Master Data Management
"A Master Data Management program is not a project but a commitment by the business to leverage information for reuse in order to improve business process outcomes". (Gartner, 2012)
Master data management – the key competency
Global sales of master data management software in 2012 are estimated to have been approximately two billion US dollars. Most of the volume of master data management software is used for customer and material master data. According to Gartner, this volume will double by 2016. At this point (if not before), anyone who has not yet jumped on the master data management bandwagon will have come to understand that in an environment of big data, social media data, and cloud data, and in light of extremely heterogeneous IT landscapes, a holistic and long-term initiative for master data management is essential for a company's success.
Master data management – interdisciplinary, consistent, effective
Globally active companies need a centralized master data management system in order to operate effectively across a range of locations and divisions. Firstly, they can save the time and expense of duplicated efforts resulting from maintaining and managing data silos on this note. Secondly, valid data can form an accurate and reliable basis for making decisions, while reducing uncertainty in business processes resulting from inconsistent data. Finally, this can simplify both the daily work routines of individual employees as well as overarching processes and analyses.
The goal is to harmonize IT and business in order to provide a basis for future projects, increase data quality, and thereby sustainably strengthen the basis for decision-making and achieve indirect cost reductions.
Master data management – integrative solutions to increase your master data quality
Providers specifically try to emphasize products in the data quality management and data governance fields for the automation of individual process stages or entire business processes. Companies would be well advised to combine the maintenance of their master data with an effective process management system. SAP currently offers two master data management solutions for this purpose.
The first is the solution with SAP NetWeaver Master Data Management (MDM) 7.1 and SAP Business Process Management (BPM), so that customers can develop the potential of cross-divisional MDM processes. With the BRM (Business Rules Management) component, SAP offers the option to schematically maintain – very easily and efficiently – validations and business rules in the master data environment, by the competent departments.
In addition, SAP recommends the Master Data Governance solution, which is integrated with high compatibility in the SAP Business Suite. This solution also utilizes process management components like rule-based workflow control by means of BRF+.
The combination of SAP components allows users to implement a master data management system that is not limited to cleaning and integrating information that is retained in disparate applications. Rather, companies can thereby implement life-long processes for data quality throughout the value chain that will have an impact on all new creations and changes.
Start on your MDM initiative with Camelot ITLab.