This chapter will discuss:

Introduction

The job titles of information professionals are numerous and varied: from strategist, information/knowledge manager, intranet/internet manager, professional support lawyer, to CRM administrator, researcher, analyst, marketing and communication manager, product manager, training manager and many more. In this chapter, information professionals are defined as those key employees of whatever label who consciously consider how best to help the company leverage information and/or create information systems, service and marketplace to create value for their employees, clients or business stakeholders. There are many knowledge workers who are not traditionally considered information professionals but use information as part of their day-to-day work.

As the advancement of technology empowers all knowledge workers with affordable digital tools at their fingertips, information professionals are increasingly providing coaching and training services on the effective use of information systems (where the information is stored) or communication tools (where ideas and information are exchanged). They offer advice on how to create, share, search, organize, visualize, analyse and present information. Simply speaking, they show themselves to be those pivotal individuals who introduce ‘Information Literacy’ to the workplace context.

So how important is IL in the workplace context? This chapter examines knowledge workers in different roles, functions and levels, who work under different operating models and company cultures, to understand if and when IL adds value to the business, and if it does, how might information professionals play a business-driven, strategic yet pragmatic role to enhance knowledge workers’ IL capabilities.