For most organisations "Information Management" represents a key component in managing a business. The implementation of a corporate strategy, the practical business of daily decision making and the measurement of key variances, all have a common denominator, information.  Information Management is all about managing information; Management Information.

For most people Information Management means getting access to the data they need, in a way that they can easily make sense of it, to help them see what is happening in the area they are responsible for, to analyse why that is happening and to assess what results the changes they could make might have.

The reality for many of these people is that they cannot access the data they need, as frequently and easily as they need it, in the format they need, or with the functionality they need.

"Only half of all managers believe their companies do a good job in governing information distribution or have established adequate processes to determine what data each part of an organization needs."   Accenture Survey, 2007.

Our customers come to us with a wide range of issues regarding Information Management. Examples include:

• Missing information means that you have at best an incomplete, at worst an inaccurate, picture of your organisation;

• The quality of the data available within your organisation is poor, which is having a detrimental effect on important business decisions, yet there are no processes in place to improve your data quality;

• The process of compiling information is wholly inefficient and this is due in part to you having multiple, disparate data sources;

• Access to information is very difficult, you have a wealth of information, but no tools to access, manipulate or analyse it and this is frustrating;

• Mechanisms by which you distribute information within your organisation are inadequate, unreliable and untimely; the right information is not getting to the right individuals who need it;

• Management Information lacks visibility and this has resulted in a lack of collaboration in making business decisions.

For the people responsible for meeting those needs, often in IT, sometimes in Finance, the challenge is: specifying exactly what issues need to be addressed, justifying the investment to make this happen and providing the experience and expertise to realise a solution.

Whatever your area of responsibility and wherever you are in the process of establishing effective Information Management, Simpson Associates can help.

Discovery

Most organisations have more demands for information than they can satisfy and no shortage of obstacles preventing them from having effective Information Management.  Our Discovery service helps people to identify and prioritise issues that need to be addressed. The Discovery process identifies the links between the reasons for providing effective Information Management and the benefits of doing so, forming the basis of a Business Case.

Business Case

Once a priority has been identified then the investment must be justified. Our Business Case service provides a framework to describe the benefits needed to present a compelling reason for the organisation to invest in developing effective Information Management. This framework, applied to each priority, can form the basis of a formal investment appraisal.  Read more.

Services Engagement

Once you have identified the benefits that justify a need for change, our service engagement model allows us to work with you from the start-up and initiation of your initiative, right the way through the development lifecycle and into the support of the solution delivered.

Depending on your requirements as an organisation, we can enter an engagement at a number of different stages: For example, if you have identified areas of improvement and the benefits you expect to realise, we can work with you to start-up and initiate a project that will deliver those benefits.  Our services team have the vision, methodologies and experience to ensure that as a customer, you are fully informed about the journey you are about to undertake and are kept informed and involved along the way.

Alternatively, you may have already initiated a project and only need to engage us to deliver part of that project, more typically regarding the more technical aspects.  We have established processes that allow us to understand your business requirements and translate these into a solution that meets your business objectives.

For more information about our Professional Services please click here.