Information overload

Abstract

Across every industry, managers and workers are finding themselves continually wading through what is rapidly becoming a mountain of information. The Internet, regulation and computerisation have all played a part. The laboratory has felt the growth in data particularly acutely. As the pharmaceutical and biotechnology industires strive to bring a greater number of drugs to market more quickly, labs are under pressure to screen a much wider range of prospective drug candidates. Whilst information systems [IS] make it easier to manage the volume of data spawned as a result of regulatory and competitive pressures, it also makes copious amounts of data available in volumes that many labs find difficult to manage.