AHubDesignsWhitePaper
The 8 Worst Practices in Master
Data Management and How to
Avoid Them
ByDanPower,Founder&President,HubDesigns
andJulieHunt,Editor,HubDesignsMagazine
Sponsoredby
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
Today’sbusinessworldchangesatabreath-takingpace—evenagileenterprisesmustworkhardto
keepup.Andjustasrapidly,companiesareuncoveringnewcompetitiveadvantagesthroughthe
increaseduseof“bigdata”includingnon-traditionaldata,suchasmobile,socialmedia,andsensor
data,aswellasadvancedanalytics,ofteninrealtime.
Keepingpacewithon-demanddecisionmakingrequirestrustworthydatathatmustbeaccurateand
timely.Enterprisescannowusehighqualitydatamoreeffectivelytooptimizeoperationsand
businessprocessexecution,reducecosts,growrevenue,andincreasecompetitiveness.By
implementingsolutionsthattransformdataintotruecorporateassets,companiescannowraise
businessperformanceanddecisionmakingtoanewlevelofspeed,powerandincisiveness.
Thestrategicandtacticalneedsoftheenterprisehaveputincreasedfocusonthevalueandbenefits
ofmasterdatamanagement(MDM).MDMconsistsofpractices,processesandtechnologiesfor
ensuringtheaccuracy,completeness,timelinessandconsistencyofmultipledomainsofenterprise
data—acrosssystems,functionalareasandorganizations.Masterdataembodiesthemissioncritical,
highvalueinformationsharedandconsumedbyenterprise-widebusinessprocesses.
MDMisakeyfoundationfortrusteddataandmoreefficient
businessprocesses.Ittouchesalmosteveryimportantactivity
inacompany.Usingthisdatastrategicallycandifferentiate
companiesfromtheircompetitors.Overall,howwellan
enterprisemanagesmasterdataisareflectionofhowwellit
operatesandachievesitsobjectives,andhowquicklyitcan
respondtochange.
“Yougaveuswhatweaskedfor,
butit’snotwhatwewant…”
—TheBusiness
Masterdatamanagementisnotjustaboutdataandprocesses.Itdependsonanalignmentand
partnershipbetweenbusinessandIT,becausebothgroupsarecriticaltomaximizingthevalueof
MDM.Thebusinesshastoguidetheimplementationanduseofmasterdatamanagementinorderto
ensurealignmentwithoverallcorporategoalsandobjectives.IThastobuildandoperatetheMDM
architecture,anddrawsonitsexperiencetoguidetheselectionoftechnologiesandpartners.
The8WorstPracticesofMDM
1. Executivesponsormissinginaction
2. Skippingthebusinesscase
3. SettingupMDMasa“bigbang”initiative
4. Failingtoplanfororganizationalandculturalchange
5. Takingaone-dimensionalapproach
6. Underratingtheimportanceofadatagovernancegroup
7. Nometricsformeasuringsuccess
8. Relyingonthewrongtechnologies
1
ButtheroadtoasuccessfulMDM
programcanbefullofdetoursand
deadends.Frequently,MDM
initiativestakewrongturnsinto
“worstpractices”.
Oneofthebestwaysto“getit
right”whenplanningand
designingaMDManddata
governanceprogramisto
understandwherethingscango
horriblywrong.
The8WorstPracticesinMasterDataManagementandHowtoAvoidThem
#1 Executive Sponsor Missing in Action
Theworstpossiblewaytostartamasterdatamanagementinitiativeisfailingtorecruitasenior
executivefromthebusinesstoactasthechampionorsponsor.
YourMDMprogramneedsasponsorwhois
activelyinvestedandinvolvedinitsprogress.MDM
changesnotonlyhowdataismanagedbutalsothe
businessprocessesandpracticesthataffectmany
departments,groupsandpeopleacrossyour
company.Thistypeofchangewillbedisruptiveand
filledwithpoliticallandmines.Involvementfrom
thetophelpsensureyourprojectwillbeableto
preserveitsmomentum.
Youmaybetemptedtousea“bottom-up”oreven
“middle-up”approach.Itwon’twork—andifyou
gothisway,yourprojectwilllikelybederailed.
Lowerandmid-levelmanagersdon’thavetheclout
orpoliticalstandingtobringaboutlargescale
organizationalchangeoverasustainedperiodof
time.
Photo:DavidCrockett
AnothertemptationistothinkthatMDManddatagovernancearetechnologyproblems,best
handledbyIT.Thiscouldn’tbemorewrong.Thebusinessmustbethe“navigator”thatchartsthe
course.ITisthevaluedpartnerthatprovidesandsupportstheinfrastructureforasuccessfulMDM
implementation.
Thebusiness,startingwiththeexecutivesponsor,needstodirecttheactivitiesthatdeterminewhat
theMDMinitiativewillaccomplishandhowitalignswiththeoverallcorporatestrategy.
Otherwise,thebusinesswillconsidermasterdatamanagement“someoneelse’sproblem”andwill
expectITtojust“makeitwork”.ButITdoesn’talwayshavethebusinessknowledgeorperspectiveto
maketherightdecisionsaboutbusinessprocesses,organizationalculture,andthepoliciesand
businessrulesrequiredtoincreasedataqualityacrossthemasterdatadomains.
Ifyoucan’tsellyourMDMinitiativetoanexecutivesponsor,thenyou’renotreadytolaunchit—
andthere’smoreworktodo.Partofthatworkiscloselyrelatedtothenext“worstpractice”:skipping
thebusinesscase.
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The8WorstPracticesinMasterDataManagementandHowtoAvoidThem
#2 Skipping the Business Case
Thebestwaytonevergainbuy-inforanMDMinitiativeistofailtoidentifythebusinessneedand
value,andthestakeholdersandbusinessusersthatareimpacted.Nottranslatingthosecriticalpoints
intoacompellingbusinesscaseisahugeblowtoyourprogram.Youwon’tbepreparedtoanswerthe
commonquestion“tellmeagain,whyarewedoingthis?”
Yourbusinesscaseshouldtacklebigproblems(thecompany’s“800poundgorillas”)andtheir
solutionsthroughmasterdatamanagementanddatagovernanceprocesses.Bysolvingsignificant
issuesandachievingpositiveimpact,you’llopenthedoorforexpandingmasterdatamanagementin
thefuture.Itwillbeeasiertoconnectmasterdataprojectstocorporatestrategies,goalsand
objectives.Thebenefitswillbeclearandyou’llgainfansinthebusiness.
Businessusersknowhowdataisusedincompanyfunctionsandprocesses.Reachoutandspend
somequalitytimetalkingwiththem.
Ifyoudon’tknowwherethemosturgentproblems
andneedsare,orhowtoquantifythebenefitsof
MDM,followthe“FiveWhys”approach.Whenyour
userscomplainaboutadataqualityissue,ask“why”.
Listentotheanswerandask“why”again.Continue
untilyou’vedrilledallthewaydowntotheroot
causes.Then,askquestionsabouthowmuchthe
issueiscostingthebusiness.
Don’tforgettoinvolveITwhenbuildingthebusiness
casetomakesurethatthesolutionsyou’re
proposingaregroundedintechnologyreality.
Photo:Pixland
Buttakecaretonotstartwiththetechnology
solutionversusthebusinessneedorproblem.You’ll
loseyourbusinesssupportifyouonlytalkabout
masterdataintermsofsoftwareandinfrastructure
(“speedsandfeeds”).Whenyounametheinitiative,
choosesomethingthatcallsoutthebusinessnature
oftheprogram,like“CustomerCentricity”or“Single
ViewofProduct”.
Ifyoucreatearealisticbusinesscase,you’llwinexecutivesponsorshipandbusinessuserbuy-in.
Fundingwillfollow,especiallyifyourcasequantifiesthebenefitsandthecostsoffixingthepain
pointsandbusinessproblems.Butbecarefulnottotaketoobigabiteforyourbusinesscaseorgive
intothetemptationofsettingupMDMasa“bigbang”initiative.
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The8WorstPracticesinMasterDataManagementandHowtoAvoidThem
#3 Setting Up MDM as a “Big Bang” Initiative
AsuccessfulMDMinitiativeisacontinuousbalancingactbetweenthestrategicandthetactical.You
needstrategicvisionforthelong-term,butthatcantrickyouintostartingyourfirstMDMproject
withascopesolargethatitcan’tbecompletedquicklyandeffectively.Animpossible-to-achieve
scopewillmakeitdifficulttoshowtimelyvaluetoyourexecutivesponsorandyourstakeholders.
Startyourprojectwithinitialobjectivesthatarealignedwithnear-termgoals.Buttheinitiative
shouldbedesignedtoadaptandmeetfutureneedsthatyoumaynotanticipaterightnow.Ifyou
createyourmasterdataprogramsolelyasashort-termproject—onlycoveringyourstartingpoint—
itwon’thavetherightelementstosupportstrategicbusinessvalueorthefutureofyourcompany.
Tryingtoidentifyandstandardizeallofyourmasterdatadomainsandelementsinone“bigbang”
initiativejustdoesn’twork.FocusonasingledomainlikeCustomer—afterallCustomerwilllikelybe
thecoreofyourmasterdatainitiativeasyouaddotherdatadomains.Youcannoterelationshipsto
otherdomainsasyouworkoutthestandardizationanddataqualityneedsforyourfirstdomain.
Anddon’tignorethecomplexityofyourMDM
program.Yourprojectwillinvolve:dataand
businessanalysis,consultationswithbusiness
domainexperts,dataprofilingandremediation
processes,dataintegration,entityresolution,
thirdpartydataenrichment,andtheprocesses
andtechnologiesthatmakeitallhappen.Data
governancepoliciesandprocedureswillhaveto
becreatedandsetintomotion.Ifyou
underestimateprojectcomplexity,youwon’t
bringintherightresourcesattherighttime,and
mayfailtoplanforallcontingencies.
Photo:Flickr.com/ClassBlog
YourMDMplanningshouldincludemanywhat-ifscenarios,includingpossibilitiesforfuture
corporatedirectionsandscalability,potentialnewmarkets,strategicacquisitions,newcustomer
segments,andneworunexpecteddatasources.Evenasyou’reimplementingtheearlyphasesof
yourMDMprogram,changeistakingplace.Itneverstops.Soanotheraspectofyourplanshouldbea
planforrespondingtochangesthatisrigorouslyreviewedwithstakeholdersandbusinessdomain
experts.
Formasterdataprocessestosupporttheoptimalperformanceofyourcompany,approachyour
MDMinitiativewithacomprehensive,well-researchedprogramthatproducesbothreliabledataand
theflexibilityforagilechange.Think“continuous”improvement,butrealize,insomecases,thatyou
maybeintroducingthisconcepttothecompanyforthefirsttime.
AnothersuccessfactorforyourinitiativeistothoroughlyunderstandtheimpactthatyourMDM
strategyhasontheorganizationitself.Suchsuccesscanbedisruptedbyfailingtoplanfor
organizationalandculturalchange.
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The8WorstPracticesinMasterDataManagementandHowtoAvoidThem
#4 Failing to Plan for Organizational and Cultural Change
Yourprojectwillquicklybeintroubleifyou’renotpreparedtohandleculturalandorganizational
changes,andtheinevitablecorporatepoliticsthatstemfrommasterdataprojects.
Partofmasterdatamanagementinvolvesreducingbusinessanddatasiloswhileconsolidatingand
standardizingmasterdata.Addressingthedatasilosrequiresexaminingcross-functionalprocesses
andthequestionofdataownership,whichintroducesneworganizationalanddepartmental
challenges.
Stakeholders,constituentsandinfluencersareallcriticaltothesuccessofyourMDMproject.
Communicatingtoeachgroupandprovidingthenecessaryeducationwillproveinvaluableoverthe
long-term,sincetheycanmakeorbreakyourinitiative.AspartofyourMDMprogram,you’llalsobe
conductingamarketingandcommunicationsprogramthattargetsyourinternalcustomersand
partners.
Categorizestakeholdersandconstituentsinordertounderstandwhatcommunicationseachshould
receiveandthebestwaytodeliverthatinformation.Identifywhichpeopleareimpactedbyspecific
aspectsoftheMDMproject,aswellaswhomightbeaproblem,andwho’llgotobatforyou.Awellconstructedcommunicationsstrategy,withcontinuousengagement,cangreatlyimprove
transparencyandorganizationalchange.
Itmaybehumannaturetoresistchangebutdon’tmakethemistakeofdiscountingthatresistance.
Inmanycases,therearerealreasonsbehindthefearofchange.It’syourresponsibilitytodiscover,
understandandcorrecttherealproblemsrelatedtoconcernsabouttheMDMinitiative.Educationis
agoodapproach,butlisteningwelltoconstituentsandstakeholdersmaybethemostimportant
path.Youmaydiscoverrealpitfallslurkingbehindoldprocessesthatcouldseriouslyimpairyour
efforts.
Itoftenpaystobringinaneutraloutside
consultancytohelpinachievingeffective
organizationalchange.Withathirdparty’sinsight,
youmaybeabletoidentifyproblemsearlyon.
Manypeopleintheenterprisewillfeelmore
comfortablespeakingwithanoutsidepartyandwill
bemorelikelytodiscloseimportantinformation.An
outsideconsultantcanpresentcasestudiesfrom
successfulprojectsthatwillhelpconstituentssee
thevalueofmasterdataandallayparticular
concernsandfears.
Spendingtimeonthepeople,processesand
practicesoftheorganizationcangoalongwayto
helpyouavoidtakingaone-dimensionalapproach.
5
NoBusinessCase—NoExecutiveSponsor
AnITprojectteamforaglobalmanufacturer
beganbuildingaproductmasterdata
infrastructure.Buttheyweremissingone
criticalingredient:nobusinessproblemto
solve,andnowaytoconnectMDMto
businessvalue.
Atthe3-yearpoint,theteamhadmadelittle
tractiontowardscompanyadoption.Itwasn’t
untilcompanysalesgreatlyslowed,sales
teamswereduplicatingprospectoutreach,
andstandardizedproductpricingcollapsed,
thatseniormanagementgotinthegameto
supportandgrowtheMDMinitiative.
The8WorstPracticesinMasterDataManagementandHowtoAvoidThem
#5 Taking a One-Dimensional Approach
Thereareno“silverbullets”.Ifyoutakeaone-dimensionalapproachtoMDM,suchasstressing
technologyimprovementsoverorganizationalchangeandredesignedbusinessprocesses,you’ve
missedthepointofhowmasterdatagovernancebenefitstheenterprise.
AsuccessfulMDMinitiativeisabalancedendeavortoprovidekeyinfrastructureandorganizational
changeforthedata-competitiveenterprise.Todoanythinglesscanspelldisaster.
Youmaystumbleintoaone-dimensionalapproachbecauseyouthinkMDMisallaboutthe
technologyplatform.But,youcan’tbringinthetechnologyuntilyouunderstandthepeople,
practices,processesandpolitics,astheyrelatetoyourMDMproject.Withoutthatunderstanding,
you’lllackanintegratedvisionoftheimpactofmasterdataacrosstheenterprise.Leaningsolelyon
technologyensuresthatyouwon’tmeettheneedsandrequirementsofthebusinessandthatyou’ll
failtoadequatelyaddressthenon-technologyelements.
Forabalancedapproach,startwiththe
people,politicsandculture;thenaddress
datagovernancepracticesandprocesses.
Whatyoulearnfromthisapproachwill
greatlyimprovehowyoubringin
technologytoolsforyourMDMinitiative.
Themasterdataprogramalsohasto
involvecross-functionalteamsand
requiressolidcollaborationbetweenthe
businessandIT.
Photo:Shutterstock.com
Developawell-structuredMDMvisionthatparallelsandsupportsoverallcorporatestrategies,
businessunitgoalsandoptimalbusinessoperations.YourMDMvisionneedstoencompassnotonly
howbusinessisdonetoday,butwhattheenterprisewantstoaccomplishforthefuture.Aonedimensional,technology-onlyapproachhasnowayofconnectingtosignificantbusinessstrategies
andobjectives.
AnotheropportunitytoconnectyourMDMinitiativetoimportantbusinessgoalswillbemissedifyou
underratetheimportanceofdatagovernance.
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The8WorstPracticesinMasterDataManagementandHowtoAvoidThem
#6 Underrating the Importance of a Data Governance Group
Yourenterprisecan’tbecomeadata-savvyorganizationthatreliesontimelyandreliabledata
withoutimplementingdatagovernanceresponsibilities,practicesandprocesses.Managingmaster
dataanddataqualityaredynamicprocessesthatrequireconstantmonitoringandchangetoreflect
thechallengesandgoalsoftheenterprise.
Thebusinessworldrunsatafreneticpace.Yourmasterdatainitiativehastokeepupifitistoprovide
therightvaluenowandinthefuture.
Ifyoudon’tcreateaplanforestablishingdatagovernanceearlyon,bepreparedtofaceserious
obstaclesasyourprojectprogresses.
ThelackofadatagovernanceplanwillalsoimpedethegrowthofMDMinitiatives.Datagovernance
alignstheimportantelementsofpeople,practicesandprocessesthatmakeorbreakMDMprojects.
It’sthepathwaythatconnectstheseelementstobusinessstrategies,goalsandobjectives,andtothe
technologiesthatsupportmasterdataprocesses.
Practicallyspeaking,thedatagovernanceorganizationwillbeinvaluableinyourMDM
implementationintermsofdecidingonbusinessrulesfordataqualityandidentityresolution,
redesigningprocessestobemoreefficient,andmanagingthebusinessaspectsofthehubafteritis
implemented.
Lackofplanning,preparationandestablishmentof
datagovernancealsomakesyourMDMinitiative
vulnerabletoorganizationalpoliticsthatcould
hinderorevenstoptheinitiative.Datagovernance
isinstrumentalforsettingupandmanaging
business-ITpartnerships.Thesearecriticalto
MDMsuccessandtothecross-functional
collaborationthatunderpinsmasterdata
processes.Withoutanorganizationalcommitment
todatagovernance,youmaynothavea
“champion”inplacetodialdowntheinfighting
and“turfwars”thatcouldoccuramongdifferent
stakeholders.
NoCentralizedDataGovernance
Alargeglobalcompanycalledtogether
severalbusinessdataownersfromdifferent
groupstodevelopasetofcommonstandards.
Eachdataownerpromotedaseparate
standard;noneoftheownerswantedtogive
upcontrol.
Thecompanytooka“tailwaggingthedog
approach”byfailingtomandateacentralized
platformfordatagovernancepracticesand
policiesforallgroupsinthecompany.“Turf”
politicstookoverinstead.
You’llneedtoenlistthehelpofyourexecutive
sponsorandyourchiefstakeholderstobuildthe
caseforadedicateddatagovernancefunction.Togetheryoucanshowthevalueitbringstocreating
andmaintainingtrustworthymasterdata.Datagovernancedeliversastrongaccountabilityplatform
thatissignificantforriskmanagement,complianceandaudits.
Butthataccountabilitycanbeatriskifyouhavenometricsformeasuringsuccess.
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The8WorstPracticesinMasterDataManagementandHowtoAvoidThem
#7 No Metrics for Measuring Success
Withoutagreeduponperformancemetrics,you’llneverbeabletoanswerthequestion,“Arewe
thereyet?”Moreseriously,ifyoucan’ttiethevalueofwhatimprovedmasterdataisachievingback
toyourexpectedreturnoninvestment(ROI)fromthebusinesscase,youwon’tgetfarwithyour
initiative.Corporatemanagementandstakeholdersexpecttoseequantifiableresultsquickly.
Themetricsshouldmeasurehowwellyou’reachievingthegoalsyouputintoplacewiththebusiness
case.Metricsmainlyquantifythebenefitsversusthecostsforsolvingbusinessproblemswithmaster
datamanagement.IfthepurposeofyourMDMprojectistoprovidereliablecustomerdataasrelated
tosalesdata,thenyourmetricsshouldbebasedoncustomerretentionimprovementsorthe
successfulcompletionofcross-sellingopportunities.
Metricstakeyoubacktowhereyoubegan:howtodemonstratetoyourexecutivesponsorthat
you’reachievingthegoalsfortheusecaseyou’resolvingwiththemasterdataproject.AlackofROI
indicatorswilllikelydryupyourbusinesssponsorship.Howdoyouknowifyou’vebeensuccessful
withyourinitiative?Wasitcost-effective?Diditdelivertheexpectedvalue?
“Ifyoucan’tmeasureit,youcan’tmanageit.”Yourstakeholdersneedtoseethevaluethatimpacts
theirareasofthecompany.Withoutmetricsandperiodicassessmentsofbenefitsandvalue,it’s
difficulttodecide“whatshouldcomenext”forMDM.
Aswithbusiness
processes,yourMDM
initiativemustfocuson
continuousimprovement
toassurealignmentwith
currentandfuture
requirements.
Evenwiththeright
planningandmetricsin
place,youmayget
nowherefastifyouare
relyingonthewrong
technologiestohelpbuild
yourMDMinitiative.
8
Photo:Flickr.com/lexnger
The8WorstPracticesinMasterDataManagementandHowtoAvoidThem
#8 Relying on the Wrong Technologies
Therearesomanywaystogetofftrackwhenitcomestochoosingthetechnologiesyouneedto
supportyourMDMinitiative.Youmaythinkthetechnologiesyoualreadyhaveinplaceareenough,
withoutreallyknowingifyouhavethetoolsyouneedtobesuccessful.Youmightdecidetoselect
toolsonapiecemealbasis.Butifyoudo,you’llendupwithastitchedtogetherpatchworkofpoorly
integratedtechnologies.
Oryoucouldfocusonlyonnear-termbusinessneedsoreven
onasingledatadomain,likeCustomer,andfailtoseethatyour
tunnelvisionwillcostyouquiteabitwhenyourtechnology
choicecomesupshortlater.WhenselectingyourMDM
technologysolution,youneedtoconsideryourcompany’s
strategicvisionandplanforgrowth.It’slikelyyou’llbeadding
moredatadomainslateron.IfyoupickaspecializedMDM
solutionthatonlyfitsyourfirstdatadomain,youwon’thave
whatyouneedwhenyouaddotherdomainsdowntheroad.
Ifyou’realreadyguiltyoffocusingtoomuchontechnology,
thenyou’reprobablyrelyingonITtoselectyourMDM
technologies.Conversely,somecompaniesleantooheavilyon
thebusinesstomaketheselection,withoutITparticipation.
Eitherway,you’reonlyworkingwithhalfoftheequation.Your
requirementsforanMDMsolutionshouldbebothbusinessrelated(functional)andtechnical(non-functional).
Photo:HermeraTechnology
DecisionstoselectanMDMsolutionshouldreflecttheenterprise,notjustasingledepartment.Your
MDMinitiativeimpactsmanyteams—allstakeholdersmustbeinvolvedindetermining
requirements,reviewingsoftwareofferings,andmakingthepurchasedecision.Forexample,your
partnersinITwillhelpbyevaluatingwhichsolutionscantakeadvantageofthecurrententerprise
infrastructureforbetterinteroperabilitybetweensystems.
YourinitiativeisbetterservedbychoosinganMDMplatformthatincludescertaincorecapabilities:
§
§
§
§
§
§
§
9
Masterdatahub
Toolsfordataintegration,profilingandquality
Datagovernancetools
Interoperability
Workflowmanagement
Easeofuse—differentUIsfortechnicalandbusinessroles
Scalabilityandhighperformance/highavailability
The8WorstPracticesinMasterDataManagementandHowtoAvoidThem
Saving Your MDM Initiative from the 8 Worst Practices
Inmanyenterprises,dataisnotconsolidatedorstandardized—it’sscatteredthroughoutmany
disparatesilosandsystems,withalotofinconsistencyandduplication,aswellasmissing,inaccurate
andoutdateddata.
Withoutamasterdataprogram,
inaccuratedataprovidesonlya
fragmentedviewofwhat’sgoingonin
thebusiness,whichcanbedebilitating
tootherinitiatives,operations,analytics
anddecisionmaking.
Thebenefitsofawell-implemented
MDMinitiativebecomeobviouswhen
newlyreliableandup-to-date
informationcanbeputtowork
improvingoperations,business
intelligence,customerexperiences,
salesandmarketingprograms,and
manyotherfunctions.
Achievinghighintegrity,standardized
masterdataisonlypossibleifyour
MDMinitiativeavoidstheseworst
practices.Ifyourcompanywantsto
respondquicklytoopportunitiesand
challenges,implementingawell
thoughtout,metrics-basedmasterdata
managementprogramwillsetyouon
therightcourse.
TheRightWaytoImplementYourMDMProgram
§
DeterminethemostbeneficialstartingpointforMDM
whileconsideringlong-termbusinessanddata
strategies.
§
Implementcomprehensiveandrealisticdata
governancepoliciesandpractices—whichyou
continuallyreviewandupdate.
§
BuildandgrowcollaborationbetweentheBusiness
andITteams—bothareneededforMDMtodeliver
thebestresults.
§
Visualizeandalignstrategicandtacticalmilestones,
whilemovingforwardontherightpath.
§
Performthoroughanalysisandplanningfor
integrationswithbusinessprocessesandsystems
acrosstheenterprise.
§
Gainbusinessuserconfidenceinthereliability,
timelinessandusabilityofthemasterdata.
§
Continuallyusemetricstodemonstratecurrentand
potentialvalueofMDM.
Moving from Worst to Best
Nooneexperiencesalleightofthese“worstpractices”.Butavoidasmanyofthemasyoucanto
haveasmooth,functionalMDMinitiative,withagraduallymaturingdatagovernancefunction.
Mostofthebaddatamanagementhabitsinyourorganizationhavedevelopedoveralongperiodof
time,butyoucanstartturningthemaroundrightnow,througheducation,communicationand
accountability.Choosepeoplewithapositivevisionforhowthecompanycanturnquestionabledata
resultingfrominefficientbusinessprocessesintoa“lean,meandatamachine”.
Theinsightsavailablethroughimprovedmasterdataandsoundgovernanceprincipleswillbringnew
competitiveadvantagetothecompany,increaserevenue,reducecosts,andenablebetter
complianceanddecisionmaking.Improvementslikethesearetoocompellingtopassup.
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The8WorstPracticesinMasterDataManagementandHowtoAvoidThem
AboutHubDesigns
HubDesignsisagloballeaderinthedevelopmentanddeliveryofhighimpactmasterdata
management(MDM)anddatagovernancestrategies.ThecompanypublishesHubDesignsMagazine,
oneofthefirstonlinepublicationsspecificallyfortheinformationgovernanceindustry.Thefirm’s
ThoughtLeadershippracticeproduceswhitepapersandwebinars,andHubDesigns’President,Dan
Power,isafrequentpresenteratconferencesandtradeshows.Formoreinformation,pleasevisit
hubdesigns.comorfollowusonTwitterat@hubdesigns.
AboutInformationBuilders
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InformationBuilderstobetheirtrustedpartner.Foundedin1975,InformationBuildersis
headquarteredinNewYork,NY,withofficesaroundtheworld,andremainsoneofthelargest
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The8WorstPracticesinMasterDataManagementandHowtoAvoidThem