Database Management: The Objective of Database Managers

As organizations increasingly rely on a higher volume of information to make decisions and execute the day to day operations, database management is becoming increasingly important.

The sheer size of some organizations databases is uncanny. Every day, companies continue to collect information at a high rate and add it to their database. The goal is to uncover relationships and develop connections between data elements to extract insights that can be used to help organizations with decision making and forecasting future actions.

One area, however, that tends to get overlooked is database management. It is not uncommon for database issues to arise that can affect:

 

• how users interact with the system

 

 

• How data is stored and retrieved

 

 

• The accuracy of reports and data that are extracted from the database

 

For this reason, many organizations are now creating the role of database manager to handle all database issues and ensure it is functioning at a high level at all times.

Database managers have four main objectives. These objectives, while they will vary from organization to organization and may change over time, are directly tied to how databases operate within the context of day to day operations of the business.

Databases are only effective if the data within the system is readily available at all times. Database managers must ensure that there is little downtime and that information should be easily accessible to people within their company. This means that data should be:

 

• In a format users can understand and work with

 

 

• Extracted without issue

 

 

• Categorized logically

 

 

• Accessible to the right people when they need it

 

While issues will arise with any database, managers must have measures in place to deal with errors and issues as they surface. Therefore, to ensure the database is performing at its highest level managers must have protocols in place to ensure:

 

• The data remains confidential and only authorized users access the system

 

 

• The data is of high quality and free from errors that could affect meaning and knowledge

 

 

• The database is not compromised in any manner and protected against outside threats and viruses

 

Nothing can remain static in an age where technology changes at such a rapid pace. Therefore, databases much be dynamic and have the ability to evolve over time as usage patterns change and new technologies add to the databases overall functionality.

The database must have the ability to conform to organizational needs and adapt to specific business initiatives, processes, and environments.

Database manager must use the information within the database to remain current about the market, technology, and trends in order to predict and make effective decisions about expanding the capabilities of the database.

Users must have the ability to share resources within the database. This is the fundamental objective of database management. Users from different departments, committees, and sections of a company with different agendas must be able to use a common pool of data at the same time as other users.

Additionally, database managers must ensure that the database is effective in its ability to:

• Meet the needs of all types of users
• Controlling concurrent updates to data
• Connecting and building relationships between interrelated data
• Handle database recovery operations for all users if the system goes down

When these objectives are effectively handled and database management is in order, users will be able to maximize the resources and functions provided by the database.