ABSTRACT
A couple of decades ago, especially in the early days of data warehousing and as intimations of 'information as an asset' were starting to take hold, information professionals started putting forward the notion of conceiving and architecting the production, flow, enhancement, and availability of information as a type of supply chain, an 'information supply chain' (ISC). A supply chain is a system of activities and resources involved in moving a product or service from the point where it is manufactured to where it is consumed. A few years ago the Supply-Chain Council announced an update to the SCOR model, adding Enable as a sixth process. The SCOR model also provides a few levels of detail for scoping, configuring, and process/performance attributes. Speaking of loops, particularly feedback loops, another way to characterize information's relative place in the world is as an ecosystem. Classic biological ecosystems involve certain actors or entities.
