Management

In this part, we conclude the exploration of how digitization and information impact on AECO by focusing on the relation between information and management: how IM contributes to performance by improving not only clarity and transparency but also consistency, efficiency and effectiveness. Previous parts have explained:

• How digitization has changed expectations and attitudes concerning information.
• The structure of digital symbolic representations and their differences from analogue representations.
• What data and information are, and the principles of digital information management.

The viewpoint of this part is primarily managerial. While it is tempting to focus on specific AECO aspects and disciplines, and consider information in a narrower frame, for example study the relations between design, creativity and representation, there are several important reasons for adopting a managerial viewpoint. First and foremost, management is normally about the whole of a process or project. From this holistic perspective, information is less what each actor produces or consumes and more what enables actors and stakeholders to interact with each other concerning common goals and constraints; it is what returns an overview of the whole and an understanding of parts one is only indirectly linked to. In short, the true value of information in a process becomes apparent when considered in the wider frame of someone with a general mandate and overall interests.

Armed with an understanding of symbolic representations, graphs and semantic data types from the previous parts, we consider what we do with information when and where it matters in a process. Unfortunately, as the next chapter explains, the answer is: not much. Our cognition appears to be built in a way that allows us to operate effectively and efficiently in many common situations but also makes us biased and failure-prone in other, more demanding situations. Cognitive limitations are hard to overcome but we should at least provide the means for recognizing them and correcting their mistakes. The book contributes towards this objective by stressing the duality of process and information management, and making it operational, transparent and supportive of reflective and analytical thinking.