Digital transformation has changed how organisations create, store, and share information. It has also created more places for that information to live.
Important business information can sit across cloud applications, business systems, collaboration tools, shared drives, and legacy environments. Different teams may manage information in different ways, ownership may be unclear, and systems do not always exchange information effectively.
New research from Konica Minolta Australia, conducted in partnership with global analyst firm Omdia, shows the practical impact this can have. Most employees spend between one and five hours each week searching for information. Across a full year, Omdia estimates this equates to approximately two to four working weeks per employee.
The research also found that 40 per cent of Australian organisations identify information spread across platforms and departments as their biggest information management challenge. In New Zealand, 38 per cent point to a lack of system integration.
These findings put another perspective on the time employees spend searching for information. Finding information is partly about the tools employees use. It also depends on how information is managed across the organisation.
When information becomes harder to manage
Digital transformation has brought new applications, digital workflows, and ways of working into the workplace. As technology environments expand, information can become distributed across more systems and processes.
A document may exist in several locations. Employees may not know which version is current. Responsibility for information may sit across different teams. Systems designed for different purposes may have limited integration.
These issues can make everyday tasks more complicated, while creating broader questions about how information is governed throughout its lifecycle.
Organisations need visibility over what information they hold, where it resides, who owns it, who should have access, and how long it should be retained. They also need confidence that employees and systems can access appropriate and authoritative information when they need it.
The research points to a gap between organisations’ confidence in their existing information governance and the practical challenges they continue to report. It is worth considering how governance works in practice across the systems, processes, and information employees use every day.
An information readiness review
For organisations reviewing their information environment, a few questions can help bring potential gaps into focus:
- Where does critical business information reside?
Consider whether important information is spread across multiple systems, applications, or repositories. - Who owns that information and who is accountable for it?
Check whether responsibility is clear throughout the information lifecycle. - Can employees reliably find the right information when they need it?
Consider whether they can identify the current, authoritative version. - How effectively do existing systems exchange information?
Look at where disconnected systems, duplicated information, or manual processes are adding complexity. - Are governance requirements applied consistently?
Consider access, privacy, security, and retention requirements across different systems and teams. - Is the information environment ready to support what comes next?
Consider whether current information management and governance practices can support future automation or AI use cases.
The answers may not always be straightforward. However, they can provide a clearer picture of where information management needs greater attention as digital transformation continues.
AI adds another layer to information readiness
AI is becoming part of the way organisations search, analyse, and work with information. Its adoption also brings existing information management and governance issues into sharper focus.
The research identifies a gap between the pace of AI adoption and the governance practices developing around it. AI depends on the information available to it, making questions around ownership, access, quality, and governance increasingly relevant as organisations consider new use cases.
There is a workforce dimension too. The research identified unease about the impact of AI on employees and the potential for jobs to become obsolete. Those concerns deserve to be acknowledged as organisations consider how technology may change roles, processes, and the skills people need.
Information readiness therefore has implications beyond any individual technology. The way information is managed today can influence how confidently organisations approach the next stage of digital transformation.
Building stronger information foundations
For Konica Minolta Australia, Intelligent Information Management starts with understanding how information moves through an organisation: where it is held, how people access it, where processes create friction, and how information is governed.
Reviewing those foundations can help organisations identify information silos, disconnected processes, and governance considerations as their technology environments continue to evolve.
It also provides a practical starting point for organisations considering AI.
Before asking what AI can do for your organisation, ask whether your information is ready for AI.
