Topic 2 & 3: Value, Importance and Quality of Information

Question 1

What are the qualities of high quality information?

Answer 1

For information to be high quality, it must be accurate, up to date and complete. It should also be targeted, comprehensible and relevant.

Question 2

What are some of the costs associated with ensuring information is high quality?

Answer 2

High quality data can be costly to produce due to the need for resources such as: employee time, manual data entry, data storage and back-up, third-party services, hardware, maintenance, analysis and reporting.

Question 3

What risks are associated with a customer’s information not being up to date? Give an example.

Answer 3

If an e-commerce website for groceries holds an out-of-date address, the customer’s order will not be fulfilled. Another risk is that a business could be taken to court under the Data Protection Act 1998 if, for example, an individual is refused a job because an incorrect data says they have a criminal record.

Question 4

Why could a business end up in court if a customer’s personal information is not managed according to high quality standards?

Answer 4

Under the Data Protection Act 1998, anyone who collects, stores or processes personal data must ensure it is both accurate and up to date.

Question 5

Apart from being accurate, complete and up to date, what else makes information high quality?

Answer 5

Information should be targeted for a specific purpose. It should be easy for employees to understand quickly. Only relevant data should be stored, in order to keep costs down.

Question 6

What is unstructured data? (not an exam question)

Answer 6

Unstructured data cannot be saved in a spreadsheet or traditional database. Examples include video, audio, social media content and emails.

Question 7

How does good quality information add value to an organisation? (how do they use it?)

Answer 7

Profile customers - find out what they want and if there is a gap in the market
Monitor and improve employee efficiency
Target resources (such as employee skills) to achieve goals
Optimise company strategy to set effective goals
Track competitors’ activities - follow their press releases and new product launches
Improve product design - find out how people use the products
Many other examples.