Sources That Managers Prefer for Business Information Needs

Abstract

This study aims to reveal how business managers associate their information needs and the information sources to meet these needs. In order to answer this question, face-to-face interviews were carried out with a total of 327 business managers working in various sectors. Information sources are encoded by using content analysis with personal and non-personal, internal and external dimensions. Results obtained have shown that managers mainly prefer non-personal information sources. Accordingly, business managers who face problems of sustainability and competitiveness seek personal and internal information while those who face problems of growth and innovation seek non-personal and external information. As for the problem profitability, managers refer to non-personal and internal information. The findings aim to contribute to strategic management and environmental scanning literature as well as to implementers. The research results might be guiding for identifying the information needs of managers in a more focused way and meeting this need more efficiently.