The DIKW pyramid is a management concept that can prove useful in companies, and particularly for IT teams.
What is DIKW?
1. Datas: the data
Datas are unorganised data which, when grouped together without any particular context, do not necessarily have any link between them if they are not analysed. This can take the form of a sequence of numbers or characters, for example.
2. Information
Information is the second level of the pyramid. This is data that has been cleaned of errors and non-essential data. This makes the data easier to read, measure and analyse as part of a particular information management project. At this stage, it is possible to have a more precise description of this data and to answer the questions: who, what, when, where?
3. Knowledge
The “knowledge” stage tries to find the answer to the “how” question. The information derived from the previous stage is used to answer this question.
While the information will perform a description of the facts gathered, it is possible to think of data knowledge as the application of that information to achieve its purpose. At this stage, companies can see it as an advantage over competitors who would not use knowledge management.
4. Wisdom
Wisdom, otherwise known as the peak of the pyramid, is intended to guide future actions based on the initial data. Based on the observations made using this pyramid and mathematical calculations, information can be predicted. Unlike data, information and knowledge, which belong to the past, wisdom belongs to the future, because it guides us towards the right course of action.
The aim of the DIKW pyramid
Knowing how to use and benefit from your data is a major competitive advantage. It is only at the wisdom stage that an organisation can really apply what it knows about customers to develop new services and be innovative.
It is therefore essential to have a good strategy for transforming data into actionable ‘wisdom’. The DIKW pyramid can serve as the basis for this strategy.
To find out how to make the most of your data, follow the training courses by Datascientest.
