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1 of 18Information DisseminationProducts and performance
IMARK Investing in Information for Development
Information Dissemination
Products and Performance
© FAO 2005
2 of 18Information DisseminationProducts and performance
At the end of this lesson you will:
be aware of the importance of gaining a comprehensive insight into your current products and services;
identify some criteria to analyze the capacity of your organization to disseminate information effectively and efficiently.
Learning ObjectivesLearning Objectives
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IntroductionIntroduction
while designing an information dissemination plan, it is important to examine:
the products and services in your organization's current portfolio; and
the resources and management procedures that your organization has in place to create and disseminate them.
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Key questionsKey questions
The key questions concerning these issues are:
Which products and services should you continue to offer? Which are candidates for elimination? Are there new ones that you might add?
Does your organization have the personnel, infrastructure, and budget to generate and disseminate new types of information products and services?
Does it have the management flexibility to adapt its structures and procedures to a new dissemination environment?
Management
Resources
Products/services
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Products and servicesProducts and services
Let’s start with the consideration of current products and services. Your analysis should centre on four themes:
CONTENT MEDIA QUALITY PARTNERS
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Products and services: contentProducts and services: content
What type of content does your organization include in its products and services?
The content should be analyzed carefully. This will help you to ensure that the content matches the needs of your audience.
Content could refer to one or more of these categories:
Agricultural activities Resources Technologies
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Products and services: media and channelsProducts and services: media and channels
How are your information products and services disseminated to audiences?
The medium and the packaging should be analysed, and then related to:
(a) the nature of the audience(s); and (b) the nature of the content.
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Products and services: media and channelsProducts and services: media and channels
Now let’s consider the channels used. What are the products and services that need improvement in that respect, or the new ones that need to be introduced? These questions will help you...
Now let’s consider the channels used. What are the products and services that need improvement in that respect, or the new ones that need to be introduced? These questions will help you...
1. How often do you disseminate the information products or services?1. How often do you disseminate the information products or services?
4. What dissemination channels are used?4. What dissemination channels are used?
5. In what condition do the products/services reach the audience?5. In what condition do the products/services reach the audience?
2. Are the products and services reactive or proactive?2. Are the products and services reactive or proactive?
3. How long do the information products take to reach the audience?3. How long do the information products take to reach the audience?
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Products and services: partnersProducts and services: partners
Now partners. Now partners.
Which parts of the chain does your organization perform weakly in?
Which organizations could be brought in as collaborators to handle the weakest aspects?
Which parts of the creation, packaging, and dissemination chain can your organization do best?
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Products and services: qualityProducts and services: quality
High quality is important for all three of the issues that we are considering:
Content.
Low quality output will not meet audience(s) needs.
Media.
Some types of media will be unusable if commonly-accepted data standards have not been adhered to.
Partners.
Current collaborators will turn to alternative suppliers and distributors if outputs are of questionable quality.
High quality is important for all three of the issues that we are considering:
Content.
Low quality output will not meet audience(s) needs.
Media.
Some types of media will be unusable if commonly-accepted data standards have not been adhered to.
Partners.
Current collaborators will turn to alternative suppliers and distributors if outputs are of questionable quality.
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Organizational capacity and performanceOrganizational capacity and performance
Let’s now examine the issues regarding organizational capacity and performance. These are the areas to consider:
Let’s now examine the issues regarding organizational capacity and performance. These are the areas to consider:
STAFF
TECHNOLOGY
MANAGEMENT
COSTS
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Organizational capacity and performance: staffOrganizational capacity and performance: staff
Let’s start with Staff. Let’s start with Staff.
Do your people have the skills to create and disseminate new digital materials? Will training of existing staff be sufficient?
Will you need to think about recruitment of some new staff?
Will you bring in some external consultants?
What investments will you need to make?
Do your people have the skills to create and disseminate new digital materials? Will training of existing staff be sufficient?
Will you need to think about recruitment of some new staff?
Will you bring in some external consultants?
What investments will you need to make?
What is the situation in your organization?
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Organizational capacity and performance: technologyOrganizational capacity and performance: technology
The next area to consider is technology. The next area to consider is technology.
How much should your organization invest in Information Technology to support information dissemination?
Two general principles regarding such investments are:
How much should your organization invest in Information Technology to support information dissemination?
Two general principles regarding such investments are:
A wide user baseA wide user base Economies of scale Economies of scale
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Organizational capacity and performance: managementOrganizational capacity and performance: management
Now management.
Some revisions to your existing organizational structure might be necessary, because of new positions, new functions, new technologies, new products and services, new media, and new audiences.
Now management.
Some revisions to your existing organizational structure might be necessary, because of new positions, new functions, new technologies, new products and services, new media, and new audiences.
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Organizational capacity and performance: costsOrganizational capacity and performance: costs
The last issue is Costs.The last issue is Costs.
Adequate budgetary planning for the production and dissemination of information is important. Therefore, it is paramount to know in advance both the costs of each of your activities, and the budget available.
How much money does your organization currently spend on information dissemination?
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Organizational capacity and performance: costsOrganizational capacity and performance: costs
For an organization that provides its products and services for free, and does not have revenues, it might be difficult to systematically assess its costs and budgets.
However, some common costs regarding human resources, equipment, material and activities can be used as a basis for assessment.
For an organization that provides its products and services for free, and does not have revenues, it might be difficult to systematically assess its costs and budgets.
However, some common costs regarding human resources, equipment, material and activities can be used as a basis for assessment.
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Organizational capacity and performance: revenuesOrganizational capacity and performance: revenues
One way to recover some of these costs is to charge for selected products and services, even though it is hard to charge for products and services destined for audiences less able to pay (e.g. farmers).
It may be useful to include a business plan for each product or service in the dissemination plan.
One way to recover some of these costs is to charge for selected products and services, even though it is hard to charge for products and services destined for audiences less able to pay (e.g. farmers).
It may be useful to include a business plan for each product or service in the dissemination plan.
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SummarySummary
To analyze the internal aspects of your dissemination plan:
o examine products and services that you have in your current portfolio, and the resources and management procedures that you have in place to create and disseminate them.
o analyse issues such as Content, Media and Partners, keeping in mind that your audience(s) needs determine both the content and the media used (and not vice-versa).
o assess the quality of the products and services of your organization, and see how are they disseminated or shared with the users.
o analyse your organization’s organizational capacity and performance.
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Services/ products Costs
Annual Report Website Market Information Bulletin
Monthly Farmers’ Magazine
Human resourcesHuman resources 1. Staff time
2. Training EquipmentEquipment 3. Software 4. Hardware 5. Maintenance 6. Equipment(including depreciation)
MaterialMaterial 7. Production materials 8. Stationary ActivitiesActivities 9. Communication
10. Distribution (mailing, providers…)
11. Travel 12. Promotion & Advertising
13. Consultancy OthersOthers
