Question

Define and differentiate between data, information, and knowledge.

Discuss how each can contribute to organizational competitive advantage. Discuss the role of data and data management solutions in organizational decision making

Answer 1

1. Knowledge-  Knowledge refers to the relevant and objective information gained through experience. It is a combination of information, experience and intuition. All knowledge is information.

2. Information- When the facts obtained are systematically presented in a given context it is known as information. It is a combination of data and context. All information need not be knowledge.

3. Data- Data, can be defined as the raw of facts. Data can be a group of symbols, numbers, or writing. Data doesn’t really have a meaning at all on its own, it can be just description of the facts around, data is usually used as the input of the system

Competitive Advantage of data, information and knowledge are as below:

a. Data- The use of Big Data is becoming a crucial way for leading companies to outperform their peers. In most industries, established competitors and new entrants alike will leverage data-driven strategies to innovate, compete, and capture value. Indeed. Big Data will help to create new growth opportunities and entirely new categories of companies, such as those that aggregate and analyse industry data. Big Data allows ever-narrower segmentation of customers and therefore much more precisely tailored products or services.

b. Information- It changes industry structure and, in so doing, alters the rules of competition. It creates competitive advantage by giving companies new ways to outperform their rivals.It spawns whole new businesses, often from within a company’s existing operations.

c. Knowledge- Knowledge allows organizations to get the right information to the right people at the right time. Given the rapid rate at which consumers’ expectations and the industry landscape changes, defining the right information, the right person, and the right time can be tricky, if not impossible. It enables an organization to create, apply, and share information, breaking down silos and increasing usage of valuable data.

The role and importance of data management solutions are as below:

1.  The people in an organization can find and understand what is needed at any point of time in a more efficient way.

2. The unnecessary duplication of data can be avoided

3. Validation of results can be accomplished properly if required.

4. The research process can be done more effectively and will be clearly visible with full impact.

5. Full compliance can be enforced with the sponsor’s mandates.

6. Data security is strengthened