Understanding how information is used within the research enterprise and how it flows among the participants would allow us to view information as an enterprisewide resource. Mapping the similarities and differences among the participants and exploring how particular types of information are used or not used across the enterprise could provide new insights into organizational design and system design.

An enterprisewide view of how information is created, changed, received, managed, accessed, maintained, and destroyed over time would also provide insights into the development and implementation of enterprisewide strategies for capturing, building, and managing knowledge. Understanding how information is exchanged, flows through, and is acted on by the various entities within the enterprise may suggest new strategies to facilitate this process and to examine the potential benefits of an information-centric view.