Chapter 1, Problem 1OC

Explanation of Solution

Data:

• It is the representation of objects and events which are stored and recorded in the computer.
• It exists in variety of forms such as number, value, variable, and so on.
• For example, database in doctor’s office contains data such as patient name, address, disease, and contact number.
• Data about the facts is called as structured data.
• In addition to structured data, database includes documents, e-mails, maps, images, sound and video segment called as unstructured data.

Example:

At Costco, the staff employees look for the data like how much is the item, how many items do they have in stock, when are their days off and many such things.

Information:

• These are the processed data that increase the information of the individual using it.
• Data are useless in their present form so it is preprocessed and represent it as the information to the user.
• It is converted into the meaningful form during the processing phase of the information processing cycle.

Example:

Executives at Costco need information like, are prices too high or too low, what is employee turnover per store and many such things.

Business intelligence:

Information collected from various sources to make a strategic decision in a company is called as business intelligence.

• The source of information for BI is gathered from customers, suppliers, partners, competitors, and industries.

Example:

The executives need to analyze whether the store is having enough turnover or it needs to get closed and sometimes to decide the place where a new store need to be established. All such information that helps to take a strategic decision is called business intelligence.

Knowledge:

The skills, expertise and experience of a person coupled with information and intelligence, which develops the person’s cerebral resources, is called as knowledge.

When data is moved towards knowledge, more and more variables can be included for analysis, resulting in more precise problem solving and decision making.

Example:

It is necessary for any organization to have knowledge about the current market status an even the internal matters of the organization which is also implied on Costco. It maintains its good level in the market by having updated information about the world market scenario and internal matters of Costco.