My initial interest in Jela Webb's book stemmed from a desire to learn more about implementing information management (IM) initiatives - how to conduct an information audit, formulate information strategies and ensure that information becomes a real business asset. I was not disappointed.
Firstly, I'd like to begin at the end: after finishing the book and absorbing its contents, my ever expanding knowledge information history was much richer. For example, within the book, Webb discusses the first person to use the term ‘Information Literacy’, and investigates the origin of classifying the ‘ultimate intangible’ as a valuable asset in its own right, revealing the first articulation of the concept to be in a report produced by the 1995 Hawley Committee, whose findings and recommendations are responsible for shaping our current information landscape. Elsewhere, the reader is given a brief yet compelling history of IM, covering no less than 4000 years, culminating in Tony Blair's assertion that “oil is no longer the most important commodity on the world: it is information.”
This interesting history lesson serves as a prelude to a discussion of IM initiatives immediately prior to its emergence as a defined discipline. Instead of following the current vogue and interpreting these initiatives as mere fads, Webb clearly outlines how quality circles (problem solving via information sharing groups), total quality management (top down initiative backing), business process re-enginering (avoiding re-inventing the wheel) and other such programmes have in fact coalesced to become what we now know as Knowledge Management (KM).
Not that history is in any way to be considered the main thrust of this title. The deft touch Webb displays when relating the origins of IM is also evident throughout the work. The obligatory explanations of data, information and KM clearly relay the necessary concepts without adding exponentially to the page count. A list of abbreviations is provided at the front of the book and current vogue definitions, such as ‘records management’, ‘customer relationship management’ and ‘electronic document management’, are explained with clarity in the main body of the text (Chapter 2).
Such concision sets no precedent, for Webb is willing to get her hands dirty where it counts. Managing information as an asset has an entire chapter devoted to it, covering such necessities as market and customer information, creating an information asset register, and a discussion of information assets and the balance sheet, plus more besides. The chapter on strategic awareness not only breaks the concept of information strategy down to its component parts for easy digestion, but also brings the reader quickly up to speed on some of the most effective strategic planning methods. Concerning information audits no stone is left unturned, as the reader is treated to a plethora of well-thought out suggestions regarding what should be carried out prior to, during, and following the endeavour. Crucial, easily overlooked areas are highlighted, such as the necessity for specific individual responsibility for each item of the strategy implementation, as well as foundation advice such as the necessity for strategy awareness to be part of the appraisal review process. Information compliance is rigorously explored, as are the requirements for the role of Chief Information Officer.
Webb also delivers something of a coup, considering this is a strategy book. Focusing on information literacy, or the lack of it, in the workplace, Webb provides a treatise on how to develop these skills in our colleagues when evaluating information sources, whether they be electronic, book, or journal. This is rare in books purporting to discuss information strategy (this reviewer has yet to see it elsewhere), yet is surely an obvious area to include, and very welcome.
The chapter layout can, at times, seem a touch counter-intuitive. An in-depth exploration of preparing a business case for IM follows the chapter on conducting an information audit (some form of business case would need to be made in order to get approval for the time and resources needed to conduct the audit). The book, however, is not meant to be read in strict chapter order. Each chapter is designed to be studied in isolation if need be, and this approach works well. Webb restates previously explained concepts throughout, rather than expecting the reader to either remember every theory and model, or refer back to the original definitions. Such repetition works surprisingly well here, keeping unnecessary page turning to a minimum and allowing ideas to be conveyed clearly.
However, the book disappoints slightly in the area of practical instruction. For instance, though the chapter on information auditing is invaluable in highlighting what you should be doing, it proves to be a little sketchy on detailing how to go about it. Much of significance is said about placing a monetary value on information, but any suggestion of a workable, practical method of implementing such an initiative is disappointingly absent (does one exist?). Webb seeks to make up for this lack in the form of a twenty-eight page ‘Strategic Information Toolkit’ specifically designed to provide practical assistance in implementing an IM initiative. Make no mistake, the toolkit is incredibly useful, providing analysis templates, questionnaire design tips and much more. Questions are also asked that manoeuvre the reader into genuinely thinking around the task at hand, which can only be a good thing. However, the toolkit is a little too focused on asking questions at the expense of providing further solid practical advice.
To be fair, no one book can perform every trick and Webb's effort so excels in other areas that it would be more than a little reckless to ignore this publication. Rather, one could start a KM/IM resource library to be reckoned with by combining this book with the following: Information Strategy and Practice by Elizabeth Orna (handily included in Webb's recommendations for further reading), and Knowledge Management and the Smarter Lawyer by Gretta Rusanow which, though lacking the hard-edged practical suggestions of Orna, expertly examines KM through the polished lens of the legal sector microscope, thereby making up for this deficit in the Webb and Orna publications. Esteemed company indeed, accurately reflecting the expertise on offer in Strategic Information Management. I thoroughly recommend it.
