Firms with workers that read more perform better, researchers say
Study reveals link between information consumption and organisational success
According to an Austrian study, the larger a company, the greater the volume of information it consumes. (Envato Elements pic)
Information consumption and organisational success
A study published in the Royal Society Open Science journal argues that an organisation’s success is linked to the amount of information its employees read on a daily basis.
Research methodology
A research team from Vienna’s Complexity Science Hub came to this conclusion after analysing the online reading habits of employees at millions of companies worldwide over a two-week period. These workers were accustomed to reading business dailies such as the Wall Street Journal, Bloomberg and Forbes, as well as more specialised media outlets such as Station ITCentral and Questex.
Key findings
“By getting a closer look on how firms consume information, we discovered new and previously unseen patterns of the knowledge economy,” study co-author Eddie Lee explained.
* The larger the company, the greater the volume of information it consumes.
* Large groups seem to benefit from an economy of scale in the way they stay informed: they manage to read as much, or even more, than smaller structures, while mobilising relatively fewer resources.
* Beyond a certain threshold, large companies read a greater number of unique pieces of news, which leads to a greater amount of redundancy.
* Large companies tend to diversify their news interests, rather than limiting themselves to those that concern their business sector.
* A company’s media consumption habits could be a predictor of its innovation potential.
Conclusion
In other words, the more information a company consumes, the more likely it is to explore new business horizons, which can have an impact on its financial performance. “Firms that consume more information than is typical for their size tend to perform better financially,” Lee concluded.
FAQs
Q: What was the methodology used in the study?
A: The research team from Vienna’s Complexity Science Hub analysed the online reading habits of employees at millions of companies worldwide over a two-week period.
Q: What was the main finding of the study?
A: The study found that the larger the company, the greater the volume of information it consumes.
Q: What are the implications of the study’s findings?
A: The study suggests that companies that consume more information than is typical for their size tend to perform better financially.
Q: What does the study mean by “economy of scale” in information consumption?
A: The study means that large companies are able to read more information while mobilising relatively fewer resources, which allows them to benefit from an economy of scale in the way they stay informed.