Maextro: MASTER DATA MANAGEMENT SOFTWARE

Simply put, Master data is a single source of common data that underpins various areas of a business. At Bluestonex we believe Master Data represents all the relationships a business has. Whether it's customers, vendors, partners, products or services, master data is at the heart of these transactions.

As a simple example of master data, look at your phone, which is no doubt close by. On the surface, it's just a phone. One device. But the phone can be broken down into various components like its battery, camera and screen. In the factory, each of these components will have a number or code to identify them. It's these codes which form one aspect of master data. It will be used by the vendors where raw materials are acquired, construction line to make sure the phone doesn’t end up with two screens and no batteries, it will be used by sales to identify how many products have been sold and so on. The point is master data is present at every step of the supply chain and beyond- which is why it’s so important to have good master data management.

As a company grows, more systems and processes will be introduced- whether this be ERP or CRM. Often, this leads to multiple sets of the same data being deployed for various purposes. However, when one set is updated, it often means any other existing record will not. Before you know it, things get messy and outdated. This can lead to inaccuracies or fragmentation of data a business uses. This can be dangerous to a business as can affect how customers are perceived and marketed to or how a product or service is constructed or carried out.

That’s where the concept of master data management comes in. The focus of MDM is to simplify underlying data used by a business and uniform it, so that if any changes occur, all records are consistent and correct. It’s a continuous process that allows businesses to make decisions and run production off of one source of accurate data.

Synchronising all versions of company data with the master data ensures consistency and accuracy across departments and reports. The best part about this for any business is that avoids headache-causing mistakes, and facilitates better-connected company efforts, whether it increases the productivity of sales output, marketing campaigns or production output.

A business is a superset of data-producing systems executed using various processes across various platforms. People always want to do a good job but when things get complex, they often go wrong, and mistakes can be made. To put it simply, Master Data Governance is a set of rules and standards around how data is collected, inputted, stored, processed and disposed of. Master Data governance makes it possible to define, enforce and monitor data quality.

The main goal of master data management is to prevent data errors from occurring and becoming causes of wider issues in a business. An example of this is inputting a product components ID number is wrong. When being used by the manufacturing department, they may select a different component altogether, which can lead to products being incorrect and very unhappy customers. Something as simple as a missed digit can escalate into a huge headache in a company that runs on data. This makes good data governance and good data quality essential for any modern business.

The right solution depends on the type of processes and systems a business has and will always be tailored around that. Broadly, User Experience (UX) is a key part of any master data management solution. Users can have custom GUIs, tailored to meet their needs and increase efficiency. Interfaces can be built in a simple and satisfying way, which is intuitive to the user's needs. This makes the adoption of better master data governance more successful. These can be built to suit any device. Master data analytics can be used to find inaccuracies and inefficiencies, which helps refine master data practices within an organisation.

Each of these aspects of the management solution is a way to deploy master data governance into a business in a way which supports compliance of policy and centralises master data control. A good master data management solution makes adoption intuitive and efficient. The resulting productivities and efficiency savings leave a business with a culture for innovation.

There is a range of benefits to having good master data management. However, what those are is largely subject to the needs of the business using it. An immediate benefit of master data management is a guarantee of a good level of data quality. Combining governance procedures with automated processing creates an environment for good data quality . This relieves many pressures on workforce load and mitigates the chances of erroneous data growing into a wider issue.

A secondary benefit from automated data processing is boosted productivity levels, this is both due to workforce re-allocation and the speed of data processing allowing for a faster pace of work combined with the confidence an enterprise has in its data.

Master data management software is generally cloud-based, which gives companies the freedom and confidence to run through times of uncertainty- whether that be drop in services, financial hardships or other affecting factors. This is a huge pressure off of companies' shoulders and frees up much-needed resources in periods of hardship.

As previously mentioned, erroneous data can have disruptive consequences all along a supply chain. Product errors which occur during manufacturing can affect confidence in customers, and errors with vendors can create cash flow or credit issues. Master data solutions are designed to mitigate these issues to prevent these errors from occurring, maximising productivity.

Having a master data management system in place makes it much easier to deploy and uphold data governance standards. Many master data management softwares have automatic checks for duplicate and erroneous data built in. This means a lot of governance and policy can be built in.

Investing in a good master data system and reaping all the benefits above can put an organisation in a position of advantage. Rather than running at the same pace as competitors, organisations can innovate faster via the incumbent advantages. The rapid gains to productivity, data accuracy and analytics transform a workforce, leaving it with a culture for innovation.

Master Data management is essential for any modern business that processes data using different systems to achieve a culture of innovation. To summarise, the benefits of master data management are:

• Standard of data quality and increased accuracy.
• Boost productivity levels
• Business becomes more agile and can move in uncertainty
• Mitigates disruptions to business efforts
• Reduces security risk and ensures better data governance
• Innovate before competitors

IF YOU PROCESS MASTER DATA THROUGH MULTIPLE SYSTEMS:
This one is more for large organisations but can apply to medium size ones too. If your organisation has multiple versions of the same data spread across multiple platforms but no way of keeping it unified or synchronised, data software would be a smart investment.

IF YOU CAN'T AFFORD ERRORS IN YOUR DATA:
Master data management tools may seem costly at a glance, however, missed productivity issues occurring through data errors are much more costly. Deploying a master data management tool helps an organisation mitigate any data-related risks and make full use of its potential. If you cannot afford to have errors, a master data solution will help the organisation.

We’re living in the data age. An age where all aspects of a business is made up through data-based transactions, whether its vendors, customers or internal supply chain- it underpins everything. The truth is, the more data we have to play with, the more productive we can be. Good quality data is fast becoming a leading way to sustain a competitive advantage. Simply put, data is the future, but to be effective, it must start in the present.