The DAMA
Dictionary of
Data Management
1st Edition 2008
Mark Mosley, Editor
Technics Publications, LLC
New Jersey
DAMA Dictionary of Data Management
The DAMA Dictionary of Data Management
The DAMA Dictionary of Data Management is a glossary of over 800 terms, defining a
common data management vocabulary for IT professionals, data stewards and business
leaders.
Copyright for the Dictionary is held by DAMA International, a non-profit association. All
rights are reserved. No part of this CD or its contents may be reproduced or transmitted in any
form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording or by any
information storage and retrieval system, without written permission from DAMA
International, except for appropriately attributed quotations.
The Dictionary was developed by members of DAMA International. For content inquiries,
please contact Deborah Henderson at VP_Education@dama.org.
DAMA International and the publisher have exercised care in the preparation of this
document, but make no expressed or implied warranty of any kind and assume no
responsibility for errors or omissions. No liability is assumed for incidental or consequential
damages in connection with or arising from use of the information or programs contained
herein.
Under the support and control of DAMA International, the DAMA International Foundation
is a 501(3) not-for-profit entity, whose mission is to foster the advancement of the data
management profession through education and research. The Dictionary is the Foundation‟s
first fundraising vehicle. By purchasing this electronic document, you are supporting further
research and development in the field of data management. For further information about how
you can support DAMA International, please contact info@dama.org.
Copyright © 2008 by DAMA International.
ISBN: 9780977140046
First Printing 2008
Printed in the United States of America
Library of Congress Control Number: 2008900900
Published by:
Technics Publications, LLC
Post Office Box 161
Bradley Beach, NJ 07720 U.S.A.
www.technicspub.com
Copyright © 2008 by DAMA International. All rights reserved.
page ii
DAMA Dictionary of Data Management
Contents
Preface .................................................................................................................................... v
Acknowledgments ................................................................................................................ vii
Dictionary of Data Management ................................................................................................ 1
Acronyms ............................................................................................................................... 1
Glossary .................................................................................................................................. 9
Topical Index ...................................................................................................................... 127
General........................................................................................................................................ 127
Finance & Accounting ................................................................................................................ 127
Business ...................................................................................................................................... 127
Marketing & Customer Relationship Management .................................................................... 127
Planning ...................................................................................................................................... 128
Project Management ................................................................................................................... 128
Knowledge Management ............................................................................................................ 128
Process Management .................................................................................................................. 128
Roles ........................................................................................................................................... 129
Information Technology ............................................................................................................. 129
Standards Organizations ............................................................................................................. 130
Data ............................................................................................................................................. 130
Data Management ....................................................................................................................... 130
DAMA & Professional Development ......................................................................................... 130
Data Governance and Stewardship ............................................................................................. 131
Architecture ................................................................................................................................ 131
Data Modeling ............................................................................................................................ 132
Normalization ............................................................................................................................. 133
Related Modeling and Analysis .................................................................................................. 133
Databases & Database Design .................................................................................................... 133
Structured Query Language (SQL) ............................................................................................. 133
Object-Orientation ...................................................................................................................... 134
Software Development ............................................................................................................... 134
Artificial Intelligence .................................................................................................................. 135
XML Development ..................................................................................................................... 135
Parallel Database Processing ...................................................................................................... 135
Database Administration ............................................................................................................ 135
Geospatial Data ........................................................................................................................... 136
Data Security Management......................................................................................................... 136
Data Movement & Integration .................................................................................................... 136
Data Warehousing & Business Intelligence ............................................................................... 137
Copyright © 2008 by DAMA International. All rights reserved.
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DAMA Dictionary of Data Management
Analytics & Data Mining............................................................................................................ 137
Multi-dimensional / OLAP ......................................................................................................... 138
Reference & Master Data Management ..................................................................................... 138
Meta data Management............................................................................................................... 138
Data Quality Management .......................................................................................................... 138
Document, Record & Content Management............................................................................... 139
Semantic Modeling ..................................................................................................................... 140
Copyright © 2008 by DAMA International. All rights reserved.
page iv
DAMA Dictionary of Data Management
Preface
DAMA International is pleased to publish the DAMA Dictionary of Data Management. This
First Edition was originally drafted as the Glossary Appendix for the DAMA Guide to the
Data Management Body of Knowledge (DAMA-DMBOK Guide, a trademark of DAMA
International). The DAMA-DMBOK Guide will be a “definitive introduction” to data
management, summarizing data management goals, principles, processes, deliverables, roles,
technology, practices and organizational/cultural issues. Development of the DAMA-
DMBOK Guide began in 2006, and the DAMA Foundation expects to publish the first edition
of the DAMA-DMBOK Guide in 2009.
The Glossary is an important integration tool guiding collaborative development of the
DAMA-DMBOK Guide. The DAMA Executive Board also realized the value of the Glossary
in its own right, and urged for the early completion and publishing of the Glossary as the
DAMA Dictionary of Data Management.
We offer the DAMA Dictionary of Data Management, a compendium of over 850 terms, to an
industry in great need of clarity in its terminology and semantics. While experts may never
reach 100% agreement, we believe there is general consensus agreement with these
definitions across the data management profession. We hope the First Edition will be a useful
tool for data management professionals, managers and business data stewards.
DAMA International and The DAMA International Foundation wish to thank Mark Mosley
for this important contribution to our profession. Mark is a Principal Consultant with
Enterprise Warehouse Solutions, Inc., one of the leading data management consulting firms.
His volunteer efforts to produce this document on behalf of DAMA are most appreciated.
There will continue to be productive and valuable discussions over the meaning and use of
data management terms. This First Edition provides a baseline for these discussions. As the
definitions are continually refined and clarified, DAMA intends to update and publish
regularly scheduled revisions of The Dictionary of Data Management. Your comments,
concerns and contributions are welcomed.
Please contact the editor at DAMA-
DMBOKeditorinchief@dama.org to offer your suggestions for improvement.
Deborah Henderson
President, The DAMA International Foundation
Vice President, Education Services DAMA International
Toronto, Ontario
March 2008
Copyright © 2008 by DAMA International. All rights reserved.
page v
DAMA Dictionary of Data Management
Acknowledgments
Sir Isaac Newton once said, “If I have seen farther, it is by standing on the shoulders of
giants.” As he said this, he also demonstrated it by paraphrasing what Robert Burton said 100
years earlier, “A dwarf standing on the shoulders of giants see farther than a giant himself.”
Centuries before, a Roman poet wrote, “Pygmies placed on the shoulders of giants see more
than the giants themselves.” This document was developed in this same spirit, building on the
contributions made by countless data management professionals over many years.
As professionals, we each continually struggle to clarify the meaning of the terms used in the
publications we read, the presentations we attend and the discussions in which we participate.
Over time we each build an integrated understanding, and together we come to consensus
about the meaning of these terms. We advance the profession step by step as we discuss the
meaning of our terms, compare our perspectives and learn from each other. The semantic
challenges we face as a profession can be disheartening when progress is slow and difficult to
notice. However, in the course of developing this Dictionary, I have been struck by how much
consensus now exists about terms once considered more controversial. This is an indication of
professional progress, achieved by the giants who precede us all. Some of those giants are
well known and widely admired leaders in the field of data management. Others are relatively
anonymous professionals who quietly influence their circle of colleagues.
While developing this document, I surveyed several glossaries available through some of the
leading data management publications and websites. My responsibility was to identify terms
commonly used in the field of data management, compare definitions found in several
sources, and then draft an original definition using the best ideas from each source and
ensuring internal consistency with the definitions of closely related terms. No definition from
any existing glossary was copied verbatim into this compendium, and no single source can be
cited for a given definition.
The DAMA-DMBOK Editorial Board reviewed this document, its terms and definitions, as
part of its responsibility for general editorial policy guidance and review for the DAMA-
DMBOK Guide (see Preface). I am deeply grateful to the members of these DAMA members
for their volunteer time, effort and thoughtful feedback:
Bobbie Adderson
Michael Brackett
Larry Burns
Michael Connor
Patricia Cupoli
Alex Friedgan
Lowell Fryman
Mahesh Haryu
Deborah Henderson
Gil Laware
James McQuade
Michael G. Miller
Catherine Nolan
Kathy Sivier
Anne Marie Smith
Eva Smith
Copyright © 2008 by DAMA International. All rights reserved.
page vii
DAMA Dictionary of Data Management
Of course there are unlimited opportunities for improvement to this document. I already
recognize many shortcomings, and I am sure there many as yet unrecognized shortcomings as
well. Any outright errors found are my own. I welcome your suggestions for improvements to
be made in a Second Edition.
Special thanks are due the Executive Boards of DAMA International and The DAMA
International Foundation and the DAMA Chapter President‟s Council for their support of this
endeavor.
Finally, I personally wish to thank Deborah Henderson, DAMA International Foundation
President, for her unwavering vision, confidence and encouragement. There could be no better
sponsor for this effort.
Mark Mosley
Chicago, IL
November 2007
Copyright © 2008 by DAMA International. All rights reserved.
page viii