Information and Knowledge Management using ArcGIS ModelBuilder

6. Conclusion
Elmarie Papageorgiou and Herman de Bruyn
The trend towards decision-making and problem-solving at all levels of business creates a need for a
specialised information system. EISs address the needs of businesses in understanding financial and
non-financial information in order to assess companies’ performances. The type of information
required by executives and top management is directly related to the level of management and the
degree of structure in the type of decisions they deal with daily. The higher the level of management
in the business, the more unstructured the decisions become. The financial and non-financial
information, that is available on listed JSE company’s Web sites and EISs are used by top
management and executives, and is usually summarised for decision-making and problem-solving to
create a competitive advantage. Detailed information is available for a more in-depth analysis if
required. Top management needs to be committed in using EISs and the constant drive to update
information to be competitive. Understanding financial and non-financial information was explored in
detail in interviews conducted to determine: what information was collected, how it was used, and
what role was played by executives in the process of using EISs. The outcomes of the interviews
have limited value but definitely add value to the study as interviewees shared their experiences
regarding their EISs to demonstrate the strategic value of EISs and to persuade top management to
support EISs. Both financial and non-financial information was collected by using EISs to access
quality, reliable and real-time information. Executives and accountants were the main users of EISs
and the main motivation factors for using EISs were: to improve the effectiveness and efficiency of
executives, to provide easier, faster access to information, and to interface with other software
packages. The findings from the interviews concluded that successful EISs not only provided
executives with necessary real-time information but that they were also trusted sources of information.
In conclusion, it all begins with an IT paradigm shift to influence top management to create a culture
of continuous awareness to improve and recognise IT issues when introducing a business
management information tool, for listed JSE companies. IT is only useful to businesses if it is
managed as an integrated business function, otherwise it risks wasting valuable information for
decision-making and problem-solving. The decision to integrate and re-structure IT in a business is a
key feature to inform management of the consequences of their business’s operations and the
impacts of past decision making processes. IT should without doubt be the core vision for businesses
and should be used as a strategic tool to focus on accessing information that is relevant, accurate and
timeous. EISs can be used to assist businesses to expand and develop their businesses in
understanding financial and non-financial information.
A limitation of the study was the low response rate; this was due to the following reasons: some
executives were out of office for long periods of time, addresses obtained from McGregor BFA did not
include all the e-mail addresses of the companies, some non-respondents had no Web sites, some
listed JSE companies obtained from McGregor BFA were de-listed or suspended by the time the
questionnaires were e-mailed, some companies failed to participate in the survey or were unable to
complete the survey due to time constrictions, some companies were not in a position to disclose the
name or e-mail addresses of top management, some company policies forbad any participation in
completing questionnaires and some addressed executives had already left the company at the time
of the survey. Extending the questionnaire to a larger group of interviewees would be desirable in
order to enhance the outcome of the findings.
Future research could be to examine businesses in similar industries that might highlight specific
concerns of different companies in the same industry. Further research could also assist businesses
that do not have an EIS, establish how businesses access and use their financial and non-financial
information to assess their companies’ performances. This would be of great values as financial and
non-financial information is critical for companies to strengthen their competitiveness in a very
competitive digital environment.
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