Why choose to major in Information Management for Business Economists?
Besides the classic production factors addressed in the science of business administration, “information” now also plays a key role. Constant innovations in the field of data processing are profoundly changing almost every sphere of our lives. In industry, above all it’s the emergence new kinds of markets (e.g. electronic trade, virtual trade fairs, virtual auctions), new forms of communication (e.g. the internet, email, video conferences), new products (e.g. devices with integrated intelligence), and new working arrangements (e.g. remote workplaces, replacing hierarchical structures with networks). At the same time, work processes are being supported and restructured by complex, integrated software solutions, which nowadays stretch beyond individual companies to also integrate other businesses involved in the value creation chain.
Cutting-edge management therefore also calls for significant engagement with all of these aspects of processing and using information, no matter which area of business you happen to specialise in.
Isn’t information technology a science in its own right?
The growing importance of computers also generated a new field of studies in recent decades: computer science. To start with, it focused heavily on the hardware, but software became increasingly important going forward. Besides knowledge of computer science, expertise in the areas where these systems are used has played a growing role, with computer science graduates often choosing to specialise in technical or industrial aspects.
Nonetheless, a computer scientist with supplementary knowledge of business administration has a different focus from a business scientist with supplementary knowledge of IT. In short, computer scientists focus on developing hardware and software, whereas business economists are interested in how they can deploy IT systems and put them to best use.
What roles do business administration graduates work in who also know about information management?
Nowadays, IT knowledge is a basic requirement wherever you look. PCs are used at every desk and workstation to write reports and compile figures and graphics. Correspondence is widely conducted electronically.
What’s more, business processes are supported by integrated systems. Knowing how these systems are structured and operated influences the type, speed and quality of our work – and considerable know-how is needed to install and operate these programmes.
Managers require far more sophisticated and profound insights. When it comes to designing, evaluating and operating these systems, information technology is the “supplier”, but the skilled business manager maintains overarching responsibility. This calls for an understanding of the structure and design of the systems in use, knowledge of the “language” used by computer experts and the ability to communicate with them.
This presents outstanding professional prospects in both technical and managerial terms. Information technology is the economic sector currently generating the greatest innovation and employment opportunities (e.g. as the interlocutor at the interface between specialist departments and data processing), while openings in conventional fields are on the wane. So people with additional knowledge of IT fill a gaping demand.
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