Database Reference
In-Depth Information
3.
The types of information they foresee themselves needing
4.
And their perception of the organization's
overall
information requirements
Note
Throughout the remainder of the topic, I use the term
management
to refer to the
person or persons controlling or directing the organization.
Reviewing Current Information Requirements
Your objectives during the first part of this interview are to identify the information that
management routinely receives and to determine whether it receives reports that are not
represented in your group of report samples.
As you begin the interview, ask each participant about the work he performs and the re-
sponsibilities associated with his position. A manager typically has a number of issues on
his mind, so these questions will help him focus his attention on the matters at hand. His
answers will give you some idea of how he might use the information on the reports he
receives and will provide you with a perspective on his need for that information.
Next,askeach participant ifheusesanyofthereportsinyourcollection ofreportsamples.
Proceed with the next step if he says he doesn't use any of the reports; otherwise, exam-
ine each report and ask him to help you identify other subjects that you might have previ-
ously overlooked. Use the Subject-Identification Technique as necessary to aid you in this
process. If the manager identifies a new subject, add it to your list of subjects and use the
Characteristic-Identification Techniquetodeterminethesubject'scharacteristics. Thenadd
the new characteristics to your list of characteristics. Repeat this entire procedure for each
sample report.
Continue the discussion by asking each participant whether he receives reports that are
not
represented in your report samples. If he answers yes, obtain a sample of each new re-
port and review it with the participant. Use the Subject-Identification Technique and the
Characteristic-Identification Technique to identify the subjects (and their associated char-
acteristics) represented within the report, and then add the subjects and characteristics to
their respective lists. Finally, attach a description to the report and add it to your collection
of report samples. Repeat this procedure until you've accounted for every new report.
Reviewing Additional Information Requirements
The next subject of discussion concerns management's need for
additional
information.
Your objective is to determine whether it requires supplemental information that is cur-
rently missing from the reports it receives. If you conclude that this is the case, you must
