We’re pleased to announce the publication of the March edition of Business Information Review. Below is a summary of the contents in this issues.

Paul Pedley looks at the effect of technology in corporate libraries on privacy, is it an issue, should it be an issue? In his paper, Paul considers the developments in business information software which enable personalization and portability which comes along with greater usage of cloud computing. This means more recording and storage of personal data which creates privacy risks. He argues that good vendor management is important, ensuring that vendors know what privacy concerns there are. Regular data protection/privacy audits are also important.

In his second paper for BIR, Ian Hunter develops further his piece on leveraged finance. December’s issue covered researching the market size and trends. In this article, he focusses on how to find leveraged finance documents. It is an interesting paper reviewing what sources are available and how to find them, an important read for anyone starting out in corporate finance information teams.

Next is a paper from Lindsay Harris and journal board member Mary Peterson. Entitled The economic value and clinical impact of the South Australian Health Library Service 2011–2016, the paper explores one Australian state’s Health Department library service attempts to measure the economic value and clinical impact of its professional services and online resources. Developed as a case study of performance management, the paper outlines the context for the development of evaluation strategies and the key success indicators that emerged in relation to economic value. They note that “measuring in return on investment (ROI) in a cost quantifiable manner for entities such as libraries, whose central role is with the retrieval and dissemination of the abstract concept of ‘information’, shall likely always be demanding and complex to achieve. Nevertheless, libraries must now make the effort to measure and evaluate their performance in whatever ways work best for their particular conditions.” The paper presents a valuable study of the experience of measuring and communicating value to stakeholders beyond the information profession.

Our next article from Malawi, Professor Winner Chawinga, lecturer in the Department of Library and Information Science at Mzuzu University and his colleague George Chipeta, senior lecturer in the Department of Library and Information Science (LIS) at Mzuzu University, investigates how the synergy of knowledge management and competitive intelligence may be a key success driver in small and medium business enterprises (SMEs). They consider the turbulent environment that SMEs now need to operate in and the importance of identifying and gaining competitive advantage. Knowledge management techniques and competitive intelligence research are investigated as a way to achieve competitive advantage.

Out of the Box makes a one off appearance in this issue, addressing developments in AI and the challenge to professional roles. While AI is a technology that has long been on the horizon, the increasing adoption of AI technologies within professional and business services contexts points to a challenging future for a range of professional fields. Out of the box explores the latest development in the use of AI in commercial contexts and discusses the future of professional fields. A one-off feature, we hope out of the box will return in a more regular form in the near future to explore all aspects of technology in commercial contexts.

Perspectives – Martin White’s article in this issue reviews a number of interesting articles. Subjects covered include information overload – does age have an effect? The development and use of personas – how they are used in human computer design (HCD), whether or not they are a useful tool in the design process and what best practice methods to use to make the use of this tool as effective as possible. Also covered is a paper on the balance between employee autonomy and corporate control. A highly interesting subject the paper explores the increasing need for collaborative working and the tools and social networks available to achieve this against the need for corporate governance and control. What is the best way to work in the digital workplace? This paper in particular is highly recommended by Martin to read in context of your own organization.

Initiatives – We’re sad to announce that this long running column of Allan’s, which has been a fantastic contribution over the last 10 years, is going to be his last contribution to BIR. Allan has been with the journal since the beginning and up until last year had also been responsible for the annual business information survey that has been running since 1991, giving a detailed picture on developments within and the state of the information profession, delivery and use of business information. The initiatives column has run in many guises since late 1990s. Allan’s contributions started in 2007 and have provided consistent and detailed overviews of what is current and important in the information profession at the time. In his last column, Allan takes a brief look back at his time with BIR as well as updating us on the latest initiatives in the profession. Luke and I would like to take this opportunity to say a big thank-you to Allan from us and on behalf of Sage for his valuable contributions and insights over the last 33 years.

You can find the March 2017 edition here: http://journals.sagepub.com/toc/bir/current

Business Information Review is a journal that is rooted in the idea of evidence-based professional practice, the sharing of professional experience, and the encouragement of professional development. It navigates a path between professional and academic journals drawing on both the real-world experiences of practitioners and the research experience of the wider academic community. The articles in this issue reflect that outlook.

First up is Temilade Adefioye Aina, Louise Cooke and Derek Stephens’ paper Methodology for Evaluating Competitive Intelligence Software Packages. Competitive intelligence is an important topic for the journal, describing the practice of defining, collecting, and analyzing information about products, competitors, customers, or any aspect of the commercial environment impacting on commercial practice. Recent years have seen the growth of software packages designed to make the process easier to manage. Aina et al.’s article seeks to develop a methodology for comparing and evaluating such software packages and to apply that evaluation to a selection of available software. The article was developed out of postgraduate research undertaken at Loughborough University and reflects out aim of bringing the best postgraduate student research in the business information management area to a wider audience.

Next is Ian Hunter’s paper Researching Leveraged Finance, the first of a two-part article addressing the complex area of leveraged finance and business information research approaches and sources. Leveraged finance has become an important market for professional advisory firms including accountancy, banking, and finance sector law firms, particularly in the wake of the 2008 financial crisis. It is also a complex area of business research, and Ian’s article provides both a primer in and overview of the area, drawing on his experience as Research and Information Services Manager at Shearman & Sterling (London) LLP.

Staying with the finance theme that has featured in this issue, Joel Chigada from the University of Cape Town and Patrick Ngulube from the University of South Africa explore the retention strategies of the South African Banking sector. The research uncovered a lack of formal retention strategies in the sector and a lack of knowledge management guideline. Instead, the sector was informed by communities of practice, mentoring and apprenticeships, leveraging expertise, and using story telling techniques.

Our fifth article by new contributors to Business Information Review, Li Pin Tan and Kuan Yew Wong from Universiti Teknologi Malaysia has a similarly international focus. Entitled Importance versus practice of knowledge management constructs in manufacturing companies, the article addresses the status quo of knowledge management practice in manufacturing companies.

Finally, we have an interview with Darron Chapman, Director at CB Resourcing conducted by Claire Laybats. Darron has over 25 years’ industry experience gained from working within a specialist recruitment, training, and consultancy provider. In 2014, he established CB Resourcing with his business partner Simon Burton, with a broader remit encompassing areas such as strategy and market intelligence. He is a Fellow of the Institute of Recruitment Professionals/Recruitment & Employment Confederation and was the President of the European Chapter of SLA, the information industry body. The interview addresses career management and development for senior executives in the knowledge and information management sector.Darron also gives his views and experiences on the recruitment marketplace for senior executives in this sector.

The September issue of Business Information Review carried an article by Jela Webb about mid-career professional education. In part the article addressed the place of doctoral education for Information Professionals. Traditionally PhDs have been undertaken predominantly by individuals hoping to enter academia as a kind of entry-level qualification. However in recent years a range of doctoral level qualifications have been developed specifically intended to facilitate mid-career education within professional contexts. Professional Doctorates are doctoral level qualifications that blend the research grounding of traditional PhDs with career orientated classroom based teaching; they are designed to be not only more relevant to professional practice but also more manageable within the context of part time study that traditional PhDs.  At the current time professional doctorates in information management, librarianship, and information science are scarce in the UK context. This raises questions about the role and function of professional education and the means by which it contributes to a shared body of knowledge and experience, and to the formation of a coherent and integrated professional identity. 

On the most fundamental level professional education benefits the individual by inculcating a set of professional knowledge and competencies that can be used as a kind of tool-kit to address both familiar and novel problems.  This “body of professional knowledge” idea also has a gate-keeper function ensuring at least in principle a base level of professional competency governed by the professional body. However, the benefits of undertaking professional education for the individual extend far beyond this basic idea, and include the development of professional networks and partnerships that benefit individuals throughout their careers. The social capital that individuals gain a consequence of undertaking educational courses is often what endures from the experience in the longer term. 

There is however also a broader role of professional education in generating and sustaining professional identities and communities. What binds the information profession is not merely a set of jobs with overlapping responsibilities, but a shared sense of values, identity, and belonging. It is this sense of coherence within a profession discourse, and difference with other professions and occupational groupings that define the nature of professions. Professional education and practice-based research, scholarship and publishing contribute to this shared identity, and to the relative status of practicing professionals. Business Information Review also aims to contribute to professional identity formation by offering opportunities for individuals to contribute to broader debates, and to the sharing of experience. 

It follows that the kinds of qualifications that make up the professional education provision have an influence on the status, coherence, and social capital of those professional groupings. Information professionals generally qualify and achieve chartership at an early stage in their careers; studying for (usually) an accredited masters degree often occurs in the years following undergraduate study, or in the early years of a paraprofessional role for returners or mid-career switchers. Predominantly post-chartership education is managed through short course provision and professional networking events, much of which lacks recognition beyond the profession. This is not unique; the teaching profession has a similar structure. While Information professionals in the commercial sector may also often follow the MBA route into, this may sometimes sit uneasily with the broader professional values.  

What has been missing in the information profession is ways for experienced practitioners to gain wider recognition of their professional seniority. It is this gap that an expansion of doctoral education in the information sector could fill, not as a replacement of senior fellowship of CILIP and other professional bodies, but as a stepping stone towards it. The benefits of this would be both for the individual, but also for the profession as a whole, increasing the status and social capital of library and information profession. As public librarianship has declined in recent decades, academic and commercial practitioners make up a greater proportion of the professional community, and in the financial, legal and academic sectors working alongside colleagues for whom higher level professional and academic qualifications are relatively commonplace. Interestingly, the area in which professional doctorates are most common is in education; the EdD or Doctorate in Education is for many educators a stepping stone to more senior roles and responsibilities. Perhaps there is scope in the Information Profession for similar qualifications both benefiting the individuals who undertake such programmes, but also the status and coherence of the wider professional community.       

We have a packed issue this month covering not only the exploration of culture, language and leadership on knowledge sharing, but the latest news on the development of international KM standards, experience on developing and implementing your first information strategy and information on managing your own career.  We also have our regular columns from Martin White and Allan Foster too.

Paul reviews the current state of developing KM standards and provides further news on what is being done by the International Standards Organisation (ISO) to establish a set of Knowledge Management Standards. Paul considers the importance and implications of the development of such a set of standards and how ultimately it could be a game changing move that will affect knowledge professionals across the globe.

Henry explores the effects of organizational culture and transformational leadership style on knowledge sharing.  It goes on to explore transformational leadership, its affect and importance for enhancing knowledge sharing.  

Sian shares her experiences and explores the steps needed to develop and implement an effective information strategy from scratch.   She considers the challenges in different types of environment having worked in both public and private sectors within large and small information teams.  She makes suggestions for adapting approaches to ensure that the information strategy developed is fit for purpose regardless of the type of organization or their position in regards to the importance of an information strategy.

The June issue of Business Information Review has now been published online, and will be available in hard copy in a week or two. The June issue  focusses on information security and governance. By focusing on information security and information governance, we hope to highlight not only the importance of the issue in contemporary business and commerce but also the contribution of the information profession to managing security and risk. This is the first in what we hope will be an occasional series of themed issues and we’d welcome feedback on it.

The articles published in the latest issue of Business Information Review therefore all address questions of information security in one form or another. First is Ralph O’Brien’s paper ‘Privacy and Security: the New European Data Protection Regulation and What it Means for Data Breaches’. Ralph is Principle Consultant EU for 5 TRUSTe, TRUSTe a leading global Data Privacy Management company. His paper explores the changing regulation around data protection emerging out of the European General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and in particular its impact on the management of data breaches. 

The GDPR is also discussed in David Haynes’ paper, ‘Social Media, Risk and Information Governance’. David is a regular contributor to Business Information Review and visiting lecturer at City University London. His paper addresses what is often an overlooked area of information work: social media governance. David’s paper develops a risk management model of governance that addresses the threats to which social media strategies and outputs give rise. It makes an important case for the risks associated with social media and the importance of incorporating them into information governance processes.

A new contributor to the journal, Nick Wilding is Head of Cyber Resilience at AXELOS Global Best Practice – a joint venture company set up in 2013 and co-owned by the UK Government and Capita plc. Nick is responsible for RESILIA™ Global Best Practice – a portfolio of cyber resilience best practice publications, certified training, all staff awareness learning and leadership engagement tools designed to put the ‘human factor’ at the centre of your cyber resilience strategy. In his paper – ‘Cyber Resilience: How Important is Your Reputation? How Effective Are Your People’ – Nick argues for a move from thinking about cyber security to thinking about cyber resilience and outlines the guiding principles of cyber awareness learning, training and education.

Finally, Danny Budzak returns to Business Information Review with a new paper: ‘Information Security: the People Issue’. Danny’s paper examines the information security issues raised by the involvement of people with information systems. It first sets out the threats to information systems, and the risks associated with information systems, before addressing the mitigation of those threats through managing roles, responsibilities, relationships and training. 

Martin White returns with ‘Perspectives’, which both round up some of the developments in the business information world. In Perspectives, Martin White explores recent publications both in the information world and beyond that have relevance for professional practice. In this issue, he draws attention to research on data management emerging form the Information School at Sheffield University, research into newspaper archiving practice in the US and returns to the issue of information overload among other topics. 

Once again we are also grateful for Alan Fosters’ continued work in producing  ‘Initiatives’. In this issue, Alan addresses a range of developments in the areas of digital transformations, data management, value and volume of data, higher education and IT, IM and data skills development and open data as well as the latest industry news. As ever, it is an incredibly  comprehensive and useful resource

The June issue is available now at http://bir.sagepub.com/content/current  

Several recent publications shine an interesting, but somewhat worrying light on the future of the information profession.

Much has been written about the 2016 BIR Survey, one outcome relates to the skill sets needed to deliver a successful information management (IM) capability.    The decline and softening in perceived value of “core IM skills” at many organisations continues.  This decline appears to be gathering momentum, in a sluggish economy many organisations resort to eliminating costs to drive up margins.  Consequently, IM groups have found themselves at risk of being dissipated around the organisation, outsourced, offshored or closed.  Meanwhile, the survey revealed a continuing undercurrent of opportunity to nurture an understanding of, and demand for a more strategic approach to IM. 

Outsell’s State of Information Management: not a recipe for success is a more recent publication (April 4^th 2016) but no less challenging a read.  Based on Outsell’s 2015 global survey of IM professionals, a recurring theme is the need for new/different skill sets to meet evolving needs and demands being placed on the IM staff.  These new skills relate to Data and Analytics, visualisation, ROI/Value analysis, KM and content integration.  A more worrying finding indicated that few IM professionals have the resources (time or money) needed to equip their teams to respond adequately to these emerging opportunities.

The LexisNexis blog on the Future of Law referred to a recent book with similar themes: The future of the professions by Richard and Daniel Susskind. Whilst the blog focuses on the legal profession, the book deals with a wide range of professions.  In the case of IM, we have already witnessed the erosion of the “grand bargain”, the societal contract by which we are granted a mandate to control our field of expertise in return for our exceptional knowledge.  Whilst we retain “exceptional knowledge” of our field, a variety of technologies are enabling or embedding IM competencies and capabilities upstream/downstream of the traditional place of IM operations in an organisations’ workflow.  Forcing IM to reconsider where it fits in many organisations.

So, what of the future?  No one would be so bold as to predict where IM will be in 3 or 5 years’ time.  Organisations evolve at different speeds in response to a range of drivers, which shape their IM needs and strategies.  Two themes will prevail:

The current threats are symptomatic of a much wider trend impacting a range of professions and is hardly surprising, as noted by the Susskinds.  Much more critical is the response to these forces, to quote a well-known Sci-Fi foe “resistance is futile”, and will likely be damaging.  No two organisations are the same, but opportunities abound and it is in our gift to create compelling offerings and “save” ourselves. 

To do this, the profession must continue to adapt to new realities, use its expertise to explore new roles or niches.  The IM professional must understand their organisation and its priorities, scan that landscape for openings, and deliver cost effective capabilities to realise those opportunities.  Be objective, agile, entrepreneurial, stay positive, embrace change, explore and ultimately exploit new or related needs and activities to develop and deliver critical IM capabilities relevant to the organisation.  Don’t be afraid to relinquish tasks or responsibilities perceived to be of low value, and don’t try to protect your role or your team, but develop and grow the skills needed to deliver more value for the organisation.

As a colleague once noted: we are all sharks and we must keep swimming to survive.