Simply put, data and knowledge are the fundamental inputs to derive information.  In today’s world the data is stored in a digital form, more often or not.

Storing and then extracting , transforming and loading (ETL) the digital data for intent of review and reporting are the basic concepts of information management .

Using Knowledge to Create Information

Knowledge is the most critical part of the information creation process.  The application of knowledge applies across all steps.

While data is a key input to information creation, knowledge is required to understand what data is needed, where it is so we can extract it, rules to transform it to formats and relationships that are meaningful and finally we need to load it into our reporting tools for analysis.

There are no right answers to the interpretation of the data.  As we apply our knowleddge to the groups of data we loaded, the most critical step is being able to explain our conclusions.

That is explain the information we have derived in a way the audience can understand.  Using your knowledge to derive data but being unable to share the information with clarity is of little value.

You personally may fully understand the information at hand, however, if the intent is to drive action based on this information illustrating and getting support for the actions requires getting others to apply their knowledge and derive the same information.

Sometimes this persuasion can require time and perhaps even additional data and the discovery process can become somewhat iterative.

In summary, careful application of your knowledge is often the key to effective use, analysis, and presentation of information.