Information gathering can be serendipitous or planned. While not all environmental information needs can be identified in advance, it is possible to approach research and information systems planning with an eye to setting up ways of collecting information in an on-going fashion. Customer needs and wants If environmental forces cause the company to seek information in a larger context, customer needs and wants focus the attention on the target market. Without information, identifying need and wants is guesswork. For example, to understand the value of a competitor's automobile, it makes sense to drive it for awhile as a customer would and evaluate it in that fashion.
Problem solving depends upon accurate and timely information most of all.
Let's take a million-dollar example from a nearby bank. It sends monthly mortgage statements to over 240,000 customers. However, it's ineffective more than 10,000 times per month. Whether it knows it or not, the bank has plenty of answers to that question. The bank has 40 customer service reps to deal with the third category, over which the bank has no control.