What is data quality?
Within SAP, data quality is defined as postal validation, duplicate
checking, and error tolerant searching. Postal Validation enhances
address information by comparing data against address directories
provided from local postal authorities around the world. Duplicate
Check avoids duplicate entries by scanning the database for potential
duplicates before new customer data is committed to the database.
Finally, Error Tolerant Searching provides flexibility by giving users
the ability to conveniently search their SAP system for business
information as required. Involvement of a data quality initiative
helps you maintain a reliable source of information for all
departments within your own organization while simultaneously
maximizing interactions with your vendors, customers, and business
partners.
When and where should I integrate data quality into my SAP Suite
of applications or other projects in my enterprise?
Data quality should be integrated any place where data is entered,
loaded, processed, or updated. Data quality should be built into the
beginning phases of all Enterprise Resource Planning, Customer
Relationship Management, and Business Intelligence projects. Too many
projects focus on data quality as an afterthought, at the back-end of
a data repository or when a project has failed. By not incorporating
data quality measures at every customer touch point, on both front and
back-end operations, the cost of cleansing the data dramatically
increases as well as how long the cleansing process takes to complete.
Can I integrate a data quality solution within other software
applications?
Data quality solutions can be fully integrated into CRM, ETL (Extract
Transform Load), ERP, or BI solutions and have the advantage of being
"seamless" to the end user - reducing the learning curve, as
well as decreasing the implementation timeframes. Your data process
flow should not have to be modified to add a new data quality
solution. Through integration and strategic partnerships you are
assured that you are getting a best-of-breed solution. However, keep
in mind it is not absolutely necessary for the solution to be fully
integrated. Firstlogic also provides tools that your organization can
easily integrate on your own, and oftentimes stand-alone solutions may
be more effective for specific projects.
Will Firstlogic's Global Data Quality Connector for SAP manage
my international data?
Yes. Built on a global framework capable of validating address
information for over 190 countries in a single processing pass,
Firstlogic's Global Data Quality Connector for SAP allows you to
identify country names, format and standardize addresses, correct
missing address information, and assign postal codes for each
respective country. Furthermore, Firstlogic's Easy IQ technology
offers the ability to complete/populate addresses with minimal data or
offer suggestions for possible matches. This easy address system is
ideal in call centers or any transactional environment where data
needs to be cleansed at the point-of-entry. The software improves
real-time transactions for your call centers, sales, and support
centers by providing accurate address data for your customer facing
employees.
How easy is it to maintain Firstlogic's Global Data Quality
Connector for SAP after implementation?
Ongoing maintenance should be minimal. Once the solution is
implemented and configured, typically maintenance will only be
required when you receive postal directory updates, upgrade to a new
data quality release, or decide to change your application or business
rules.
What are the benefits of a data quality solution?
The biggest benefit is the confidence you have that your data is
accurate. A data quality solution also allows you to:
Manage customer data in different formats initially residing in
separate databases
Build and maintain successful relationships
Better understand and service your customers
Enhance knowledge management and business intelligence
initiatives with reliable and accurate information
Deliver clean, reliable data throughout your expanding
information supply chains to all varieties of operational and
analytical applications throughout your enterprise
How does Firstlogic's Global Data Quality Connector for SAP
Systems work?
Firstlogic's Global Data Quality Connector is integrated at the BASIS
layer and communicates with the SAP Applications via TCP/IP leveraging
SAP's Remote Function Call (RFC) interface. As users make postal
validation inquiries in either batch or real-time, calls are made
outside of the SAP Application to Firstlogic's RFC Server. Once the
customer's address has been received by Firstlogic's technology, our
Information Quality Suite parses, standardizes, and corrects records
according to configurable business rules and local postal authority
standards. To ensure your customer view is optimized, Firstlogic's
technology catches duplicates at the point of entry; not after
redundant information has infected your SAP Environment. Before any
customer, vendor, or business partner is committed to the database,
Firstlogic's Information Quality suite will immediately inspect the
data upon input. The connector scans the entire database for
duplicates and assigns a similarity match score to potential
duplicates. At that point, the user can determine whether the entered
record is unique or a duplicate that should be eliminated from the
system. In addition, convenient Error Tolerant Searching is available
for prompt and precise address recognition. This improves transaction
processing, saves time locating records, and optimizes system
efficiency.
Explain the architecture of Firstlogic's Global Data Quality
Connector for SAP Systems.
Integrated at the BASIS/WAS layer, Firstlogic has developed Business
Add-Ins (BAdI's) that can be leveraged with a single instantiation;
allowing for all SAP modules that utilize SAP's Business Address
Services framework to leverage the compelling advantages of Firstlogic
technology. Furthermore, Firstlogic's Information Quality Suite has
been developed as a Remote Function Call (RFC) Server: the most common
integration component of SAP software. Utilizing SAP's RFC interface,
SAP makes calls to Firstlogic technology for address check, updates,
duplicate checks, and error tolerant searches.
