Information Management — Headache or Opportunity?

Abstract

There has been significant recent focus on information and data handling in the public sector prompted, in part, by the loss of two discs from HMRC in late 2007 containing the details of 25 million citizens. This article explores the issues behind this new focus, and examines how many of the underlying issues are either new, or really different from the issues that Boards explore every day in relation to other business challenges. Drawing on recent publications as well as from the author's experience as Government Head of Profession in this arena, this article argues that information assets are as much opportunities as risks, and that the opportunities are still poorly understood, and information assets underexploited. It also proposes that Boards need to treat information management as a core business challenge, and use existing techniques, particularly that of risk management and cultural change, to ensure that they address the critical challenges that digital information presents.