Briefly explain any four (04) characteristics of information required for Tactical planning.

Characteristics of Information required for Tactical Planning Predictive Nature: The information from a tactical system is sometimes produced periodically. For example, a branch credit manager of an organization may receive a weekly report showing the accounts (total dollars amount) that are more than 60 days overdue, 90 days overdue, and in hands of a collection agency. Based on this information, credit manager can decide whether the overdue account totals are within the normal range for the branch or whether it warrants special managerial action or decisions. Thus, this information system provides the means by which the credit manager can quickly identify problems and bring them under control. Also tactical information systems can produce information when it is needed on adhoc basis. Unexpected Findings: The information provided by a tactical information system may not be the information that was expected to be produced. For example, querying an accounting system database, a manager can find the characteristics of major customer related to credit difficulty. Investigation may reveal that overdue problem is with those customers whose employer had a cut in its workforce. The unemployment of these customers is creating an overdue problem. As a credit agency, it has to analyze the purchasing of these customers afresh. Comparative Nature: The information produced is usually comparative in nature rather than merely descriptive. They provide managers with information that alerts them to major variation from the accepted standards. These types of information systems are similar to the control process systems that monitor output of the system continuously and provide feedback when output parameters are at variance with accepted standards. Summary Form: The information produced is not detailed but is in summary form, however, in comparison to the strategic planning systems, it may be more elaborate. In large organizations, there would be an enormous quantity of data and would not, therefore, be information to the manager. The manager needs information relating to credit performance or balances of accounts that are overdue or in collection. Both External and Internal Sources: The data used, as input to the system may not always confine to sources internal to the organization. It may be from external sources also. For example: the credit manager may compare the information pertaining to problems to other branches, to other periods from the same organization, or to a goal set up by top management. The credit manager may sometimes like to compare it with the experience of the whole industry.