Heskett Column - Whither the Information Economy? Summing Up

Although we are witnessing an explosion in the amount of and access to both data and information, real knowledge appears to grow very little. Erich Almasy (HBS MBA '75) Mercer Management Consulting

Those responding to the piece titled "Whither the Information Economy?" voiced opinions that dispel any notion that the so-called phenomenon is an end in itself, or in fact anything more than a means to an end. Which end, however, is a matter of debate.

For Erich Almasy, the end is knowledge. As he puts it, "to gain more knowledge, we will have to think more." In his view, information is no substitute for thinking and knowledge. Nor, in the opinion of Suresh Annappindi, has new technology necessarily alleviated the problem of access to information.

For others, the end is better products and services. According to Bob DeNoble, "... information is a tool to help get the real work done. It enables us to produce food, clothing, and shelter, run our transportation and banking systems, and keep us educated and healthy." And Annappindi reminds us that the Internet "is the result of a product based society." All of this is notwithstanding the fact that manufacturing in our "product based society" represents less than 20% of U.S. gross domestic product these days.

While stressing the point that "information cannot ever replace food, shelter, clothing, etc.," Gary Myers raises an issue that might warrant further discussion. While he points out that information leads to improvements in the efficiency with which goods are produced, he then goes on to say, "At some point, the rate of improvement of production efficiency becomes asymptotic such that incremental improvements are nil." If this were the case, it could have real significance for economic planners. Allen Greenspan, take note. What do you think?