Route 3 Data
3.1
Data Types
Numeric Data
Text Data
Media Data - visually or audio format
Geospatial Data - Location
Temporal Data - Moment in time (date)
Logical Data - boolean data (true or false)
Sources of data for organisations - Internal Data
Sales Data
Marketing Data
Financial Data
Employee Data
Customer Data
Usage Data (Online platform of business e.g website, social media)
Sources of data for organisations - External Data
Public
Data warehouse - A central collection of key data in one place
Data lake - Data stores that hold data in an unstructured way, opposite of data warehouse
Government
Suppliers
Competitors
Sector/Industry
Data Storage
Methods of storing data on premises
Internal databases
File structures and formats
Hard Drives - HDD, SDD
Portable storage devices
File servers
Network attached storage - A storage device in the network that acts as a central point for the storage, management and access of files
Storage area network - A network of interconnected storage devices accessible by computers and servers, it uses Block storage where data gets broken down into blocks and are stored separately
Cloud Storage
File storage - Provides access to data through shared file systems
Object storage - A flat structure where files are broken into pieces and spread out among the storage devices
Block storage - The splitting of files into blocks of data and they get stored as separate pieces, each block of data is given a unique identifier
Cloud-based database service - a database built and accessed through a cloud platform
3.2
Input - the collection of raw data
Saving/storage
Processing
Analyse
Update
Remove
Integrate - different data sets, types and formats can be combined into a single location
Output
The output from the analysed data
Feedback loop
Output that is returned to for example the management
3.3 The concepts and tools of data modelling
Data dictionary
Information about data that will be included in a database
Entity relationship diagrams
Entities which will become the tables
Columns which describe the tables and are also called attributes which will become fields in a database
Relationships which are how the entities are linked. They can be one to one, one to many or many to many
Data flow diagrams
3.4 The concepts involved in data entry and maintenance
Data entry
Assign common data types to screen input boxes
This is the process where types of data (e.g numbers) is entered in input boxes. This means that a box will only accept that type of data to be entered
Reducing risk of data entry errors
Verification methods:
Entering the data twice
Cross-checking
Check digit
Format check
Length check
Lookup table
Privacy
One data is entered into your system, it needs to be kept private and secured
Data maintenance
Over time data will need to be changed and maintained so that it is still accurate and it complies with legislation
User
Users are able to modify data depending on their job role/status at the company
The digital system administrator
This person would control who his able to edit data.
Whoever can edit data will depend on:
User level
User group level
File level
Business resource considerations for data entry and maintenance
A business needs to be considerate about data entries as it can also impact businesses negatively as they would have to comply with legislation, it could increase costs as the more data the more storage you will need and more staff that will have to maintain that data
3.6 Methods of presenting and visualising data and their suitability for application
Presenting Data
Reports
Data can be presented in data reports
Digital slides
Webinars
This is like a video conference/online meeting
Extended reality
VR
AR
Video and sound
Animation
Visualising data
The way data can be visualised
Graphs and charts
3.5 Characteristics of data formats and importance for analysis
Data formats
Three main formats:
File-based
Directory-Based
Relational database systems
File based structure
Data held in a file, it helps with basic data management and analysis
Directory based structure
Data is held across many files, e.g a presentation can show data from a spreadsheet or database
Relational database systems
This system is designed using the ERD data modelling tool.
Data is connected by relationships.
Normalisation, primary and foreign keys are used to reduce data redundancy
Importance for analysis
If data is stored in the right format and in the right place it makes it easier to find when you need to get it for an analysis
Dashboards
Data tables
Infographics
Maps and heat maps
Suitability for application
When you present data to someone, you need to consider the presentation and visualisation methods
Formal or informal
Formal communication - used at meetings, reporting to line managers or as part of a formal feedback process. Slangs or shortens words not used
Informal communication - occurs anywhere, used at meetings with peers or for an informal department discussion about a specific topic. Slangs are likely to be used
Meeting requirements
If there are any requirements provided in the brief about the presentation, they would have to be followed. The brief would also provide information about the message that needs to be portrayed through the presentation
3.7 Applications of data within an organisation
Analysis
Identify trends and patterns
Monitoring performance
Advantages
The best employees can be identifies and rewarded as they should.
Delivery drivers can be tracked to ensure their safety and that of delivery vehicles and contents.
Employees could work flexible hours as monitoring them can ensure that they complete their tasks.
Disadvantages
Employees can feel that they are not trusted.
Employees can feel that monitoring them would be an invasion of their privacy.
Employees stress level can increase which could lead to damage to their health
Marketing
Forecasting
With data they can carry out a predictive analysis. That will help them predict stuff about sales for examples.
Techniques used:
Machine learning
Statistics
Data mining
AI
Targeting customers and customer profiles
Direct marketing promotion
Operational management
Monitoring and control of the operations that are carried out by an organisation.
To set up and monitor key performance indicators
This will help follow the steps involved in setting and monitoring KPIs
To review the objectives of the business
Analyse the current performance of the business
Set short and long term KPI targets
Review targets
Monitor progress and revisit the KPI
3.8 Types of data access management
User access controls
Physical access
Remote access
Permissions
Authentication
Application programming interface
Certificates:
Private certificate - only used internally within the business, the most secure
Partner certificate - available to trusted partners of the business, secure as long as the partner is trustable
Public - The least secure, it's available to everyone
Uses of APIs
It enables users to manage, access and use data across a range of platforms.
An advantage is that an user doesnt need to make accounts for different websites, the user just needs to have an account with that API
Vulnerabilities
Over time, APIs can become insecure which leads to vulnerability that can be exploited by risks and threats. As most data is interconnected, if one API is insecure that can create a massive vulnerability which leads to a higher risk of threat to everything that this API interacts with
3.9 Types and application of access control methods
Role- based access control
This type of access control gives a user access based on their role at the company
Attribute- based access control
This type of access control gives a user access based on attributes or characteristics.
Four types of attributes that can be used:
User attributes - a description of the person (system username, ID, job title/role and department
Resource attributes - describes the resource that is being accessed
Action attributes - describes what the user will do with the resource
Environmental attributes - describe the context of the access attempt (day, time, location and device
Mandatory access control
Gives control based on a hierarchy of security levels
Essentially, if a folder for example, does not have loads of security, most people of that company would be able to access it
Discretionary access control
Gives control based on permissions granted by the owner of the resource or data