Data and Databases
Data is a valuable resource. Therefore, data management has become an important administrative function. An effective data management plan should govern how to acquire, store, and secure organizational data. Remember, reliable data management plans depend on your ability to identify the value added to operational and strategic planning.
Read this chapter. Focus on the differences between data, information, and knowledge; why database technology for data resource management is important; and the role of database management systems. Answer the study questions at the end of the chapter. Why is data management valuable to the success of an organization? What are some common weaknesses in data resource management? How can they be mitigated?
Finding Value in Data: Business Intelligence
Benefits of Data Warehouses
Organizations find data warehouses quite beneficial for a number of reasons:
- The process of developing a data warehouse forces an organization to better understand the data that it is currently collecting and, equally important, what data is not being collected.
- A data warehouse provides a centralized view of all data being collected across the enterprise and provides a means for determining data that is inconsistent.
- Once all data is identified as consistent, an organization can generate "one version of the truth". This is important when the company wants to report consistent statistics about itself, such as revenue or number of employees.
- By having a data warehouse, snapshots of data can be taken over time. This creates a historical record of data, which allows for an analysis of trends.
- A data warehouse provides tools to combine data, which can provide new information and analysis.