Understanding the Term Actionable Information
Wednesday, January 18, 2012 at 08:54AM
Charlie in General Information

The best explanation of what actionable information is that I have found came from an article by John Alber, Delivering Actionable Information To Front-Line Lawyers:

If a friend tells you that you have something in your teeth, chances are you’ll visit a mirror and attend to the problem. That’s actionable information. It is information (1) from a trusted source, (2) about something that’s important to you, and (3) that, once known to you, will impel you to take action.

While the article talks about law firms, it has general aplicability in my view.

Ask yourself this question.  In your organization, how does the mass of information which you have available become actionable?  Is that process as effecient and as effective as it can be?  Chances are that the process involves lots of reports, spreadsheets, re-keying, etc.

Think about this. More later on how to improve this process.

Article originally appeared on XBRL-based structured digital financial reporting (http://xbrl.squarespace.com/).
See website for complete article licensing information.