MDM Best Practices – The first steps
Further to my earlier post on managing expectation from MDM implementation – we will discuss on some of the best practices for Master Data Management (MDM).
A company decide on going for a MDM program - what are the first steps to be taken to ensure a successful implementation of the program.
First, Define a vision for the program – clearly define the vision for implementing MDM program in your organization. This holds good for any enterprise wide program especially when implementing a new technology. This vision should articulate the desired end-state and help the stake-holders to understand what needs to be done.
As we touched the stake-holders, another important step is to get Stakeholders buy-in across the information chain – this is a critical step for success of the program. Failure to get buy-in from everyone may result in non-cooperation by some stake holders causing failure of the entire program.
The buy-in is achieved by creating awareness about the advantages of MDM & the processes involved in MDM. This helps stake holders to understand the need and vision of the MDM program & work towards achieving that vision.
The next and the most important step is Planning. Spend sufficient time in planning for the MDM program. Focus on the implementation strategy to choose and how to evaluate different vendors. While implementing MDM program, do not go for big-bang approach. Plan for a phased approach to deliver early benefits to the organization. Ensure that the different phases are aligned with MDM vision.
As part of the first steps we also need to consider the following potential problems/ gaps that would come in the way of successful MDM implementation:
The first one is to consider and make the stakeholders aware of potential performance problems when the new system is rolled out. Typically any new systems will have some initial problems before it starts delivering benefits. It is important that all stakeholders should accept this inconvenience for sometime instead of reverting to old ways of managing data.
Along with the above, the company should assess their existing process and identify conflicts with MDM standards. This is a critical step if you are planning to join global data pools and share information with your suppliers and customers using GDSN (Global Data Synchronization Network). Even if your company is not planning to be part of GDSN, it is advisable to stick to global MDM standards as the standards are evolved after lot of efforts and will definitely help your company manage the master data in a better way.
Successful MDM program rely heavily on strong Data Governance policies. Define data governance policies and processes if not in place already.
Once we are ready with the initial steps we start with selection of MDM tool and implementation of the tool. Watch this space for more on the ‘Best Practices’ to be followed during selection and implementation of MDM tool.
