Information Chain Analysis

How and When to Use This Tool:

An ICA can be started during Phase 1 after stakeholder mapping and needs assessment are completed. During this phase, the ICA helps to sharpen understanding of stakeholder needs and constraints to help teams better understand practical limitations and opportunities for impact. However, consulting an ICA is useful throughout the lifecycle of a project, as outlined in the following table.

Understanding Decision Pathways

An ICA focuses on decision-specific pathways rather than mapping entire information systems at once. Each ICA traces how information supports one decision, even if multiple sources or channels converge at that point. Over time, multiple ICAs can be layered to reveal the broader information system and recurring bottlenecks. If an analysis spans multiple decisions, it should be split to preserve clarity and actionability.

For each decision pathway, an ICA traces only the information that is necessary for one specific decision, following it step by step from source to action. At each step, the analysis asks:

• Where does the information needed for this decision originate?
  (e.g., which EO datasets, models, reports, or observations are relied upon)
• Who interprets or translates it—and how?
  (e.g., analysis, aggregation, contextualization, or judgment applied before it becomes decision-relevant)
• How is it delivered to the decision-maker, and when?
  (e.g., format, channel, frequency, and timing relative to the decision window)
• Who is expected to act on it, and under what constraints?
  (e.g., authority, incentives, capacity, institutional rules)

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In an ICA, a decision pathway defines what is being analyzed: the sequence of information flows required to support one specific decision. Chain links define where analysis occurs within that pathway.

Each chain link represents a moment of transition along a decision pathway—a point at which information changes form, moves between actors, or crosses an institutional or technical boundary. An information chain often follows a sequence such as: EO product generation → analyst interpretation → advisory or alert formulation → channel transmission → decision-maker uptake.

Mapping a pathway as a series of chain links allows ICA to pinpoint exactly where information may be delayed, distorted, or lost as it moves toward a decision. By breaking the pathway into discrete links, the analysis clarifies who is responsible at each step and under what conditions information is handed off or transformed. This, in turn, makes it possible to distinguish whether failures arise from solution design, institutional capacity, incentives, timing constraints, or barriers to access, enabling targeted, corrective or preventative action.

Importantly, ICA does not assume that all links function equally well. A decision pathway may be technically sound overall but still fail because of one or two critical weak links. By making chain links explicit, ICA enables targeted design and delivery actions focused on the points where intervention will have the greatest impact.

Each box is a chain link in the decision-making process—a specific hand-off or transformation of the data that leads to the decision.
Fig. 1 Illustration of chain links constituting a decision pathway

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Shared actors, channels, bottlenecks identified across ICAs over time
If an analysis spans multiple decisions, it should be split into multiple ICAs

Fig. 2 Visualization of how decisions based on decision pathways lead to a comprehensive information system

Information Channels and Target Audiences

Because ICA traces how information moves from data to decisions, it is essential to consider both who participates in information flows and how information is communicated along the decision pathway.

EO-derived information often changes form multiple times—from data to analysis, from analysis to alerts, and from alerts to action. Many failures occur not because EO data are inaccurate, but because information is misinterpreted, delayed, or transmitted through channels that users cannot access or do not trust.

Actors who produce, translate, transmit, or act on information include:

• Technical and communications staff (science, data, IT, communications)
• National, regional, and local government departments
• Disaster management agencies and Emergency Operations Centers (EOCs)
• NGOs, CSOs, and implementing partners
• Extension services and field officers
• Community leaders and representatives
• End users and affected community members
• Donors and coordinating bodies (where relevant)

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Note that different actors may appear multiple times in the chain with different roles.

Common Channels for Sharing EO-Enabled Information

ICA in Practice: Conducting an Information Chain Analysis

To conduct an ICA, follow the steps outlined in the instructions on this Excel ICA Worksheet

If you prefer to follow the written steps only, you can reference the step-by-step document.