The information dream team - what's it made of?
Jinfo Blog

By Victoria Alford

Abstract

How do you go about creating the perfect information team to suit your specific organisational goals and requirements? Victoria Alford rounds up some recent articles which can help.

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Human insight and technological power combined surely makes for the optimum output from an information team.

But what else is important when it comes to creating a successful information team, when expectations from stakeholders - whose first point of call is often the information team - are so high?

Jinfo's Research Focus, "The information team with the right stuff", is investigating in detail:

• The characteristics and abilities needed for a successful team
• How to balance and manage these skills across your team
• Ideas, frameworks and tools to evaluate your needs and build your dream team
• How to balance human insight and technological power for optimal success
• The best way to achieve long-term sustainability and relevance
• Investing in leadership.

Game-changer

One of the fascinating insights to come out of the Research Focus looks at the origins and benefits of gamification - a real contender for the most relevant way of improving engagement and performance. Find out more in the Jinfo article, "Using gamification design to improve engagement".

Gaming isn't just a fun pastime anymore, it features massively in our workplaces these days. Thought to increase motivation and help productivity, with the idea that healthy competition breeds success, gaming is big news at work as well as at home.

Richard Lowe looks at the history of gaming and the how gamification frameworks can be applied to information centres, and suggests some areas in which you may wish to start.

And while we look at gamification featuring highly, there is a need amongst information teams for individuals to stay abreast of the latest technology advancements - and how to work with technology specialists and suppliers in order to stay relevant and valuable to the team and wider organisation.

As Helen Josephine explains in the article "Preparing information professionals for the future workplace", "Users have high expectations about how information is provided and want a range of self-service options as well as customised delivery."

A changing industry

With the digital age also comes a need for information professionals to ensure that end users are equipped with the knowledge needed to use the tools and perform tasks that were once carried out centrally.

So while it may not seem like a top skill for an information professional, change management is actually extremely relevant - as knowledge management consultant and researcher Steve Bynghall explains in "Why information teams need change management skills". 

As part of this Research Focus, Jinfo is producing a number of articles looking at the various components that make for information team success.

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