C.L. Citroen / International Journal of Information Management, 31 (2011) 493-501.

Published in International Journal of Information Management,

31 (2011) 493-501. (http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.ijinfomgt.2011.02.005)

THE ROLE OF INFORMATION in STRATEGIC DECISION-MAKING

Charles L. Citroen 1 *
C&C Information Management, Zoetermeer, The Netherlands
Article history: Available online 11 March 2011.

Abstract
Aspects of the role of information in strategic decision-making by executives in industry
are hardly ever mentioned in management research publications. We therefore investigate in
this paper the way information is obtained, analysed, judged and applied by executives in
industry that have to take strategic decisions. We interviewed executives from thirteen
companies in The Netherlands and in Germany about the stages in the decision process that
they followed in thirty two recent decisions they had to make.
We found that executives that follow a rational approach collect and use ample
information in a structured decision-making process passing through a number of distinct
phases in time. In this process, information plays a crucial role in reducing uncertainty. Over
all discussions held, the aspect of the quality of the information used by the board was
stressed. We could only obtain circumstantial evidence of changes in the decision making
process caused by developments in new information acquisition and analysis methods such
as use of the Internet becoming common practice. But we can affirm that with more relevant
information available, discussions in the boardroom on issues affecting the choices and
alternatives can now be better controlled and rational decision-making is thus facilitated.
© 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved

Keywords: Information in decision making; rational decision making;

1. Introduction
Information on the internal and external environment of the organisation is a crucial
factor in the process of decision-making by executives in industry. Precisely there, in the
availability of information, a revolution has taken place in recent years with new information
acquisition and analysis methods such as the Internet becoming common practice. In a
previous publication (Citroen, 2009) we have analysed the processes of strategic decision-
making and the use of information thereby. In this article we concentrate on this last aspect,
namely what information is required and how this information is used by company executives
during their strategic decision-making processes..
1.1. Information use in strategic decision-making
Many studies in strategic management take the position that executives reach strategic
decisions based on a structured process of careful consideration of circumstances,
alternatives and consequences. This approach is known as a ‘rational process’. Information
on matters such as competition, markets, technologies and trends in the societal
environment affecting the organisation is used as a basis for the judgement on the

TThis research was performed at the School of Management and Governance, University of Twente,
Enschede, The Netherlands.
*Tel.: +31793213167 Fax: +31842236482.
E-mail address: [email protected] URL: http://home.hccnet.nl/c.citroen

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implications of feasible alternatives for the decision to be made in such a rational process. As
such, the use of information contributes to the reduction of uncertainty.
However, aspects of the role of information in the decision-making process receive little
attention in management research. For that reason we investigate in this study whether we
can add a new viewpoint to this field, specifically that of the role and value of modern
information resources and access as a prerequisite for the structuring of the strategic
decision-making process. We observe in detail the use of information during the process of a
number of actual recent strategic decisions taken by executives in the chemical and food
industries. The emphasis is on the process, not on the substance or quality of the resulting
decisions.
2. Literature review
2.1. A rational approach to decision-making
An important theme in research into strategic decision-making concerns the process or
approach that is followed in making a decision and the structure of this process. In a rational
decision-making process, executives reach strategic decisions without a prejudiced opinion
about the eventual decision and only after a structured process of careful consideration of
circumstances, alternative lines of thought and consequences of the decision made.
Information on matters such as competition, markets, technologies and trends in the societal
environment affecting the organisation are needed to judge the implications of the feasible
alternatives for the decision to be made (Corner, Kinicki & Keats, 1994; Noorderhaven, 1995,
p.29; Baum & Wally, 2003; Weirich, 2004, p.97, 211; Nutt, 2005; Hammond, Keeney &
Raiffa, 2006). Making rational decisions thus presupposes that information is available that
enables an executive director or a board of directors to make the best possible decision
under the circumstances. Rationality involves choosing which information to order and
analyse and which not to (Schwenk, 1986; Hussey, 1997, p. 18; Citroen & Hooghoff, 2003;
Choo, 2006, p. 104). The structured approach of the decision-making process is
characterised by the fact that the decision is reached after dealing in due consideration with
a number of distinct phases that are programmed in time and that can be observed and
studied in a rational and objective way.
Conditions for such a rational and structured process have been formulated by several
authors e.g. Drucker (1967); Mintzberg, Raisinghani, & Théorêt (1976); Nutt (1999);
Koopman & Pool (1997, p. 7, 17); Johnson, Scholes & Whittington (2005, p. 42, 385):

1. The issue or problem is properly identified and the objectives of the decision are well
defined by the decision-makers,
2. the decision-makers actively search for information on potential alternatives,
3. they carefully weigh the advantages and the disadvantages of these alternatives and
the chances of success for each of them,
4. even when a preliminary solution is in sight, new information or expert judgement is
accepted, studied and analysed, even if it contradicts earlier ideas and preferences,
5. before a final decision is made, positive and negative consequences of all alternatives
are re-examined,
6. provisions for implementation of the decision are prepared, (including a contingency
plan that might be required if the implementation fails),
7. a procedure is defined for follow up of the decision to judge if the purpose has been
achieved or has to be reconsidered.

In some cases that can still be considered a rational process, not all of these conditions have
to apply fully e.g. when only one valid option for a decision can be identified.

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2.2. Information as a factor in strategic decision-making

In management research publications the role of information in the process of decision-
making is seldom recognised, discussed or analysed as such, probably because
management information is considered a production factor that is readily available and its
accessibility is ‘taken for granted’ in many studies on company performance. Although input
of information is often mentioned in order to be able to consider parameters such as the
business environment, internal and external issues and changing conditions during the
decision-making process, information is seldom seen as a determining factor. As a
consequence, the characteristics of information in strategic management such as the quality,
the sources and the actual use of available information during the process of strategic
decision-making are not recognised as important issues (e.g. Simon, 1960, Drucker, 1973,
Mintzberg, 1973; Porter, 1985, Porter & Millar, 1985 and Hammond, Keeney & Raiffa, 2006).
Examples of authors that stem from the information management field that treat the
subject of information for management decisions are Allen, 1990; Meadow & Yuan, 1997;
Choo, 2002, 2006; Rowley, 1998; de Alwis, Majid & Chaudhry, 2006; Aharoni, Tihanyi &
Connelly, 2010 and Kroll & Forsman, 2010. Choo (2002, p.8) states that “An organization
behaves as an open system that takes in information, material and energy from the external
environment, transforms these resources into knowledge, processes and structures that
produce goods or services which are then consumed somewhere in the world. An
organization uses information strategically to make sense of changes in its setting, to create
new knowledge for innovation and to make decisions about its course of action”.
The subject matter of the information that is relevant to strategic decisions consists of
such items as internal organisation, market structures, competitors, customers’ attitudes,
technologies, regulations and public affairs. For these areas, opportunities, threats and risks
of the market place and the business environment, best practice, and most importantly,
current developments and trends in those features are essential (Nonaka, 1991; Citroen &
van Loen, 1994; Auster & Choo, 1996; Mintzberg, Ahlstrand & Lampel, 1998; Eisenhardt &
Martin, 2000; Oppenheim, Stenson & Wilson, 2003; Citroen & Hooghoff, 2003; Li et al., 2003
and Brenner, 2005). Formalised routines improve the flow of information throughout the
organisation, including information to strategic decision-makers and thereby speed up
strategic decision-making according to Baum &Wally (2003) in their study of firm
performance.
A rational approach to decision-making does not by itself imply that every titbit of
information must be located, accessed, retrieved, analysed and utilised before a decision can
be reached as there are limits to the amount of information that can be collected in a rational
decision-making process. Founding a theory or a decision on truly complete information is
impossible in principle because this would require “infinite regress, whereby every argument
makes an inference from assumptions and verifying each assumption calls for additional
information” (Popper, 1935 s.4, 1963, p.21). Accordingly, there are always limits to the
amount of information that can be collected that is relevant to an issue, limits of resources
needed for the search process and limits to the time available. Utility maximisation and
awareness of diminishing returns stipulate that equilibrium be reached between the cost and
time of obtaining additional information on which to base the decision-making process and
the expected benefit of this additional information in order to prevent a regress about
‘deciding how to decide’ (Noorderhaven, 1995, p. 29; Weirich, 2004, p. 98; Winter, 1964 in
Weirich, 2004, p. 221).
2.3. Information and communication technology (ICT)
As computers find applications for practically every business process in the present-day
company, this evolution has had a great influence on the way company executives need to

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operate nowadays. If we restrict ourselves to the more strategic issues, the decision-making
process has completely changed over the last decade by the way information has become
available and travels over communication services that are common now. The potential
influence of ICT on strategic decision-making can be summarised as: (Aguila-Obra et al.,
2007; Hedelin & Allwood, 2002; IBM, 2008; Kendrick, 2007; Laudon & Laudon, 2006, p. 21,
29, 457; Li, 2002; Molloy & Schwenk, 1995; Sajor-Wood, 2000; Teng & Calhoun, 1996; Ticoll
et al., 2001):

- Accelerating the process and thus being able to use the assigned time in a more
efficient manner and concluding the decision-making process before the set deadline
- diminishing uncertainty by enabling the evaluation of more decision alternatives
- better forecasting accuracy and decision-making time horizon,
- more unanimous decision-making processes through better internal and external
communication and thus
- being able to conclude an accurate decision-making process where previously this
decision had to be postponed because of lack of information.

There is little research into the use of the Internet as an information source for strategic
decision-making. Sajor-Wood in her dissertation (2000) on the use of the Internet as
‘decision support information technology for managers in the public sector’, concludes that
“The Internet is used in all levels of management involving a number of functional areas.
Internet usage is perceived by managers as a decision-support information technology that
contributes positively in improving their decisions”. Li (2002) for his dissertation, interviewed
20 strategic-level managers of multinational companies’ affiliates in China on ‘The
relationship between Internet usage and decision-making’; Li observed that “They all felt
strongly that the Internet contributes greatly in improving managerial decision-making. It
would be extremely difficult for these executives to conduct their daily business if the Internet
was not available”. Yip & Dempster (2005) questioned managers from 115 multinational
companies on their use of the Internet to enhance global strategy and conclude that
“Managers in all industries made sure that the Internet was taken into consideration in nearly
every individual activity”. IBM Global Business Services (IBM, 2008) interviewed over 1000
CEO’s worldwide on what they believe the ‘Enterprise of the Future’ will look like. A common
theme emerged from the interviews: “Virtually all CEOs are changing their business models.
Two thirds are implementing extensive innovations. Why now? Because it’s possible. The
Internet is allowing them to enter niche markets and reshape their processes, delivery
channels and ways of partnering”. Kroll & Forsman (2010) find that even managers in
academic R&D rely exclusively on digital sources (and personal networks) for their
information requirements.
3. Research strategy and fieldwork
For our research we asked a selected group of executives in industry whether they
would be willing to discuss with us some recently taken strategic decisions in a personal
interview (See Annex A). Sixteen executives responded positively to our request and with
these executives we conducted in depth semi-structured discussions that allowed us to
observe in which way they made use of information during the decision making process.
3.1. Fieldwork
The sixteen executives that we interviewed were members of the board or directors of
twelve companies in the chemical and food industries in The Netherlands and two executives
from two companies in Germany. These companies each had an annual revenue of over
M€ 300 (M$ ~420) in 2004 and are independent, i.e. not completely dependent on directives

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from the head office in another country. The type of industries that agreed to take part in the
research and the functions of the interviewees are shown in table 1 and table 2. As shown,
they were either chairman or member of the board/management team or were directly
involved in strategic company management.

Table 1: Type and number of companies interviewed

- 4 Food companies
- 4 Base chemicals companies
- 5 Speciality chemicals companies (in one case 2 executives)
- 1 Research Institute (2 executives).

Table 2: Function of the executives that were interviewed.

- 4 CEO’s,
- 5 Executive Board members
- 1 Vice-President Corporate Development
- 2 Division directors
- 1 Director Technology
- 2 Directors Strategic Planning, & Development
- 1 Director Business Development, & Innovation.

We identified and discussed in detail with these executives thirty-two issues that had
recently prompted a strategic decision by them. The executives volunteered these issues or
were provoked by the interviewer when necessary. For each of the decision-making
processes that they reported the interviewer asked the executives by probing questions to
explain step by step the process and the considerations and motivation for each step, the
sources, quality and usage of the information sought and obtained, the alternatives that were
considered and the eventual final decision made. At the end of the interview the executives
were specifically asked whether they could point out changes in these procedures in the last
couple of years, and the role of ICT, if any, responsible for those changes.
In order to supplement the data obtained from the interviews, we solicited input from
two other groups that actively supply information services within their companies.
We asked 9 corporate information managers that provide scientific and business information
services to all potentially interested employees of their company, often to affiliates worldwide,
whether any of them provided information directly to the board of the company, either as a
news bulletin or in answer to ad hoc questions.
We also approached 50 industrial chemical information professionals contributing to the
Chemical Information Sources Discussion List, CHMINF-L, by e-mail questionnaire (See
Annex B).
3.2. Model of the decision-making process
In order to facilitate the analysis of the structure of the decision-making process, we
developed and then used a new model (figure 1) that shows the successive phases in this
process and the information that is acquired in each of these phases:

Caption for figure 1:

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Figure 1: Model of the phases of a rational decision-making process.

Rounded boxes indicate the five phases in the decision process; square boxes contain
parameters that provide input for the indicated actions.
Arrows indicate the main direction of interactions.

4. Results and discussion

From the 32 issues discussed with the executives in our interviews, we were able to
identify 102 explicitly stated decision process descriptions of distinct phases that were
followed by these executives during the strategic decision-making processes. Apparently, in
some cases, one or even several phases could be skipped because there was no need to
follow this phase.
Almost all decision processes started with a ‘preparation’ phase (A) for the decision-
making process by defining the issue, setting the objectives of the decision and studying an
initial amount of information on relevant issues in the environment. In most cases initial
preparation did not yet contain sufficient information to judge alternatives and make justified
rational decisions. Therefore, in a second phase (B), additional information on internal and
external parameters had to be identified, selected and studied. In a few cases, comparable
developments in other organisations were analysed in order to better judge the implications
of a specific solution.
In the third phase (C), based on the information gathered in the analysis phase,
alternatives could be specified. In the fourth phase (D), the alternatives and options identified
had now to be limited to those that have a real chance to succeed. Adequate information
seemed to be present on consequences of a decision one way or another and on potential
alternative courses of action to make a rational and objective choice. However, in some
cases rationality required that in a fifth phase (E), preceding the final decision (F), feedback
was needed from additional sources of information to be able to appreciate the
consequences of each otherwise valid alternative.

4.1. The role of information in the decision process

The crucial value of information in decision-making is confirmed in our interviews when
the interviewees mention that the decision-making process often started off under uncertain
conditions that evolved into more certainty when sufficient relevant and reliable information
had been gathered. In order to get the right answers to reduce this uncertainty executives

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know that they have to ask the right questions and have to be aware what important
information is still missing.

Examples of why information is so important are comments such as:

- European operations have to cope with high costs, small margins and fixed markets, so
management has to be very alert and perform proper analyses on e.g. market
developments before decisions can be taken.
- The company as a whole is more opportunity driven now and can react faster …. with
sufficient information.
- For each strategic issue decision the best decision structure can only be obtained
when it is clear that all information is available in the proper format and is reliable and
can be understood by all parties concerned.

Executives commented that after collecting additional information an effort was

required for studying and analysing this additional information. First hand information mostly
came from consultations with internal staff from the departments involved. Lacking this
expertise or in cases where an external opinion was indicated, studies were also often
commissioned to external organisations or consultancies. The resulting reports always had to
be reviewed against internal expertise before they could be accepted. Comments were made
that consultants generally are more positive/optimistic about peaks in market cycles and
more negative/pessimistic on the slumps. Also one remark was that ‘old-fashioned’
consultants do not use ICT a lot, but rely on their knowledge of the industry and their
networks, resulting in analytically sharp reporting; on the other hand, more ‘modern’
consultants sometimes supplied loads of computer output with little analysis.
In the case of mergers and acquisitions, due diligence - collecting of data followed by a
thorough examination of the books and records of the target company - is a standard
procedure. In those cases often a feedback loop was mentioned as new information kept
coming up and consequently had to be analysed (Harvey & Lusch, 1995).
4.2. Information management
During the decision-making process, there are two phases in which information is
mostly collected and analysed by the board, the preparation phase and the analysis and
review phase. The titles of departments that supply this information to the board are e.g.
Corporate Development, Strategy Development, Business Development, & Innovation or the
Market Intelligence Group. Furthermore, most business units collect information about their
own branches and send summaries of analysed information up to the executive
management.
Some companies outsource the searching for information to specialised information services
companies, but a comment was that “This is sometimes not effective when the questions and
issues cannot be made explicit and unequivocal. This would result in an overload of
irrelevant information”. In one case, a director mentioned that on an acquisition plan of the
company, the board had to maintain more than the usual confidentiality and the CEO did not
consult internal departments but collected information to prepare for this decision-making
process himself.
Most companies have a department responsible for documentary information such as
an ‘Information Services Department’, often connected to the library. These departments
manage research books and journal collection and abstract services such as the Chemical
Abstracts but they are often also responsible for contracts with commercial business
information suppliers such as LexisNexis or Dow Jones Factiva. The information department
is usually concentrated in the research location of the company. On the other hand, several

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executives commented that nowadays because of new access methods to information

supported by communication software they do not see the need for such a service in their
company anymore. They consider that employees can nowadays easily search for and find
their own information: “This involves using all the sources of knowledge that one can reach
by connecting oneself internally and externally and let everyone involved be connected with
the relevant parts of his own environment”. One executive formulated this by stating that
“The technical possibilities to define queries have become much easier so that no
information specialists and fewer external experts are needed anymore to formulate data
base searches” and also that “The interpretation of data and ensuring the relevancy of
information for the executives is now the bottleneck, not the process of searching”.
The questionnaire that we sent out to correspondents on the discussion list for
chemical information professionals, mostly in the USA, showed that of the 14 colleagues that
answered our request, only one third of information departments –mostly in the smaller
companies - provides information directly to the board of the company, either as a news
bulletin or in answer to ad hoc questions. They indicate that input to the board level in large
companies is usually organised through the marketing department, another staff department
or the R&D department. Information that is supplied through internal news bulletins also is
generally screened by intermediate levels in the company before these items are presented
to the board.
Only one manager of internal information departments of 13 large companies in The
Netherlands, when asked whether they provided information directly to the board, stated that
they did, but only in response to direct questions from the board. The others all know that
their information does often reach the board, but always through intermediary staff
departments. Only news bulletins, summarising external developments, in several instances
are sent directly from the information department to the board.
4.3. Use of external information
Discussions with the executives on the use of information for strategic decision-making
in the analysis phase mostly centred on the use of external information.
Comments that were made on sources of external information during the interviews were:

- Reports can be bought e.g. from research companies specialised in these markets.
Opinions are varied; some executives state that these are quite reliable; others
comment that this information is often far from correct.
- Before the times of ICT based information resources, management was more reliant on
external reports that were bought. With present expertise in the use of the Internet, it is
easier and faster to find information for oneself.
- Trade organisations offer an open atmosphere where experiences are exchanged and
key figures are collected and published. Data such as total investments per unit
product are available. Examples are the European Brewery Convention (www.ebc-
nl.com) and the Brewers of Europe (www.brewersofeurope.org) and the Association of
Plastic Manufacturers (www.plasticseurope.org).
- For one branch an interviewee mentioned that there is a formal market information
network maintained by a specialised trade organisation. Parties in this information
network however have a tendency to play down the market size and enhance their
market share. Official sources are too much dependent on such voluntarily supplied
data; these only give an indication of trends, not of the true state of affairs.

All companies collect data on competitors’ behaviour through ‘competitive intelligence’

or from specialised consultants; these data are analysed regularly for relevant issues and
often stored in an internal database so that the board is at every moment prepared for an

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issue to arise. Selected information from this data base is usually available on the company
Intranet. From such a database ad hoc questions from within the company, sometimes from
the board, are answered. In one company an excerpt from this database is presented
company-wide on a weekly basis as a current awareness service and important new matters
are sent out immediately as a news flash. In another company, a group of 5-6 gatekeepers
comes together bi-monthly to analyse and compare the stored data and correct them where
needed and to reach consensus on updates for this internal database.
In another company the strategic planning and decision process is supported by an up-
to-date database that continuously follows developments in the international markets,
international supply and demand developments and investment plans of competitors all over
the world. It predicts longer term profitability and it assists in keeping up to date the strategic
plan of the company continuously so that decisions need not wait when a sudden
development occurs. Sources for this database are many: newspapers, internal reports,
consultant reports, information from colleagues in conferences and other discussions,
internet items, etc. and also the internal SAP system. Several executives stressed the
importance of public affairs information, new government policies, EU developments and the
interaction between markets and the government.
In several cases supporting information for board decisions on new developments and
acquisitions came in first instance from the business units/divisions involved. A risk that was
mentioned was that the division that was going to benefit from an acquisition might not
always be absolutely objective and realistic in its arguments and be too optimistic and eager.
4.4. Use of internal information
Monitoring reports of internal processes and parameters is common now in all
companies. An executive remarked that “The most important aspect of modern
computerisation is the increased speed with which weekly and sometimes daily information
becomes available on all processes and results within the company and so facilitates our
decisions”. But for internal information to be effective, another mentioned, the flow of
information has to be open; “Information that is kept in a closet is worthless; lack of open
information creates rumours and reduces motivation and trust”. Another positive aspect of
the facilitation of communication within the company is that this leads to more multi-
disciplinary projects and less duplication.
An Intranet is used in several companies to share successes of the company that
appear in the news: “It makes people more engaged, aligned. Starting the computer in the
morning brings up first the Intranet” was a comment. In one case, a reorganisation was
completed reducing the number of levels in the organisation, one of the objectives being to
improve the flow of information.
4.5. Quality of information for strategic decision-making
In all discussions held, executives stressed the aspect of the quality of the information
required by the board. Correct strategic decisions could only be taken on correct and
complete information. As one executive phrased it “Quality of information means integrity,
robustness, able to stand up for scrutiny, but very important is also a guarantee of
completeness, wholeness”. Or as another CEO phrased it: “We rely on well checked,
reliable, robust and relevance rated information".
Generally, information that arrived ‘bottom up’ was trusted more than information
provided by external sources. If information became available from uncertain sources or was
not reliable at first sight, it was thoroughly scrutinised for its credibility and robustness before
being accepted by the departments responsible for supplying information to the board. But
even so, executives sometimes double-check information themselves, one reason being that
these departments are not always aware of the strategic plans of the board.

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Some more cautionary comments that were made regarding the quality of information
were that “The value of these open (Internet) data is notoriously only moderately reliable.”
And “Information can be ‘manipulated’ as is seen by the example of client satisfaction
reports”. Another comment was that “Consultant reports always have to be verified internally,
they are in general not more accurate than one’s own predictions and often have a different
content if asked again after 3 months”. These comments show that executives are well
aware of the prudence with which external information has to be treated.
There were comments by executives on the manner in which companies ascertain that
the information they receive is reliable:

- Information integrity is certified by a small information technology committee as

watchdogs, on quality, timeliness and proper analyses of data.
- Deviations from earlier trends have to be signalled to the management.
- Each information item that is to be communicated to external parties has to be
confirmed by management to be accurate. This is adhered to strictly because of the
‘Right to Know’ laws in the USA.
- A good way to check for credibility is to see how accurate the data on its own company
are analysed and reported.
4.6. Changes in decision-making processes due to increased availability of information
We observed indications that there is a noticeable difference in the way the strategic
decision-making process does proceed now that information has become available so much
easier and faster in the last few years although it is hard to establish this in a valid
measurable manner. Most executives commented on the fact that indeed information has
become much easier to obtain. As an example a comment was that “Marketing information is
hardly searched for actively, it is continuously available” offering the facility to follow closely
and continuously the behaviour of new products in the market. A comment given by a
director was that “All information that is needed by the board seems to be available
nowadays, though one never can be sure. The improvement over the last years from Internet
is tremendous: Finding information before the Internet must have been horrible”. But this
executive also said that not all problems are solved yet, e.g. information on Asian
developments is still hard to obtain as language is a major obstacle when viewing Chinese or
Japanese web pages. One executive remarked that “The uncertainty about decision quality
has decreased as sufficient information is rapidly available to all persons concerned”,
demonstrating that information helps reduce uncertainty and offers better conditions for
rationality than in earlier days.
Another comment was that: “Now that information has become a ‘super-commodity’,
searches that used to take 10 days can now be done in 10 minutes. In earlier days market
information could only be obtained from paid marketing consultants, now three quarters of
this information is available on the Internet. But at the same time this reduces the value of
information, as everybody can access the same facts and thus creative analysis is needed to
maintain ones’ competitive advantage”. As a consequence of these developments a director
remarked that the question from the board no longer was whether some required item of
information was available, but the ‘demand’ now was: “Get this information for us, no matter
where this item can be found as long as it is reliable and complete and timely”.
Several executives remarked though that “This does not necessarily mean that decisions can
be made faster: Evaluation of this greater mass of information takes more time and not
everything is yet available electronically.” And a comment also made was “That easier
information access is not always cheaper, expenses have to be made to acquire the
information and each time the cost/benefit ratio has to be kept in mind”. Information overload
because of too many sources or too many documents was not an issue that was mentioned.

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Apparently, these executives and their staff departments apply effective coping mechanisms
to deal with the stream of information reaching them.
The facilitation of global knowledge exchange brings with it the fact that competition
becomes fiercer as any innovation becomes public earlier than before and time to react is
correspondingly shorter. Some companies are able nowadays to perform research on a
worldwide 24-hour schedule, they “forward results as a baton in a relay race” to their affiliates
anywhere in the world continuing the activity when colleagues in another time zone stop.
5. Conclusions
5.1. Value of information
Our research shows that in all cases of strategic decision-making that we discussed
with executives of large industrial companies the approach taken in the process was rational,
using all feasible information. Executives recognised the abundance of relevant information
available and they used this information to provide a rational underpinning of the decisions
made in each phase, either as a continuous preparation on events that could be anticipated,
or at the spur of the moment when a new opportunity or a new issue to be decided arose.
The type of external information that was considered to be indispensable for strategic
decision-making is information about market developments such as trade statistics and
trends and forecasts, consumers’ and customer information, information on competitors and
suppliers, but also technology information and related R&D issues, patents and technical
market issues; in most cases there is also a need for information on economic and political
developments, environmental issues and legal issues from governments, the European
Union and Non-governmental organisations.
According to these executives, having all this information available made preparation of
a case for the board and the process of analysis of alternatives easier and helped giving a
feeling of confidence that all options had been properly considered. Especially reliable data
on the performance of competitors and market conditions gave executives assurance that
they could judge more comfortably and rationally the consequences of their actions.
5.2. Quality of information
The aspect of the quality of information that was used by the board was stressed as an
important condition for any type of information to be trusted as a supportive base for strategic
decision-making. Correct strategic decisions could only be taken on correct and complete
information. Quality of information meant integrity, clarity, robustness, stand up for scrutiny
and timeliness, but very important was also an acknowledged limitation of completeness
when this was indeed the case.
As information was collected from multiple sources, such information varied much in
quality as defined here and depending on the origin and credibility of the source, it was taken
at face value or thoroughly checked for accuracy by using internal expertise or by an external
consultant before it was accepted. Generally, information that arrived internally ‘bottom up’
was trusted more than information provided by external sources. Information from open data
sources and even from consultants was considered only moderately reliable and could even
have been ‘manipulated’.
The trend towards disintermediation - whereby the information is searched and
retrieved without a professional intermediary - is not clear yet, but a trend to self-reliance is
noticeable. However, several companies still have an information services department
employing information specialists. In all companies externally obtained information was
controlled by experienced staff e.g. technical information specialists, market and business
intelligence searchers, strategy developers and legal people, either within the company or by
outside agents such as banks, branch organisations or consultants.

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C.L. Citroen / International Journal of Information Management, 31 (2011) 493-501.

5.3. Information overload

Executives agreed that increases in availability of information unavoidably led to an
increased volume of information arriving on their desks. When in the literature ‘information
overload’ is signalled, this implies that those executives would not be able to properly handle
this increased flow. But information overload as a result of too many information sources or
too many documents or data was not mentioned in our discussions. Having more relevant
information at hand, added to the comfort factor and feeling that the ultimate decision had
been supported by a more rational process than was possible before such information
sources became available. The conclusion therefore is that information overload was not an
issue for these well organised executives who are protected by staff departments from
receiving unnecessary information and that they can effectively cope with the increased
information flow that they experience.
5.4. Changes in decision-making due to new information access developments
We could only obtain circumstantial evidence of the changes caused by developments
in new information acquisition and analysis methods such as the Internet becoming common
practice. Observing how the availability of the sources for the categories of information that
executives consult nowadays has improved over recent years, we can draw conclusions as
to the changes that must have taken place in that period. For all categories of information
discussed, we know that the availability and accessibility has increased with the
developments of new ICT technologies. As a consequence, executives no longer ask the
question whether some required bit of information is available, but rather where this item can
be found reliably and completely within the time that is available. Even so, better availability
of information does not necessarily accelerate the decision-making process, as more
information requires more time to analyse, judge for reliability, discuss and digest.
Our study shows irrefutably that with more relevant information available, discussions
on issues affecting the choices and alternatives can now be better controlled and rational
decision-making is thus facilitated.

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Charles Citroen is self-employed since he left Delft University of Technology-Library where

he was senior consultant for external projects in information management from 1994-2003.
He holds an MSc in organic chemistry (1966) from the University of Amsterdam. He received
his PhD in business administration from Twente University in 2009.
His research interests are in the value of information and the functioning of professional
information intermediaries in industrial management. Citroen is a Fellow of the UK Chartered
Institute of Library and Information Professionals.

15
Annex A. Invitation letter to executives
Mr. Name
Company n.v.
P.O. Box …..

Your reference Phone 079 321 3167

Our reference clc/2006/23new Fax 084 2236482
Date 14 November 2006 Email c.l.citroen@utwent
e.nl

Subject Research into strategic decision making

Dear Mr. Name,

At the moment I am engaged in the fieldwork for my PhD study on the subject of ‘Changes in
decision processes through application of new information resources and systems’.
This research concentrates on the strategic decision process in companies in the chemical,
pharmaceutical and food industries, focussing on the role that information plays in that
process.
The research is part of a programme at the University of Twente, at the School of Business,
Public Administration and Technology under direction of Professor Hans Roosendaal. In this
research programme, the value chain of information is studied, particularly how it is
influenced by technology.

I collect the data for this research through personal interviews with executives of companies
in the above sectors. I have already interviewed executives of firms such as CSM, Dow
Benelux, DSM, Quest International, Shell Nederland Chemie and Wavin.
As you are an executive of a company very relevant to my subject area, I should appreciate it
if you or a colleague on the Board would agree to be interviewed about 2 or 3 strategic
decisions that you have taken recently.

The content of our conversation of course will remain confidential. If you would prefer me to
treat respondents anonymously in the final report, this will be done; if needed, I can
additionally sign a non-disclosure agreement.

A synopsis of my research project and a short curriculum vitae are included.

I do hope that you are willing to make one hour available for this interview in the near future; I
will contact you in the next week to see if I may make an appointment.

Yours sincerely,

Charles L. Citroen.

16
Annex B E-mail questionnaire
Sent out to members of the discussion list of chemical information professionals.

Dear Donna,

I would very much like to receive some input from you on the subject of ‘Information flow to the
executive/Board level in (chemical) industry’ - which is the topic of my doctoral research.
(I have been a member of the ACS Chemical Information Division since 1968 and have worked
for many years as an information scientist for industry mostly in The Netherlands).

Some people say that nothing has changed in the way decisions are reached in the Board room
with the arrival of Internet and other innovative information services, others are more optimistic
and belief that executives are well aware of the kind of information resources that can be tapped
nowadays.
So please help me find out how these matters are organized in the USA (or another country) and
answer the 4+ questions that I have listed below, of course they will be recorded anonymously.

1. Are (some of the) information services that you supply directly delivered to the Board of your
company?
--Yes --No.

1a. If so, do these mostly answer ad hoc questions from the Board, are they delivered at your
own initiative or supplied on a regular basis?
--Ad hoc --Own initiative --Regularly

1b. If not so, are you aware whether your information services reach the Board of your company
through an intermediate level in your company (such as the marketing department or a strategic
planning department)?
--Yes --No.

1c. Or alternatively, are the information services that you supply mostly used as input for reports
that are produced by e.g. the marketing department or a strategic planning department?
--Yes --No.

2. Do you have an indication whether executives in the Board are aware of information resources
that have become readily available over the last few years through new mechanisms such as
Internet search engines, alerting services, RSS feeds etc, covering important items such as
prices, markets, competitor data, patents etc.?
--Yes --No.

If you care to, can you roughly describe your function in the company and give an indication if this
is a company in base chemicals, fine chemicals, food chemicals, engineering, the pharma
industry or other?

This is a request directed at you as a chemical information scientist that works in industry, I have
selected addresses from the CHMINF-List of which I am a long-time member, (so this isn’t spam).

Thank you very much for your help, my report is expected to be out in 2008.

e-mail: [email protected] or [email protected]

web: home.hccnet.nl/c.citroen