QUALITY OF INFORMATION

Information is a vital resource for the success of any organization. Future of an organization lies in using and disseminating information wisely.

Good quality information placed in right context in right time tells us about opportunities and problems well in advance.
Good quality information: Quality is a value that would vary according to the users and uses of the information.

According to Wang and Strong, following are the dimensions or elements of Information Quality:

Intrinsic:

Accuracy, Objectivity, Believability, Reputation

Contextual:

Relevancy, Value-Added, Timeliness, Completeness, Amount of information

Representational:

Interpretability, Format, Coherence, Compatibility

Accessibility:

Accessibility, Access security. Various authors propose various lists of metrics for assessing the quality of informations. Let us generate a list of the most essential characteristic features for informations quality:

Reliability

It should be verifiable and dependable.

Timely

It must be current and it must reach the users well in time, so that important decisions can be made in time.

Relevant

It should be current and valid information and it should reduce uncertainties.

Accurate

It should be free of errors and mistakes, true, and not deceptive.

Sufficient

  It should be adequate in quantity, so that decisions can be made on its basis.

Unambiguous

It should be expressed in clear terms. In other words, in should be comprehensive.

Complete

It should meet all the needs in the current context.
• Unbiased – It should be impartial, free from any bias. In other words, it should have integrity.

Explicit

It should not need any further explanation.