What are the two main types of data?
Transactional Data and Analytical Data
Transactional Data supports daily operations, while Analytical Data supports managerial decisions and analysis.
Define transactional data.
Supports daily operations (e.g., sales, payroll, purchases)
Transactional data is essential for routine business activities.
Define analytical data.
Supports managerial decisions and analysis (e.g., trends, forecasts)
Analytical data helps in strategic planning and decision-making.
What are the common data types?
- Quantitative
- Categorical (Textual)
- Dates/Times
- Boolean
- Multimedia
Each data type serves different purposes in data analysis.
What is the definition of real-time data?
Updated immediately
Real-time data allows for instant insights and actions.
What are the characteristics of high-quality data?
- Accurate
- Consistent
- Complete
- Timely
- Unique
High-quality data is crucial for effective decision-making.
What problems arise from bad data?
- Data inconsistency
- Integrity issues
Bad data can lead to significant operational challenges.
List the causes of low-quality data.
- Customers enter fake/inaccurate data
- Different formats/entry standards
- Operator errors or shortcuts
- External/third-party errors
These causes can severely impact data reliability.
What are the effects of low-quality data?
- Can’t track customers accurately
- Hard to find valuable customers
- Missed sales opportunities
- Wasted marketing
- Weak customer relationships
Low-quality data can lead to financial losses and poor customer engagement.
What is a data steward?
Ensures data policies and procedures are applied across the company
Data stewards play a crucial role in data governance.
Define data governance.
Overall management of availability, usability, integrity, and security of data
Effective data governance is essential for maintaining data quality.
What does Master Data Management (MDM) ensure?
Data is uniform, accurate, consistent, complete
MDM is vital for maintaining the integrity of key business data.
What is data validation?
Tests/evaluations to check data quality
Data validation helps identify and correct errors in data.
What is a database?
Stores data about objects, events, people, and places
Databases are fundamental for data storage and retrieval.
What does DBMS stand for?
Database Management System
DBMS software allows users to manage and manipulate data.
What is a data element?
Smallest unit of data
Data elements are the building blocks of databases.
What is metadata?
Data about data (definitions, details)
Metadata provides context and meaning to data elements.
Define primary key.
Uniquely identifies each record
Primary keys are essential for maintaining data integrity in databases.
What is a foreign key?
Primary key from another table, creates relationships
Foreign keys establish connections between different tables in a database.
List the business advantages of relational databases.
- Flexibility
- Scalability & Performance
- Reduced Redundancy
- Integrity
- Security
Relational databases provide numerous benefits for data management.
What is the problem often faced by companies regarding data?
Data rich but information poor
This highlights the need for effective data analysis and management.
What is a data warehouse?
Central repository combining data from multiple sources for decision-making
Data warehouses facilitate comprehensive data analysis.
What is ETL?
Extract, Transform, Load
ETL is a critical process in data warehousing.
Define data lake.
Large repository storing raw data in original format until needed
Data lakes allow for flexible data storage and access.
