A business, huh? But what is our business? In May, nearly 1,500 people attended the convocation ceremonies at my school, and I had the chance to shed some light on what I consider the answer to that question. While the students were receiving their degrees in information management and technology, telecommunications and network management, library science, and information transfer, I tried to explain that though technology and management are very powerful words in our profession, it's the I-word -- information -- that is at the core of everything we do.

Our business is to extend human capabilities through information. The past two centuries focused on extending our physical capabilities (think steamboats and the industrial revolution); the next two will push the limits of our mental capabilities (think information access and the opportunity to use that information for education and a better understanding of our world). What we provide is the information necessary for business minds to make business decisions. Our school teaches lots of management and scads of technology, but these things are simply the means to an end. The end is all about providing people with meaningful information.

Gathering data and transforming it into usable information is tricky. It must be reliable, relevant, credible, timely and accessible to those who need it. Those who access our information need to "get it" to make educated decisions, such as what management software to buy or even what to eat for lunch. Columns of numbers without pie charts or bar graphs are not accessible. People need information when they need it and in a way they can understand it. No digital tachometer display on my new Mustang, thanks -- sometimes it's better to think analog! Information itself is a fundamental resource that empowers decision-making and a valuable commodity whose value changes radically over time (hint: tomorrow's Nasdaq figures are worth more than yesterday's). And while information can be used in a benevolent manner to enrich people's lives and help people transform emerging societies, there is clearly a downside. The fastest growing area in military science is information warfare.

So let's consider what should be learned in Information Management 101 and begin with the end in mind. Everything we design, build, deploy or enable is to provide information. I've spent a lifetime in the IT field, but I'm just like many of the CEOs you know with thinning hair and a graying beard. All the cool toys, enhancements or increased functionality that appeal to my new graduates or even my own IT staff look like nothing more than a PITA (pain in the you-know-what) to me. I'll take the information, please.