According to Welfens (2002:8), business organisations are subjected to a new economic system. Turner (2000:1) concurs with Welfens and coins the aforementioned economic system as a so called information economy, also referred to as the New Economy. It should be noted that Turner (2000:1) is of the opinion that the New Economy is based on the increased salience of information and the author acknowledged that information should be applied as a commercial and competitive tool within the business context.  Taking the aforementioned statement into consideration, Davis, Miller & Russell (2006: xxiii) is of the opinion that “in a business climate that punishes the inefficient and slow moving, enterprises are under pressure to manage their information assets more effectively and efficiently than ever. The information management framework is no longer an adjunct support structure; it is the essential foundation for corporate performance”. The strategic importance of information as a resource within the New Economy may be seen as the catalyst for the identification, valuation and assessment of information as a resource within the business operations. In this context, the main objective of this study is to determine the impact of the management of information as a resource within a retail business in the modern day South African context. Furthermore an information strategy, for the business, will be formulated to ensure that the information resources are managed according to business objectives.

References

Davis, J., & Miller, G.J. & Russell, A. 2006. Information revolution. Using the information evolution model to grow your business. United States of America: John Wiley & Sons Inc.

Turner, C. 2000. The information e-conomy: business strategies for competing in the digital age. London: Kogan Page Ltd.

Welfens, P. J. J. 2002. Internet-economics.net - macro economics, deregulation and innovation. New York: Springer.