Metadata Management

Business Glossary

The Business Glossary contains the semantic definition of the data and defines a common corporate lexicon. It is the access point to the world of data, the first element that brings us closer to the goal of a shared data culture.

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Overview

In order to spread the culture of data, it is necessary to have knowledge of the data itself. And therefore having a shared and unambiguous definition, which can highlight the links with business processes. We are answering the question “What is data?” and we do it thanks to the element of Data Governance identified as Business Glossary.

The Business Glossary contains the semantic definition of the data and defines a common corporate lexicon. It is the access point to the world of data, the first element that brings us closer to the goal of a shared data culture.

Knowledge

It captures the knowledge of the organization and makes it easily accessible to everyone.

Collaboration

It bridges the communication gap between business and IT teams by providing a common language.

Compliance

It ensures that business terms and concepts are defined and used consistently, which is essential for compliance and risk management.

Efficiency

It defines key business terms and concepts, and ensures that everyone in the organization is using the same definitions, which reduces confusion and improves communication.

Features

The Business Glossary, in addition to these elements, can contain a series of other information that better defines data, such as:

  • Aliases, synonyms or acronyms: are alternative ways to express the same concept, typical of complex realities in which the different functions of companies develop specific “dialects”, due for example the use of specific applications or processes linked to relationships with external stakeholders (suppliers, customers, regulatory bodies, …) whose lexicon is inherited.
  • Calculation method: they provide indications and specifications on how the data can be derived from other company domain information.
  • Pattern: indicates the presence of validity patterns of specific information such as product code format, regular expression and others.
  • Naming Convention: conventions used within the organization to properly create data structures.
  • Taxonomies: any classification systems or tags used within the organization such as domains, use cases, relevance to certain compliance processes and/or procedures.
  • Relationships: any kind of relationship between business terms that could help to navigate the knowledge graph of the business terms.