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Information Management Plan

Need to create an  information management plan want some practical timesaving suggestions?

What is information management?

Information management is a discipline that governs accountability forInformation Management Plan the structure and design, storage, movement, security, quality, delivery and usage of information required for management and business intelligence purposes.

What is an information management strategy?

An information management strategy should document the "as is" information management situation and contain:
  • Statement of business direction;
  • Conceptual data model;
  • Function model;
  • A set of recommendations;
  • A suggested implementation schedule; and
  • A list of resources required.
Information management plan checklist

An information management plan should contain the following:
Introduction, which should include:
  • Background to/reasons for the study;
  • How to use the document;
  • Terms of reference;
  • Variations to terms of reference; and
  • Project constraints/assumptions
The Business Model, which should contain:
  • Business direction;
  • Operational concerns, problems and needs;
  • Strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats;
  • Business constraints;
  • External constraints/deadlines;
  • Internal constraints/deadlines;
  • Technical constraints;
  • Business aims and objectives;
  • Critical success factors; and
  • Key performance indicators.
Current Situation Assessment, which should include:
Structure and Design--Include an assessment of:
  • Conceptual data model--include reference to function model
  • Information “gaps”
  • Include an assessment of any obvious “gaps” in meeting information requirements.
  • Include an assessment of “gaps” any “metadata” needed to help manage the information management process
Data Storage--Include an assessment of:
  • Legacy systems;
  • Customer relationship management systems; and
  • Enterprise resource planning systems.
Be sure to address any potential data movement issues between these systems and potential data warehouse solutions

Include  reference to the entity/source system mapping document

Include an assessment of information and system architecture including:
  • Online transaction processing systems (OLTP)
  • Operational data stores (ODS);
  • Data warehouse(s); and
  • Data marts and other reporting/analytical environments
Data Movement--Include an assessment of data movement into, within, and out of the organization.

Be sure to include an assessment of master data management and the movement of master data
Data Security--Include an assessment of information security.  Be sure to include reference to backup/recovery in event of operational loss and disaster recovery in event of catastrophic events
Metadata--Be sure to include an assessment of metadata management, tools, skills and information “gaps”

Data Quality--Include an assessment of data quality.

Be sure to include reference to organizational capability to detect and prevent and correct quality issues

Project Management Methodology--Include an assessment of the software development life cycle. Be sure to include an assessment of requirements analysis, data quality requirements and Quality Assurance  throughout the life cycle.

Human Resource Strategy--Include an assessment of the information management roles and responsibilities. Be sure to address:
  • Are roles and responsibilities consistent with information management requirements?
  • Are they clearly documented and understood?
Management Information Requirements--Include an assessment of the  management information requirements. Be sure to address:
  • Are requirements met by existing systems?
  • Are new projects in progress?
Business Intelligence Strategy--Include an assessment of business intelligence strategy. Be sure to include an assessment of metadata management, tools, skills and information “gaps”.

Change Management Strategy--Include an assessment of the change management and release management process. Be sure to address if they are adequate for information management projects

Information Management Policies--Include an assessment of information management policies, standards and best practices. Be sure to address:
  • Structure and design standards;
  • Data storage standards and best practices;
  • Data movement best practices;
  • Data security policies and procedures;
  • Meta data standards and best practices;
  • Data quality policy and standards;
  • Human resource policy and accountabilities; and
  • Change management policy and process.
Be sure to address any “gaps” between exiting situation and desired situation
Data Management Strategy--Include an assessment of the data management strategy. Be sure to address any “gaps” in:
  • Tools;
  • Roles and responsibilities; and
  • Policies, standards and best practices.
Information Management Policy--Include an assessment of information management policies.

Information Management Strategy

Outline Solution--Discuss how the following will be implemented:
  • Information management framework;
  • Data management framework;
  • Project management framework;
  • Human resource strategy;
  • Change management methodologies;
  • Business intelligence framework; and
  • Release management
These items should be addressed in sufficient detail to provide an overview of the overall Information Management Plan

Implications/Effect on Business and IT Department. Identify any changes that might impact the organization
Logical Dependencies--Address any implementation dependencies
Recommended Implementation Method-- Discuss the recommended approach for implementing the information management recommendations
Hardware, Communications and Software Requirements--Identify any additional requirements
Metadata and Data Quality Support Considerations--Identify any organizational changes that might be required
Change Management & Control--Discuss how change management will be addressed
Configuration Management--Identify any changes required for configuration management

Proposed Development Plan--Address the following:

Planning Assumptions
Identify any key assumptions
Phasing
  • Identify how information management will be integrated into the organization
  • Development schedules/milestones
  • Describe the schedule and key milestones
  • Transition overview and issues
  • Address any concerns about transitioning to information management;
  • Staff requirements/training needs
  • Address any staff requirements and training required.
Glossary--Provide a glossary of key terms and definitions.
 
Summary...

An information management plan is a set of business models, a set of recommendations and an agreed action plan, which will serve the organization's current and future needs while taking into account organizational and technical constraints.

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