P1 Data and Information Usage
What is data and information?
Data: Entirely raw and unprocessed pieces of trivia and figures that haven’t been properly translated or converted into actual
information that can be read and understood.
Information: Pieces of data that have been rewritten or translated into a format that can be read and understood by people (as in
being made into information that we can use).
Information Types
Primary
Primary information is obtained primarily from you in person, so you have physically gone out to obtain information rather than obtain
it from elsewhere such as the internet (typically from doing surveys, questionnaires, and quizzes for example).
Secondary
Secondary information is obtained from the internet, which may be more convenient and less time consuming than obtaining primary
data by yourself directly but isn’t always 100% accurate as it may have a bias or point of view present in it; and it isn’t information
obtained from you which makes it harder to determine its validity (usually from websites like Wikipedia or Google for example).
Qualitative
Qualitative information is information obtained specifically from a variety of people and is typically personal to specific groups of
people and others (mainly from topics such as favourite media, preferences, and routines for example).
Quantitative
Quantitative information is information that is exclusively cold hard figures and numbers, and it is always precise and accurate as it
never has a particular bias attached to it (typically coming from sources such as weather satellites measuring temperatures and wind
strengths, to precise voltages and units of power obtained from electrical monitoring equipment for example).
Primary information generally concerns you physically going out to gather data from people and not necessarily obtaining your data
from other sources, so it is more of a direct form of information gathering. Secondary information comes from the internet, and it can
come from a variety of places; and as a result, the data can be inaccurate and potentially have a particular perspective or thought
attached to it, but it can be more easily obtained than primary information since you only need to search for something to gain info on
it. Qualitative information is more personal, and specifically looks out for as many differing opinions as possible from other people (as
not everyone shares the same opinions and preferences on a given topic) so you can find a wide variety of different opinions and views
on subjects if you obtain qualitative information. Quantitative information is incredibly precise, with barely any variation or difference
between different studies or investigations, which can be helpful when finding specific pieces of data, but may not be useful if you are
looking for a more wide range of responses than just a single response.
Information Purposes
Companies and businesses all need their information to have a purpose, so that way there will be some usefulness to the information
being obtained and used (such as figuring out if sales are rising or falling by reading through data specifically about product sales like
charts or other such information mediums).
Operational Support
Operational support is specifically about information necessary in order for a company or business to operate correctly; and is typically
divided into two sub-categories:
 Monitoring: Observing the data to see if any changes or trends occur that could potentially have an impact on the business (such
as sales of particular products and trends in consumer behaviour). This is important, as otherwise the business would have no
way of knowing if they need to potentially make alterations to their plans or work out a solution to a particular problem
depending on the data being received.
 Controlling: Using the information obtained from the observations to help support the business (like sorting out when and
where deliveries are made and sent to figuring out a particular schedule for operations inside the business so they can operate
correctly and consistently). This is also important as without it, you won’t be able to keep your business’s operations on schedule
and as a result it will suffer from confusion and delay.
Analysis
The people working in the business must be able to analyse and understand the information being obtained so they can explain the
key points being expressed in the data to others and be able to identify any trends or patterns in graphs or charts for example so they
can make changes to their plans in response to said data.
Decision Making
Decision making is mainly about the organisation trying to come to a definitive decision on something in the business based on the
data and information they have collected. These decisions being made can come in a variety of types depending on the situation:
 Operational Decisions: These are decisions meant for the company’s progress over the next six to twelve months, usually
concerning topics such as ordering materials to make products to figuring out a plan in potential advance if employees are ill or
are on temporary leave. In these scenarios the company will need to know particular points of information such as how long the
absences will last and who in the company is being listed as absent and what particular products are going to be made and how
many materials are required for that order.
 Tactical Decisions: These are decisions meant for the company’s progress over five or so years, usually in direct response to
market research and surveys being conducted; so it may concern products that may or may not need to be discontinued in
advance of a newer product being released or deciding on whether or not employees need additional training. Typically, the
company will need to do research on rival businesses to see their products and workforce being put to use, so they can then
figure out a potential strategy on how to become the superior company so additional pressure will be put on competitors in the
market in order for them to catch up and be considered relevant again.
 Strategic Decisions: These are decisions that are meant to gradually progress over time (usually in the company’s future - which
could be over ten or so years give or take) and typically involve the company’s future growth and development into a larger and
more powerful entity. Usually the company will need to consider how their future could potentially look in the future given
current statistics and general progress on their current operations, and if they should even consider expanding in the first place
if the current data is picturing a mixed image for the company that may or may not succeed in the event of any kind of
expansion.
Gaining Commercial Advantage
Generally, most big businesses and companies will want to obtain as much consumer interest and popularity as possible, so they would
take notes and gather information on what competitors and rival businesses are doing in order to look for potential methods of
beating the competition. Obviously, they will want to exploit any potential vulnerabilities or weaknesses in their competitors, and they
do this by offering products and services that provide better value or incentive that other products on the market (like maybe
providing laptops that come preinstalled with software and security features to combat rival laptops that don’t come with either for
example). There is the possibility of rival companies also watching you as well, and taking notes of your ideas and methods too, so you
need to be prepared for any kind of copycat behaviour from competitors in case they try to exploit your weaknesses!
Information Sources
Internal Info: Information obtained from departments located within the organisation (and typically shared between other
departments as well) and is generally used to come up with potential new strategies that the company could use to gain an advantage.
External Info: Information obtained outside the organisation (generally coming from other businesses in operation outside of the
company among other sources) and is used mainly to help in key decision making within the company.
Internal
Information Obtained
Departments
Administration Department relations and paperwork (mainly concerning liaisons between departments).
Financing
Mainly about revenue and incomes (but also concerns costs, potential liabilities, and other such information).
Manufacturing Information on materials being allocated to specific products and the overall timescale of said production.
Marketing
Personnel
Consumer information, and additional details on advertising and descriptions of products being produced and sold).
General employee information (salaries, contact details, additional notes, etc).
Purchasing
Specifics regarding product production (supplier identification, production rates & cost, etc).
External
Information Available
Departments
Commercially
Provided
Additional consumer information, and additional info on products being sold and their descriptions.
Databases
Government Tax laws, and any other locally sourced data ( also including rules and grants).
Research
Expert knowledge levelled consultants who could potentially provide additional information.
Trade Groups Trade groups that provide additional support to members of a particular trade (as in YOU).