In this assignment, you will demonstrate your mastery of the following course outcomes:

• Assess the effectiveness of data warehouses and database management systems in supporting specific business goals and decision making
• Design architectures for data warehouses that address business problems and increase business opportunity
• Construct plans for implementing a data warehouse that meet stakeholder needs and business specifications
• Analyze constraints and opportunities associated with integrating data from various systems into a data warehouse
• Develop strategies for ensuring data integrity, accuracy, and quality by employing appropriate data scrubbing and integration techniques

Prompts

Scenario

Refer to the following scenario for the background and basis for your data warehouse design:

Imagine you are the chief information officer (CIO)for Virtual World Insurance Company, an organization located in San Diego, California. It provides auto insurance coverage to more than 100,000 customers across the United States and currently has100 employees. Virtual World Insurance Company has recently acquired Maxon Insurance Company, located in Ontario, Canada. Maxon Insurance Company has 10 employees and provides auto insurance to 10,000 customers in Canada.

As a result of this merger, the chief executive officer (CEO)has asked you to look at a data warehouse as a viable solution for merging both information technology (IT)infrastructures. After doing research, you decide to create a data warehouse that will combine the customer information from both companies into one centralized location.

Maxon Insurance Company does not have a relational database. In fact, the company currently stores its data in multiple data sources. As a result, Maxon Insurance Company’s data does not have any unique identifiers. Also, customers with multiple insurance policies have duplicate records. Each spreadsheet repeats the customer’s demographic information.

Each insurance company utilizes a distinct customer relationship management (CRM) system. The CRM systems are used to keep a record of all customers and any communications that are sent to customers. The CRM systems tie into an in-house billing system that is used to bill for insurance premiums, insurance deductibles, and any other billable items.

To manage organizational operations, each company uses a different enterprise resource planning (ERP) system. The ERP systems are used to manage human resources (hires, terminations, etc.), payroll, budgeting, accounting, and fixed assets.

To streamline operations and reduce maintenance costs, all data systems (ERP, CRM, billing, etc.) will need to be consolidated into a data warehouse. This will avoid duplicated information and data redundancy.

Prompt I: Executive Presentation

Prior to creating the technical proposal for the data warehouse, the CEO would like you to present to the C-level executives the concepts of a data warehouse. The purpose of the presentation is to discuss the viability of creating a data warehouse and providing justification to allocate resources to complete this project. Given your research, how viable an option is creating a data warehouse? What evidence exists to support the decision to merge the existing IT infrastructures into a data warehouse? What are the key potential issues and the key goals that the data warehouse needs to meet? What are some potential issues you might face in merging the two infrastructures? Prepare a presentation that discusses:

I. Concepts of a Data Warehouse:

Assess the value of using a data warehouse. Specifically, discuss the types of information that a data warehouse should include and how the information is organized. Why is a data warehouse the preferred solution? What value would a data warehouse add to a business?

II. Integration of Data Sources:

Discuss in detail the sources of information that can be integrated from the various operational areas of the organization. For example, while some information is housed in Excel spreadsheets, sales and marketing data may be in a CRM (customer resource management).

III. Pros and Cons:

a) Cost and Return on Investment: How is the cost of a data warehouse worth the investment? What type of information can a data warehouse provide that would make the cost more acceptable? How will the organization benefit from a data warehouse? Are there any negative consequences of having a data warehouse? Which specific operational areas will feel the benefits?

b) Required Resources: What are the costs associated with a data warehouse? Will any additional staff be required to maintain and support the data warehouse? Be sure to explain the importance of each resource you identify.

c) Informational Value: How can the information in a data warehouse add value to the organization? What specific business opportunities could be illuminated and how would the use of a DBMS help solve business problems?

d) Limitations: What are some functions that a data warehouse cannot perform? How scalable is a data warehouse? How can the organization overcome these obstacles to ensure data quality? Support your conclusions.

IV. Key Business Considerations:

Address some of the business-related considerations. Some considerations include: Prior to investing in a specific data warehouse, what type of hardware and/or software will you consider? Will you hire a consultant to help with the implementation process? What is required prior to moving data to a data warehouse? Will there be necessary training? Support your conclusions.

V. Closing statement:

Summarize the overall presentation with care. This is your closing statement, the last message to your audiences and your last chance to convince them of the value of a data warehouse for solving their business problems.

Answer rating: 100% (QA)

I Concepts of a Data Warehouse A data warehouse is a database system designed for the purpose of analyzing data The data is organized and held in a single centralized repository and it is used to stor... View the full answer