into mind is information technology. Technological change provides competitive advantage to firms that adapt it first ( 2003). Being a subset of a larger strategy, information management relies on the level of available technology. This is why a Finish-carrier and international airline, Finnair, outsourced IT programmers and bought packaged software (2004). The action made the firm more efficient because it can strategically plan its flights based on market considerations. Not only that, the firm also derived growth outcomes in the advent of the new technology making it expand its hubs to cater to a larger customer base and air traffics.
Most of the acquired technology and software is intended for executive and managerial decisions in the areas of scheduling, pricing, profit maximization and growth (2004). As such, legal requirements of air authorities can be realized without putting pressure on growth due to some regulations and traffic constraints. On the other hand, access is limited to schedulers and managers undermining participation from staff-level employees. For example, flight and land stewards are not aware of the bulk of passengers they will serve for specific schedules. This may result to ambiguity in their task that can adversely affect performance. The technical lay-out of information encrypted in databases may also be found by staffs ineffectual. For the firm to be able to comply with people focus condition, the technology should be made understandable to staff-level.
Further, the technology-based information management of the firm deviates from time criteria of data. The inclusion of software support into the system requires testing and evaluation (Moorman 2004), thus, trial and error method would be probable. This could diminish the short-run benefits from the system as completion requires both financial and business sacrifices. In addition, the firm insisted to integrate all necessary inputs into the software development without making the completion process longer. In effect, the firm is emphasizing more on data not on information which can disrupt the value of the technology. Too much dependence on technology also signifies the weakening of the firm’s trust on its managers and staffs. Entrepreneurial spirit is not fed in favor of technology.
Inputs being supplied to the software to incur reliable information come from its users. Therefore, the inability of the firm to focus on people instead of data is a clear manifestation of data emphasis. Overload will be the likely outcome if not resolved. The process is also with loophole. Finnair engineers and the software development provider are under siege to expedite the completion (2004). The lack of precautionary measures to halt behavioral differences like policy agreements had contributed to slow-up of the process. The firm wanted customized services with 100% software capability utilization. With the demand resulting to human conflicts against consultants and delay, it can be concluded that the information management of the firm has its over-maximizing criteria or simply they wanted a perfect result. However, without the four criteria above, strategic asset through information can be hard to obtain.
IV. B. Evaluating the Value of Communication Methods
Media/ Dimension/ Characteristic
Conditions
Audio tape and CD/ Recorded and passive/ Spoken
The message can be conveyed using only sound like educational contents. Its value increase when the recipient is on the move and outside business premises.
Video tape/ Recorded and passive/ Spoken and other images including written words
The message content requires long-lasting retention that can be filled by memorable impressions in the video and its technicality can ensue boredom.
Letters and memos/ Recorded and interactive/ Written and other images
The message is personal to the recipient. The cost and effort made to produce the letter reflects how the sender emphasized the endeavor.
Manuals/ Recorded and passive/ Written and other images
When the information is intended for visitors within the office premises that make it inappropriate for intranet to be used.
Fax/ Recorded and passive/ Written
The message is suited in a form of letter but with immediacy importance.
E-mail/ Recorded and interactive/ Written
Effective to send messages to multiple recipients without printing and messenger costs.
Intranet/ Recorded and interactive/ Written and images
When the message requires attachments, say, confidential map in which local network can only view the message.
Radio/ Live or recorded and passive/ spoken
The message is immediate and can be obtained using sound.
TV/ Live or recorded and passive/ spoken and images
Requires actual images in order for the message to have value.
One to ones/ Live and interactive/ spoken, written and other images
The message requires meeting a certain agreement with immediacy to perform the participant’s respective duties.
Meetings/ Live and interactive/ spoken and other images
The same as the preceding but with minimal number of participants known to the speaker.
Phone/ Live and interactive/ spoken
The message is personal and immediate.
Video conferencing/ Live and interactive/ spoken and images
When meetings are held in a distance and the parties have to see each other.
V. Conclusions and Recommendations
V. A. Plan to Achieve Strategic Data
V. A. 1. The nature of information has direct implications to communication methods.
If the information is crucial to decision-making, this can be resolved by using a type of communication model that can preserve its confidentiality as well as detailing the facts involved. As a result, it is important to identify information and classify them in several categories (employee use, organizational, confidential, general, etc.). In doing so, storage and retrieval using communication methods can be cost and strategy effective. The communication method should adapt to the content of the information. This should alert the records section of the organization to be able to sort out this information in a way that can be retrieved and disseminated using compatible communication methods. The input to the desired output is information and communication method serve as channel to achieve the outcome according to the criteria of the sender as well as conditions of the receiver.
V. A. 2. Continuous review of information and communication relationship is necessary.
As most information that requires urgency is guided with technological advances; the suitability of messages flowing into electronic media should be monitored in their effectiveness. As technology use suggests cost-efficiencies, the organization can limit its value-creating aspects within machines. Hence, competitive advantage is less likely. Interdepartmental communications using face-to-face interaction can provide inimitable asset to the organization that other competitors can hard discover and inappropriate to apply. At times of stagnant growth, the management should consider revising or testing their communication methods to suit not information content and potential to create competitive advantage.
V. B. Overcoming Barriers to Communication
V. B. 1. Classify the barriers
When an organization is confronted with minimal responses from a company-wide message, the problem can be approached in varying directions involving numerous variables that can be technical and behavioral in nature (Hargie & Tourish 2004 pp. 190-195). Without holding the bull on its horns, the golden time can diminish in thin air which can have financial and business implications to the organization. This problem can also be continuum because the root has yet to be discovered. In view of this, there is a need to create an information system and database that can provide the organization useful techniques on how to address communication barriers. The occurrence of the barrier can also be discovered where it happened within the communication process. In effect, preventive/ curative measures can be efficiently applied.
V. B. 2. Rationalize resources on the type of medium to be used
As observed, different forms of media only differ in the level of technology applied resulting to augmented efficiency of the communication process. If the organization does not have the technological resources to let them exploit electronic media, they should be able to accept such fact. They may be too small to introduce hi-tech media under the conditions of economies of scale (Rowe 1999). In addition, it can also promote organizational ties between managers and employees as the latter will see themselves as important part of operations considering that managerial messages are transmitted with personal touch. The firm may not have valuable physical resources but it can shift its focused into more valuable and inimitable human/ organizational resources.
V. B. 3. Improve the face value of one organizational speaker
In view of the growing gap between managers and employees and cost-reduction schemes of some industry challengers and followers, it is helpful to create a spokesperson that will connect the Board and other key organizational departments to the rest of the staffs. This can aid in building a trustworthy figure within the organization that staffs can have attachment and build communication relationship. This is a solution to minimize departmental jargons in a meeting or one-to-ones forum. In addition, it can also provide an environment in which each employee is at ease in listening with the speaker. Charisma is something few people have and so the organization should choose the most compatible person for this job.
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