A new breed of computer professional the information specialist

Organizational concern with providing information for effective decision making has brought about new systems concepts, i.e., decision support systems, and information centers. This paper describes a new breed of computer professional, the information specialists (ISP). The role of the ISP is developing in response to the requirements of the new concepts, in particular those of the decision support system. The roles performed by an ISP along with the skills and knowledge required are also discussed.