Ackoff, Russell -- “Management Misinformation Systems,” Management Sciences (Dec 1967)

Dave — Thu, 05 Feb 2015 17:43:02 +0000

My experience indicates that most managers receive much more data (if not information) than they can possibly absorb even if they spend all of their time trying to do so. Hence they already suffer from an information overload. They must spend a great deal of time separating the relevant documents. For example, I have found that I receive an average of 43 hours of unsolicited reading material each week. The solicited material is usually half again this amount. Most MIS designers “determine” what information is needed by asking managers what information they would like to have. This is based on the assumption that managers know what information they need and want.

Russell L. Ackoff (1919–2009) American organizational theorist, consultant, management scientist
“Management Misinformation Systems,” Management Sciences (Dec 1967)

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Ackoff, Russell -- “Management Misinformation Systems,” Management Sciences (Dec 1967)