Do ever see people ask “how did you get that number, that’s not what I have?” It happens all too often.
Data Lineage provides the answer to this question: firstly in business terms, then also as a technical expression that identifies specific sources, calculations and rules.
Once information consumers have the Data Lineage available to them, any data quality issues can more readily be resolved, either at source or through agreement on the appropriate data calculations and rules.
There are other benefits also:
- Auditors can verify the authenticity of reports.
- Information engineers can quickly view the impact of a proposed change in data systems and more accurately estimate the work required, or the risks associated with changes.
Data Lineage for audit, compliance and impact analysis is an increasingly part of a trusted information platform.
Focus can deliver all these critical capabilities through the use of appropriate software tools. Firstly, the business information interfaces (such as Cognos 8 BI reports) must have the facility to inform the business user of data lineage. Secondly, information management tools such as the IBM MetaData WorkBench enables the collection of metadata from source systems and then manages the flow of metadata to the data warehouse and business information interfaces.
Focus consultants have the expertise to guide an efficient, integrated approach to creating and sustaining a trusted information assets. The IBM Information Management and Business Analytics software platform plays an important role to efficiently manage the flow of reliable data and metadata from source to information consumers.