GlaxoSmithKline: Metadata Management

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Table of Contents

Introduction
Plan
Metadata to be created
ETL tools
Factors
References

Introduction

As businesses globally become complex, so is the type and amount of data they use. Organizations are finding master data to be of importance in their day-to-day operations and for future business predictions (Loshin, 2008).

Metadata and tools are essential in utilization of large sets of data in any company. This essay will use GlaxoSmithKline plc (GSK) as the company. This assignment will create a plan to be followed in GSK. The plan will give examples of such metadata in GSK. The essay will also discuss tools to be used in the project.

Finally, the essay will look at the factors that GSK will address to implement the project successfully, particularly about the choice of tools. GSK is a company that deals with pharmaceutical products, with markets across the continents. It was formed in 2000 as a result of merging two firms. These were Glaxo Wellcome and SmithKline Beecham Company. It is one of the best performing companies in the world.

Plan

Metadata is defined as data that give information about other data (Loshin, 2008). GSK is a complex and multinational company with huge amounts of data. In order to create metadata, it is prudent to comprehend the characteristics of the data to be described and standards to be used. The process involves the use of codes in disk files (Otto, Hüner & Österle, 2012). For one set of data set, there is only a file in the computer disk describing it.

There are four steps involved in creating metadata. The fist step involves the collection of information regarding the data to be described. This is followed by creation of a file having the metadata. The metadata should be arranged according to the standards used (Loshin, 2008).

The third step involves arranging the information in the files to achieve the required structure. The final step involves testing the completeness of the metadata. The step will verify that the subject under description is described fully by the information in the disk file (Otto et al., 2012).

Metadata to be created

Metadata is based on metadata stacks (Loshin, 2008). A metadata stack is an organization of information flows (data objects) from top to bottom. Metadata in GSK will describe the data entered about the pharmaceutical products that the company manufactures and markets. For example, a product like Augmentin (antibiotic produced by the company), its metadata would include where it was sold, date, the company representative who sold and the pricing. The customer information would also be described.

A metadata stack for this application in GSK would involve five primary components. The first is a store in which external information regarding the product will be saved. The second is an internal store which creates a link between the product records in the store and other applications in the company master data.

The third component is a co-ordinating store that fetches information from all the stores in the system. The fourth component is a model giving information about what is found in the stores. The final component is an assembly of objects under description. This final component is necessary in the management of objects about the pharmaceutical products in GSK. All the five components must be used to describe the metadata in the stack.

ETL tools

Advance in modernization of systems, complex warehousing and increase in the number of products that GSK deals with requires that complex tools for extracting, transforming and locating data be used. This will ensure that there is sharing of the required information in time.

However, before the information can be moved, it has to be extracted from the file records and transformed accordingly. The ETL tools that GSK will use can either be developed by technical experts in the company from scratch or be bought from software vendors. The two sources have both merits and demerits that should be analyzed by the project implementing team.

Factors

Tools are important for successful implementation of a master data management project (Silvola, Jaaskelainen, Kropsu-Vehkapera & Haapasalo, 2011). Several factors will affect the selection of the master data management tools at GSK. One of the factors is the complexity of the project envisaged by the management.

A complex project will require sophisticated tools while a simple one will need simple tools. The amount of money that the company will be ready to spend on the project will also determine the tools that will be used. If the project budget will be accommodative enough, then complex tools will be used to implement the project.

The personnel will also play a critical role in the selection of master data management tools (Silvola et al., 2011). The personnel working with GSK will give their views on the system that they can operate. Thus, their input will be necessary because they will form part of the end-users. If the number of personnel who are IT-compliant is big, then the tools to be used can be complex. However, the interests of all the personnel will be considered before selecting the tools for the project.

References

Loshin, D. (2008). Master data management. Burlington, MA: Morgan Kaufmann.

Otto, B., Hüner, K. M., & Österle, H. (2012). Toward a functional reference model for master data quality management. Information Systems and e-Business Management, 10(3), 395-425.

Silvola, R., Jaaskelainen, O., Kropsu-Vehkapera, H., & Haapasalo, H. (2011). Managing one master data–challenges and preconditions. Industrial Management & Data Systems, 111(1), 146-162.

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