Module Identifier DSM8110  
Module Title BUSINESS INFORMATION  
Academic Year 2002/2003  
Co-ordinator Mr Michael A Lowe  
Semester Available all semesters  
Assessment Semester Assessment   A Company Profile   100%  

Learning outcomes

At the end of the module you should be able to:

Brief description

Decision-makers in the business world depend as never before on access to information about the environments they operate in. A large and complex range of specialised information sources exists, with many professional information intermediaries involved between these sources and users. Today, services dedicated to commercial information needs are commonly provided not only by businesses themselves, but also by independent information brokers, public and private sector business support agencies, and national and public libraries.
This module should be of equal value for those who undertake, or may in the future undertake, general reference or information work and for those who specialise in business information. Although the principles and skills are transferable to other contexts, the module is oriented to the point of view of the business person working in the UK.
No prior knowledge of business or economics is required to study the module.
Taking as its starting point the nature of business itself, the module explores how and why businesses need and use information. It further considers the sources of information which exist for the commercial environment; their origin, content, and role. Through studying a combination of the units, readings, and through working on the assignment and practical exercises, you should acquire specialised information retrieval and interpretation skills. Finally, after completing this module you should have gained the knowledge and skills necessary to enable you to provide the information needed by business people on their commercial environment.

Reading Lists

Books
** Essential Reading
Lowe, Michael. (1999) Business Information at Work. London: Aslib

Journals
Business Information Review (http://www.bids.ac.uk/journals/browse/bks/bir?mode=direct).

Articles
Wilson, Tom. (1987) Information for Business: the Business of Information. Aslib Proceedings, 39, pp275-279

Journals
Information World Review (http://www.iwr.co.uk/iwr/).