Informatica MDM Multidomain Edition

(Version 9.7.1)

Overview
Informatica MDM Multidomain Edition Overview

Version 9.7.1
March 2014

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Part Number: MDM-OVG-97100-0001

Table of Contents
Preface . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . iii
Informatica Resources. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . iii
Informatica My Support Portal. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . iii
Informatica Documentation. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . iii
Informatica Web Site. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . iii
Informatica How-To Library. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . iv
Informatica Knowledge Base. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . iv
Informatica Support YouTube Channel. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . iv
Informatica Marketplace. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . iv
Informatica Velocity. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . iv
Informatica Global Customer Support. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . iv

Chapter 1: Introduction to Informatica MDM Hub. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1

Master Data Management. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
Master Data and Master Data Management . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
Customer Case Studies. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
Key Adoption Drivers for Master Data Management. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
Informatica MDM Hub as the Enterprise MDM Platform. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
About Informatica MDM Hub. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
Core Capabilities. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3

Chapter 2: Informatica MDM Hub Architecture. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5

Key Informatica MDM Hub Components. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
Core Components. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
Hub Store. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
Hub Server. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
Process Server. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
Hub Console. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
Hierarchy Manager. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
Security Access Manager. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
Repository Manager . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
Services Integration Framework. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
Informatica Data Director. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8

Chapter 3: Key Concepts. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10

Inbound and Outbound Data Flows. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
Main Inbound Data Flow (Reconciliation). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
Main Outbound Data Flow (Distribution). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
Batch and Real-Time Processing. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
Batch Processing. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12

Table of Contents i
 Land Process. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
Stage Process. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
Load Process. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
Tokenize Process. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
Match Process. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
Consolidate Process. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
Publish Process. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
Real-Time Processing. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
Databases in the Hub Store. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
Content Metadata. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
Base Objects. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
Cross-Reference (XREF) Tables. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
History Tables. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
Workflow Integration and State Management. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
Hierarchy Management. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
Relationships. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
Hierarchies. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
Entities. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
Timeline. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19

Chapter 4: Topics for Informatica MDM Hub Users. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20

Administrators. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
About Informatica MDM Hub Administrators. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
Documentation Resources for Informatica MDM Hub Administrators. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
Developers. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
About Informatica MDM Hub Developers. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
Documentation Resources for Informatica MDM Hub Developers. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
Data Stewards. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
About Informatica MDM Hub Data Stewards. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
Documentation Resources for Informatica MDM Hub Data Stewards. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22

Index. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23

ii Table of Contents
Preface
Welcome to the Informatica MDM Hub Overview. This document provides an overview of the Informatica
MDM Hub suite of products, describes the product architecture, and defines key concepts that you need to
understand in order to use Informatica MDM Hub in your organization.

This document is intended to introduce important Informatica MDM Hub concepts to anyone who is involved
in a Informatica MDM Hub implementation. This document is primarily directed at those who are charged with
the responsibility of managing, implementing, or using Informatica MDM Hub in an organization. Its audience
includes—but is not limited to—project managers, installers, developers, administrators, system integrators,
database administrators, data stewards, and other technical specialists associated with a Informatica MDM
Hub implementation. The goal of this document is to provide users with a succinct but comprehensive, high-
level understanding of the product suite, along with instructions on where to go in the product documentation
set to find more information about specific topics.

Informatica Resources

Informatica My Support Portal

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Informatica Documentation
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documentation. Let us know if we can contact you regarding your comments.

The Documentation team updates documentation as needed. To get the latest documentation for your
product, navigate to Product Documentation from http://mysupport.informatica.com.

Informatica Web Site

You can access the Informatica corporate web site at http://www.informatica.com. The site contains
information about Informatica, its background, upcoming events, and sales offices. You will also find product

iii
 and partner information. The services area of the site includes important information about technical support,
training and education, and implementation services.

Informatica How-To Library

As an Informatica customer, you can access the Informatica How-To Library at
http://mysupport.informatica.com. The How-To Library is a collection of resources to help you learn more
about Informatica products and features. It includes articles and interactive demonstrations that provide
solutions to common problems, compare features and behaviors, and guide you through performing specific
real-world tasks.

Informatica Knowledge Base

As an Informatica customer, you can access the Informatica Knowledge Base at
http://mysupport.informatica.com. Use the Knowledge Base to search for documented solutions to known
technical issues about Informatica products. You can also find answers to frequently asked questions,
technical white papers, and technical tips. If you have questions, comments, or ideas about the Knowledge
Base, contact the Informatica Knowledge Base team through email at [email protected].

Informatica Support YouTube Channel

You can access the Informatica Support YouTube channel at http://www.youtube.com/user/INFASupport. The
Informatica Support YouTube channel includes videos about solutions that guide you through performing
specific tasks. If you have questions, comments, or ideas about the Informatica Support YouTube channel,
contact the Support YouTube team through email at [email protected] or send a tweet to
@INFASupport.

Informatica Marketplace
The Informatica Marketplace is a forum where developers and partners can share solutions that augment,
extend, or enhance data integration implementations. By leveraging any of the hundreds of solutions
available on the Marketplace, you can improve your productivity and speed up time to implementation on
your projects. You can access Informatica Marketplace at http://www.informaticamarketplace.com.

Informatica Velocity
You can access Informatica Velocity at http://mysupport.informatica.com. Developed from the real-world
experience of hundreds of data management projects, Informatica Velocity represents the collective
knowledge of our consultants who have worked with organizations from around the world to plan, develop,
deploy, and maintain successful data management solutions. If you have questions, comments, or ideas
about Informatica Velocity, contact Informatica Professional Services at [email protected].

Informatica Global Customer Support

You can contact a Customer Support Center by telephone or through the Online Support.

Online Support requires a user name and password. You can request a user name and password at
http://mysupport.informatica.com.

The telephone numbers for Informatica Global Customer Support are available from the Informatica web site
at http://www.informatica.com/us/services-and-training/support-services/global-support-centers/.

iv Preface
CHAPTER 1

Introduction to Informatica MDM

Hub
This chapter includes the following topics:

• Master Data Management, 1

• Informatica MDM Hub as the Enterprise MDM Platform, 2

Master Data Management

This section introduces master data management as a discipline for improving data reliability across the
enterprise.

Master Data and Master Data Management

Master data is a collection of common, core entities along with their attributes and their values that are
considered critical to a company's business, and that are required for use in two or more systems or business
processes. Examples of master data include customer, product, employee, supplier, and location data.
Complexity arises from the fact that master data is often strewn across many channels and applications
within an organization, invariably containing duplicate and conflicting data.

Master Data Management (MDM) is the controlled process by which the master data is created and
maintained as the system of record for the enterprise. MDM is implemented in order to ensure that the master
data is validated as correct, consistent, and complete. Optionally, MDM can be implemented to ensure that
Master Data is circulated in context for consumption by internal or external business processes, applications,
or users.

Ultimately, MDM is deployed as part of the broader Data Governance program that involves a combination of
technology, people, policy, and process. The following steps comprise the interative process of implementing
an MDM solution.

Step 1: Policy
Determine who the data domain and policy makers are. The data domain and policy makers then
develop policy definitions, strategies, objectives, metrics, and a revision process.

Step 2: Process
Process executers define data usage, management processes, and protocols – for people, applications,
and services – including how to store, archive, and protect data.

1
 Step 3: Controls
Process managers create controls to enforce and monitor policy compliance and to identify policy
exceptions.

Step 4: Audit
Auditors review, access, and report historical performance of the system. Auditor reports then feed into
governance and policy revision (step 1).

Organizations are implementing master data management solutions to enhance data reliability and data
maintenance procedures. Tight controls over data imply a clear understanding of the myriad data entities that
exist across the organization, data maintenance processes and best practices, and secure access to the
usage of data.

Customer Case Studies

The Informatica web site (http://www.informatica.com) provides case studies that describe how Informatica
customers have benefited by deploying Informatica MDM Hub in their organizations.

Key Adoption Drivers for Master Data Management

Organizations are implementing master data management solutions to achieve the following goals:

• Regulatory compliance, such as financial reporting and data privacy requirements.

• Avoid corporate embarrassments. For example, you can improve recall effectiveness and avoid mailing to
deceased individuals.
• Cost savings by streamlining business processes, consolidating software licenses, and reducing the costs
associated with data administration, application development, data cleansing, third-party data providers,
and capital costs.
• Productivity improvements across the organization by reducing duplicate, inaccurate, and poor-quality
data, helping to refocus resources on more strategic or higher-value activities.
• Increased revenue by improving visibility and access to accurate customer data, resulting in increased
yields for marketing campaigns and better opportunities for cross-selling and up-selling to customers and
prospects.
• Strategic goals, such as customer loyalty and retention, supply chain excellence, strategic sourcing and
contracting, geographic expansion, and marketing effectiveness.

Informatica MDM Hub as the Enterprise MDM

Platform
This section describes Informatica MDM Hub (hereafter referred to as Informatica MDM Hub) as an MDM
platform.

2 Chapter 1: Introduction to Informatica MDM Hub

About Informatica MDM Hub
Informatica MDM Hub is the best platform available today for deploying MDM solutions across the enterprise.
Informatica MDM Hub offers an integrated, model-driven, and flexible enterprise MDM platform that can be
used to create and manage all kinds of master data.

Characteristic Description

Integrated Informatica MDM Hub provides a single code-base with all data management
technologies, and handles all entity data types in all modes (for operational and
analytical use).

Model-Driven Informatica MDM Hub models an organization’s business definitions according to its
own requirements and style. All metadata and business services are generated on
the organization’s definitions. Informatica MDM Hub can be configured with history
and lineage.

Flexible Informatica MDM Hub implements all types of MDM styles registry. Reconciled
trusted source of truth and styles can be combined within a single hub. Informatica
MDM Hub also coexists with legacy hubs.

Core Capabilities
As data arrives at the hub, it is often not standardized. This standardization includes name corrections (for
example, Mike to Michael), address standardizations (for example, 123 Elm St., NY NY to 123 Elm
Street, New York, NY), as well as data transformations (one data model to another). The data can be
enriched or augmented with data from third-party data providers such as D&B and Acxiom. Informatica MDM
Hub provides out-of-the-box integration with major third-party data providers within its user interface.

After data standardization and enrichment, common records are identified by rapidly matching against each
other. Once common records are identified, you can either link them as a registry style or merge the best
attributes from the matched records to create the Best Version of the Truth. This reconciliation process,
achieved within the Informatica Trust Framework and governed by configured business rules, provides the
best attributes from contributing systems.

Relating people and organizations is a key requirement for many organizations. Informatica MDM Hub’s
Hierarchy Management capabilities let users group people into households and companies into corporate
hierarchies.

Informatica MDM Hub also provides GUI-based functionality, enabling users to define and configure business
rules that affect how data is cleansed, matched, and merged. This data management workflow presents the
exceptions or non-automated matches to the data steward for resolution.

All data in the Informatica MDM Hub is available based on the entitlement rules that are put in place,
ensuring that only authorized users can view or modify the data and, if necessary, mask important data (such
as tax ID numbers).

One common goal of sharing the data in Informatica MDM Hub is to synchronize it with contributing source
systems as well as downstream systems. Informatica MDM Hub can be configured to handle these
synchronizations in real time, near-real time, or batch mode. If in real time or near-real time mode,
Informatica MDM Hub is smart enough to avoid loop backs with the system that initiated the change in the
first place.

Informatica MDM Hub also has the ability to dynamically aggregate transaction and activity data into a central
record, leveraging federated query technology built into the hub. This allows organizations to store only the
reference data in the hub while providing access to all the transaction data in real time.

Informatica MDM Hub as the Enterprise MDM Platform 3

 With the complete view of the client and their transactions, users can configure notification events that are
triggered when data changes and can kick off a workflow process, an email, or invoke a web service. This
allows organizations to respond to changes as they happen.

Finally, Informatica MDM Hub can be configured to share data using pre-configured web services, or
organizations can assemble higher-level functions by orchestrating multiple services.

4 Chapter 1: Introduction to Informatica MDM Hub

CHAPTER 2

Informatica MDM Hub

Architecture
This chapter includes the following topics:

• Key Informatica MDM Hub Components, 5

• Core Components, 6
• Hierarchy Manager, 7
• Security Access Manager, 7
• Repository Manager , 7
• Services Integration Framework, 8
• Informatica Data Director, 8

Key Informatica MDM Hub Components

Informatica MDM Hub includes the following key components:

Component Description

“Core Components” on page 6 Provides core Informatica MDM Hub functionality.

“Hierarchy Manager” on page Builds and manages the data describing the relationships between master
7 records. Also known as HM.

“Security Access Manager” on Provides comprehensive and highly-granular security mechanisms to ensure
page 7 that only authenticated and authorized users have access to Informatica MDM
Hub data, resources, and functionality. Also known as SAM.

“ Repository Manager ” on page Allows administrators to manage metadata in their Informatica MDM Hub
7 implementation. Also known as MET.

“Services Integration Enables external applications to request Informatica MDM Hub operations and
Framework” on page 8 gain access to Informatica MDM Hub resources using an application
programming interface (API). Also known as SIF.

“Informatica Data Director” on Data governance application that enables business users to create, manage,
page 8 consume, and monitor master data in Informatica Hub. Also known as IDD.

5
Core Components
The Informatica MDM Hub consists of the following core components:

• The Hub Store

• The Hub Server
• Process Server
• The Hub Console

Hub Store
The Hub Store is where business data is stored and consolidated. The Hub Store contains common
information about all of the databases that are part of a Informatica MDM Hub implementation. The Hub Store
resides in a supported database server environment.

The Hub Store contains:

• all the master records for all entities across different source systems
• rich metadata and the associated rules needed to determine and continually maintain only the most
reliable cell-level attributes in each master record
• logic for data consolidation functions, such as merging and unmerging data

Hub Server
The Hub Server is the run-time component that manages core and common services for the Informatica MDM
Hub. The Hub Server is a J2EE application, deployed on the application server, that orchestrates the data
processing within the Hub Store, as well as integration with external applications.

Process Server
The Process Server cleanses and matches data and performs batch jobs such as load, recalculate BVT, and
revalidate. The Process Server is deployed in an application server environment.

The Process interfaces with cleanse engines to standardize the data and to optimize the data for match and
consolidation.

Hub Console
The Hub Console is the Informatica MDM Hub user interface that comprises a set of tools for administrators
and data stewards. Each tool allows users to perform a specific action, or a set of related actions, such as
building the data model, running batch jobs, configuring the data flow, configuring external application access
to Informatica MDM Hub resources, and other system configuration and operation tasks.

The Hub Console is packaged inside the Hub Server application. It can be launched on any client machine
through a URL using a browser and Sun’s Java Web Start.

Note: The available tools in the Hub Console depend on your Informatica license agreement.

6 Chapter 2: Informatica MDM Hub Architecture

Hierarchy Manager
Informatica Hierarchy Manager (HM) is based on the foundation of the MDM Hub. As the name implies,
Hierarchy Manager allows users to manage hierarchy data that is associated with the records managed in the
MDM Hub.

Hierarchy Manager provides a way to define hierarchical relationships and centrally manage data in a
hierarchical manner. Many of the systems that are included in the master data management (MDM)
landscape maintain the information about the relationships among the different data entities, as well as of the
entities themselves. These disparate systems make it difficult to view and manage relationship data because
each application has a different hierarchy, such as customer-to-account, sales-to-account or product-to-
sales. Meanwhile, each data warehouse and data mart is designed to reflect relationships necessary for
specific reporting purposes, such as sales by region by product over a specific period of time.

Hierarchy Manager includes two tools in the Hub Console:

Tool Description

Hierarchies tool Used by Informatica MDM Hub administrators to set up the structures (entity types,
hierarchies, relationships types, packages, and profiles) required to view and
manipulate data relationships in Hierarchy Manager.

Hierarchy Manager tool Used by data stewards to define and manage hierarchical relationships in their Hub
Store.

The run-time component of Hierarchy Manager is bundled and deployed with the Hub Server application in
the J2EE application server environment.

Security Access Manager

Informatica Security Access Manager (SAM) is the part of Informatica MDM Hub that provides
comprehensive and highly-granular security mechanisms to ensure that only authenticated and authorized
users have access to Informatica MDM Hub data, resources, and functionality. Security Access Manager
provide a mechanism for security decisions, and can integrate with security providers third-party products
that provide security services (authentication, authorization, and user profile services) for users accessing
Informatica MDM Hub.

Note: The way in which you configure and implement Informatica MDM Hub security is governed by your
organization’s particular security requirements, by the IT environment in which it is deployed, and by your
organization’s security policies, procedures, and best practices.

Repository Manager
The Repository Manager is a tool in the Hub Console that allows administrators to manage metadata in their
Informatica MDM Hub implementation. Metadata describes the various schema design and configuration
components such as base objects and associated columns, cleanse functions, match rules, and mappings in
the Hub Store.

Hierarchy Manager 7
 Using the Repository Manager, administrators can perform the following tasks:

• Validate the metadata in a Informatica MDM Hub repository and generate a report of issues
(discrepancies or problems between the physical and logical schemas) that warrant attention.
• Compare repositories and generate change lists that describe the differences between them.
• Copy design objects from one repository to another such as promoting a design object from development
to production, or exporting/importing design objects between Informatica MDM Hub implementations. In a
distributed development environment, developers can use the Repository Manager tool to share and re-
use design objects.
• Export the repository’s metadata to an XML file for subsequent import or archival purposes.
• Visualize the schema using a graphical model view of the repository.
For more information about the Repository Manager, see the Informatica MDM Multidomain Edition
Repository Manager Guide.

Services Integration Framework

The Services Integration Framework (SIF) is the part of Informatica MDM Hub that interfaces with external
programs and applications. SIF enables external applications to implement the request/response interactions
using any of the following architectural variations:

• Loosely coupled web services using the SOAP protocol.

• Tightly coupled Java remote procedure calls based on Enterprise JavaBeans (EJBs) or XML.
• Asynchronous Java Message Service (JMS)-based messages.
These capabilities enable Informatica MDM Hub to support multiple modes of data access, expose numerous
Informatica MDM Hub data services through the SIF SDK, and produce events based on data changes in the
Informatica Hub. This facilitates inbound and outbound integration with external applications and data
sources, which can be used in both synchronous and asynchronous modes.

Informatica Data Director

The Informatica Data Director (IDD) is a data governance application for Informatica MDM Hub that enables
business users to effectively create, manage, consume, and monitor master data. Informatica Data Director is
web-based, task-oriented, workflow-driven, highly customizable, and highly configurable, providing a web-
based configuration wizard that creates an easy-to-use interface based on your organization’s data model.

Integrated task management ensures that all data changes are automatically routed to the appropriate
personnel for approval prior to impacting to the 'best version of the truth.' As tasks are routed, the Informatica
Data Director Dashboard provides business users with a view of assigned tasks, while also providing a
graphical view into key metrics such as productivity and data quality trending.

In addition, Informatica Data Director leverages Informatica's Security Access Manager (SAM) module,
providing a comprehensive and flexible security framework - enabling both attribute and data level security.
With this, customers can strike that elusive balance between open and secure by strengthening policy
compliance and ensuring access to critical information.

8 Chapter 2: Informatica MDM Hub Architecture

Informatica Data Director enables data stewards and other business users to:

• Create Master Data. Working individually or collaboratively across lines of business, users can add new
entities and records to the Hub Store. Offering capabilities such as inline data cleansing and duplicate
record identification and resolution during data entry, Informatica Data Director enables users to
proactively validate, augment, and enrich their master data.
• Manage Master Data. Users can approve and manage updates to master data, manage hierarchies using
drag and drop, resolve potential matches and merge duplicates, and create and assign tasks to other
users.
• Consume Master Data. Users can search for all master data from a central location, and then view
master data details and hierarchies. Users can also embed UI components into business applications.
• Monitor Master Data. Users can track the lineage and history of master data, audit their master data for
compliance, and use a customizable dashboard that shows them the most relevant information.
With the Informatica Data Director, companies can reduce cost of quality by proactively managing data,
improve productivity by finding accurate information faster, enable compliance by providing a complete,
consistent view of data and lineage, and increase revenue by acting on master data relationship insights.

Informatica Data Director 9

CHAPTER 3

Key Concepts
This chapter includes the following topics:

• Inbound and Outbound Data Flows, 10

• Batch and Real-Time Processing, 12
• Batch Processing, 12
• Real-Time Processing, 16
• Databases in the Hub Store, 17
• Content Metadata, 17
• Workflow Integration and State Management, 18
• Hierarchy Management, 18
• Timeline, 19

Inbound and Outbound Data Flows

This section describes the main inbound and outbound data flows for Informatica MDM Hub.

10
Main Inbound Data Flow (Reconciliation)
The main inbound flow into Informatica MDM Hub is called reconciliation.

In Informatica MDM Hub, business entities such as customers, accounts, products, or employees are
represented in tables called base objects. For a given base object:

• Informatica MDM Hub obtains data from one or more source systems, an operational system or third-party
application that provides data to Informatica MDM Hub for cleansing, matching, consolidating, and
maintenance. Reconciliation can involve cleansing the data beforehand to optimize the process of
matching and consolidating records. Cleansing is the process by which data is standardized by validating,
correcting, completing, or enriching it.
• An individual entity (such as a specific customer or account) can be represented by multiple records
(multiple versions of the truth) in the base object
• Informatica MDM Hub then reconciles multiple versions of the truth to arrive at the master record, the best
version of the truth, for each individual entity. Consolidation is the process of merging duplicate records to
create a consolidated record that contains the most reliable cell values from the source records.
For example, suppose the billing, finance, and customer relationship management applications all have
different billing addresses for a given customer. Informatica MDM Hub can be configured to determine which
data represents the best version of the truth based on the relative reliability of column data from different
source systems based on such factors as the age of the data (the customer’s most recent purchase).

The Hub reconciles and consolidates source records from different systems into a master record. Data in the
master record might derive from a single record (such as the most recent billing address from the billing
system), or it might represent a composite of data from different records.

Inbound and Outbound Data Flows 11

 Main Outbound Data Flow (Distribution)
The main outbound flow out of Informatica MDM Hub is called distribution. Once the master record is
established for a given entity, Informatica MDM Hub can then (optionally) distribute the master record data to
other applications or databases.

For example, if an organization’s billing address has changed in Informatica MDM Hub, then Informatica
MDM Hub can notify other systems in the organization (through JMS messaging) about the updated
information so that master data is synchronized across the enterprise.

Batch and Real-Time Processing

Informatica MDM Hub has a well-defined data management flow that proceeds through distinct processes in
order for the data to get reconciled and distributed. Data can be processed by Informatica MDM Hub into two
different ways: batch processing and real-time processing. Many Informatica MDM Hub implementations use
a combination of both batch and real-time processing as applicable to the organization’s requirements.

Batch Processing
For batch processing, data is loaded from source systems and processed in Informatica MDM Hub through
the following series of processes:

12 Chapter 3: Key Concepts

 Step 1: Land
Transfers data from a source system (external to Informatica MDM Hub) to landing tables in the Hub
Store. Part of the reconciliation process described in “Main Inbound Data Flow (Reconciliation)” on page
11 .

Step 2: Stage
Retrieves data from the landing table, cleanses it (if applicable), and copies it into a staging table in the
Hub Store. Part of the reconciliation process.

Step 3: Load
Loads data from the staging table into the corresponding Hub Store table (base object). Part of the
reconciliation process.

Step 4: Tokenize
Generates match tokens in a match key table that are used subsequently by the match process to
identify candidate base object records for matching.

Step 5: Match
Compares records for points of similarity (based on match rules), determines whether records are
duplicates, and flags duplicate records for consolidation. Part of the reconciliation process.

Step 6: Consolidate
Merges data in duplicate records to create a consolidated record that contains the most reliable cell
values from the source records. Part of the reconciliation process.

Step 7: Publish
Publishes the Best Version of Truth to other systems or processes using outbound JMS message
queues. Part of the distribution process described in “Main Outbound Data Flow (Distribution)” on page
12 .

Informatica MDM Hub batch processes are implemented as database stored procedures that can be invoked
from the Hub Console or through custom scripts using third-party job management tools.

In Informatica MDM Hub implementations, batch processing is used as appropriate. For example, batch
processing is often used for the initial data load (the first time that business data is loaded into the Hub
Store), as it can be the most efficient way to load a large number of records into Informatica MDM Hub. Batch
processing is also used when it is the only way or the most efficient way to get data from a particular source
system.

For more information about batch processes, see the Informatica MDM Hub Configuration Guide , Informatica
MDM Hub Services Integration Framework Guide, Informatica MDM Hub Data Steward Guide, and the
Informatica MDM Hub Javadoc.

Land Process
The land process transfers data from a source system to landing tables in the Hub Store. A landing table
provides intermediate storage in the flow of data from source systems into Informatica MDM Hub. In effect,
landing tables are “where data lands” from contributing source systems.

Batch Processing 13
 Landing tables are populated during the land process in either of two ways:

Mode Description

batch processing A third-party ETL (Extract-Transform-Load) tool or other external process writes the
data into one or more landing tables. Such tools or processes are not part of the
Informatica MDM Hub suite of products.

on-line, real-time An external application populates landing tables in the Hub Store. This application
processing is not part of the Informatica MDM Hub suite of products.

The land process is external to Informatica MDM Hub and is executed using an external batch process such
as a third-party ETL (Extract-Transform-Load) tool, or in on-line, real-time mode in which an external
application directly populates landing tables in the Hub Store. Subsequent processes for managing data are
internal to Informatica MDM Hub.

Stage Process
The stage process reads the data from the landing table, cleanses the data if applicable, and moves the
cleansed data into a staging table in the Hub Store. The staging table provides temporary, intermediate
storage in the flow of data from landing tables into base objects.

Mappings facilitate the transfer and cleansing of data between landing and staging tables during the stage
process. A mapping defines:

• which landing table column is used to populate a column in the staging table
• what standardization and verification (cleansing) must be done, if any, before the staging table is
populated.
Informatica MDM Hub standardizes and verifies data using cleanse functions. Each cleanse function provides
access to specialized cleansing functionality, such as address verification, address decomposition, gender
determination, title/upper/lower-casing, white space compression, and so forth. The output of the cleanse
function becomes the input to the target column in the staging table.

Load Process
The load process loads data from the staging table into the corresponding Hub Store table, called a base
object.

If a column in a base object derives its data from multiple source systems, Informatica MDM Hub uses trust to
help with comparing the relative reliability of column data from different source systems. For example, the
Orders system might be a more reliable source of billing addresses than the Sales system.

Trust provides a mechanism for measuring the confidence factor associated with each cell based on its
source system, change history, and other business rules. Trust takes into account the age of data, how much
its reliability has decayed over time, and the validity of the data. Trust is used to determine survivorship
(when two records are consolidated) and whether updates from a source system are sufficiently reliable to
update the master record.

Trust is often used in conjunction with validation rules, which tell Informatica MDM Hub the condition under
which a data value is not valid. When data meets the criterion specified by the validation rule, then the trust
value for that data is downgraded by the percentage specified in the validation rule. For example:
Downgrade trust on First_Name by 50% if Length < 3

14 Chapter 3: Key Concepts

Tokenize Process
The tokenize process generates match tokens that are used subsequently by the match process to identify
candidate base object records for matching. Match tokens are strings that represent both encoded (match
key) and unencoded (raw) values in the match columns of the base object. Match keys are fixed-length,
compressed, and encoded values, built from a combination of the words and numbers in a name or address,
such that relevant variations have the same match key value.

The generated match tokens are stored in a match key table associated with the base object. For each
record in the base object, the tokenize process stores one or more records containing generated match
tokens in the match key table. The match process depends on current data in the match key table, and will
run the tokenize process automatically if match tokens have not been generated for any of the records in the
base object. The tokenize process can be run before the match process, automatically at the end of the load
process, or manually, as a batch job or stored procedure.

The Hub Console allows users to investigate the distribution of match keys in the match key table. Users can
identify potential hot spots in their data (high concentrations of match keys that could result in overmatching)
where the match process generates too many matches, including matches that are not relevant.

Match Process
The match process identifies data that conforms to the match rules that you have defined. These rules define
duplicate data for Informatica MDM Hub to consolidate. Matching is the process of comparing two records for
points of similarity. If sufficient points of similarity are found to indicate that the two records are probably
duplicates of each other, then Informatica MDM Hub flags those records for consolidation.

In a base object, the columns to be used for comparison purposes are called match columns. Each match
column is based on one or more columns from the base object. Match columns are combined into match
rules to determine the conditions under which two records are considered to be similar enough to
consolidate. Each match rule tells Informatica MDM Hub the combination of match columns it needs to
examine for points of similarity. When Informatica MDM Hub finds two records that satisfy a match rule, it
records the primary keys of the records, as well as the match rule identifier. The records are flagged for
either automatic or manual consolidation according to the category of the match rule.

External match is used to match new data with existing data in a base object, test for matches, and inspect
the results without actually loading the data into the base object. External matching is used to pretest data,
test match rules, and inspect the results before running the actual match process on the data.

Batch Processing 15
 Consolidate Process
After duplicate records have been identified in the match process, the consolidate process merges duplicate
records into a single record.

The goal in Informatica MDM Hub is to identify and eliminate all duplicate data and to merge them together
into a single, consolidated master record containing the most reliable cell values from the source records. For
more information about the consolidate process, see the Informatica MDM Hub Configuration Guide .

Publish Process
The publish process can be configured to publish the BVT to an outbound JMS message queue. Other
external systems, processes, or applications that listen on the message queue can retrieve the message and
process it accordingly. For more information about the publish process, see “Configuring the Publish
Process” in the Informatica MDM Hub Configuration Guide .

Real-Time Processing
For real-time processing, applications that are external to Informatica MDM Hub invoke Informatica MDM Hub
operations through the Services Integration Framework (SIF) interface. SIF provides APIs for various
Informatica MDM Hub services, such as reading, cleansing, matching, inserting, and updating records.

In Informatica MDM Hub implementations, real-time processing is used as appropriate. For example, real-
time processing can be used to update data in the Hub Store whenever a record is added, updated, or
deleted in a source system. Real-time processing can also be used to handle incremental data loads (data
loads that occur after the initial data load) into the Hub Store.

For more information about SIF, see the Informatica MDM Hub Services Integration Framework Guide and
the Informatica MDM Hub Javadoc. Informatica MDM Hub can generate events to notify external applications
when specific data changes occur in the Hub Store.

16 Chapter 3: Key Concepts

Databases in the Hub Store
The Hub Store is a collection of databases that contain configuration settings and data processing rules.

The Master Database is a database in the Hub Store that contains the Informatica MDM Hub environment
configuration settings, user accounts, security configuration, ORS registry, message queue settings, and so
on. A given Informatica MDM Hub environment can have only one Master Database.

An Operational Reference Store (ORS) is a database in the Hub Store that contains the master data, content
metadata, rules for processing the master data, the rules for managing the set of master data objects, along
with the processing rules and auxiliary logic used by the Informatica MDM Hub in defining the best version of
the truth (BVT). A Informatica MDM Hub configuration can have one or more ORS databases.

Note: The term, database that is used in the context of Master database and ORS refers to user schemas
and must not be confused with database systems.

Content Metadata
For each base object in the schema, Informatica MDM Hub automatically maintains support tables containing
content metadata about data that has been loaded into the Hub Store. For more information about content
metadata and support tables, see “Building the Schema” in the Informatica MDM Hub Configuration Guide .

Base Objects
A base object (sometimes abbreviated as BO) is a table in the Hub Store that is used to describe central
business entities, such as customers, accounts, products, employees, and so on. The base object is the end-
point for consolidating data from multiple source systems. In a Informatica MDM Hub implementation, the
schema (or data model) for an organization typically includes a collection of base objects.

The goal in Informatica MDM Hub is to create the master record for each instance of each unique entity
within a base object. The master record contains the best version of the truth (abbreviated as BVT), which is
a record that has been consolidated with the best, most-trustworthy cell values from the source records. For
example, for a Customer base object, you want to end up with a master record for each individual customer.
The master record in the base object contains the best version of the truth for that customer.

Cross-Reference (XREF) Tables

Cross-reference tables, sometimes referred to as XREF tables, are used for tracking the lineage of data,
which systems and which records from those systems contributed to consolidated records, and also for
tracking versions of data.

For each source system record, Informatica MDM Hub maintains a cross-reference record that contains an
identifier for the system that provided the record, the primary key value of that record in the source system,
and the most recent cell values provided by that system. In case of timeline-enabled base objects, the
associated XREF tables include the period start and end date values for the records. If the same column (for
example, phone number) is provided by multiple source systems, the XREF table contains the value from
every source system.

Each base object record has one or more cross-reference records. XREF tables are used for merge and
unmerge operations, delete management (removing records that were contributed by a particular source
system), and to manage versions of business entities and relationships.

Databases in the Hub Store 17

 History Tables
History tables are used for tracking the history of changes to a base object and its lineage back to the source
system. Informatica manages several different history tables, including base object and cross-reference
history tables, to provide detailed change-tracking options, including merge and unmerge history, history of
the pre-cleansed data, history of the base object, and history of the cross-reference.

Workflow Integration and State Management

Informatica MDM Hub supports workflow tools by storing pre-defined system states, ACTIVE, PENDING, and
DELETED, for base object and XREF records. By enabling state management on your data, Informatica
MDM Hub allows integration with workflow integration processes and tools, supports a “change approval”
process to ensure that only approved records contribute to the best version of the truth, and tracks
intermediate stages of the process (pending records). For more information, see “State Management” in the
Informatica MDM Hub Configuration Guide and the Informatica MDM Hub Data Steward Guide .

Hierarchy Management
The Hierarchy Manager (HM) allows users to manage hierarchy data that is associated with the records
managed in MRM. For more information, see the Informatica MDM Hub Configuration Guide and the
Informatica MDM Hub Data Steward Guide.

Relationships
In Hierarchy Manager, a relationship describes the affiliation between two specific entities. Hierarchy
Manager relationships are defined by specifying the relationship type, hierarchy type, attributes of the
relationship, and dates for when the relationship is active. Information about a Hierarchy Manager entity is
stored in a relationship base object. A relationship type describes classes of relationships. A relationship type
defines the types of entities that a relationship of this type can include, the direction of the relationship (if
any), and how the relationship is displayed in the Hub Console.

Hierarchies
A hierarchy is a set of relationship types. These relationship types are not ranked, nor are they necessarily
related to each other. They are merely relationship types that are grouped together for ease of classification
and identification. The same relationship type can be associated with multiple hierarchies. A hierarchy type is
a logical classification of hierarchies.

Entities
In Hierarchy Manager, an entity is any object, person, place, organization, or other thing that has meaning
and can be acted upon in your database. Examples include a specific person’s name, a specific checking
account number, a specific company, a specific address, and so on. Information about a Hierarchy Manager
entity is stored in an entity base object, which you create and configure in the Hub Console. An entity type is
a logical classification of one or more entities. Examples include doctors, checking accounts, banks, and so
on. All entities with the same entity type are stored in the same entity object.

18 Chapter 3: Key Concepts

Timeline
Timeline lets you manage versions of business entities and their relationships.

The versions of business entities and their relationships are defined in terms of their effective periods.
Timeline provides two dimensional visibility into data based on effective periods and history, and equips you
with the ability to track past, present, and future changes to data.

You can enable timeline for base objects through the MDM Hub console. When you enable timeline for base
objects, state management and history are also enabled by default.

Versions are maintained in the cross-reference tables associated with the timeline-enabled business entities
and their relationships. For more information, see the Informatica MDM Hub Configuration Guide .

Timeline 19
CHAPTER 4

Topics for Informatica MDM Hub

Users
This chapter includes the following topics:

• Administrators, 20
• Developers, 21
• Data Stewards, 21

Administrators
This section describes activities and resources for Informatica MDM Hub administrators.

About Informatica MDM Hub Administrators

Administrators have primary responsibility for the set up and configuration of the Informatica MDM Hub
system, including:

• installing the Informatica MDM Hub software

• setting up the database and Hub Store
• building the data model and other objects in the Hub Store
• configuring and executing Informatica MDM Hub data management processes
• configuring security
• configuring external application access to Informatica MDM Hub operations and resources
• monitoring ongoing operations
Administrators access Informatica MDM Hub through the Hub Console, which comprises a set of tools for
managing a Informatica MDM Hub implementation.

20
 Documentation Resources for Informatica MDM Hub
Administrators
You can refer to the following documentation for Informatica MDM Hub administrators:

Task Topic(s)

Concepts Informatica MDM Multidomain Edition Overview

Installation Informatica MDM Multidomain Edition Installation Guide for your platform
Informatica MDM Multidomain Edition Cleanse Adapter Guide
Informatica MDM Multidomain Edition Release Notes
Informatica MDM Multidomain Edition Release Guide

Administration Informatica MDM Multidomain Edition Configuration Guide

Informatica MDM Multidomain Edition Repository Manager Guide

Developers
This section describes activities and resources for Informatica MDM Hub developers.

About Informatica MDM Hub Developers

Developers have primary responsibility for designing, developing, testing, and deploying external applications
that integrate with Informatica MDM Hub.

Documentation Resources for Informatica MDM Hub Developers

You can refer to the following Informatica MDM Hub documentation for Informatica MDM Hub developers:

Task Topic(s)

Concepts Informatica MDM Hub Overview, especially “Services Integration Framework” on page
8.

Configuration Part 5, “Configuring Application Access,” in the Informatica MDM Hub Configuration
Guide

Application Development Informatica MDM Hub Services Integration Framework Guide

Informatica MDM Hub Resource Kit Guide

Reference Informatica MDM Hub Javadoc

Data Stewards
This section describes activities and resources for data stewards using Informatica MDM Hub tools.

Developers 21
 About Informatica MDM Hub Data Stewards
Data stewards have primary responsibility for data quality. Data stewards can access Informatica MDM Hub
in any of the following ways:

• Informatica Data Director

• Hub Console, which includes the following tools:

Tool Description

Merge Used to review and take action on the records that are queued for manual merging, as well as
Manager monitor the records that are queued for auto-merge. Data stewards can view newly-loaded
base object records that have been matched against other records in the base object and,
based on this view, can
- combine duplicate records together to create consolidated records
- designate records that are not duplicates as unique records

Data Used to review the results of all merges and links, including automatic merges and links, and to
Manager correct data if necessary. Data stewards can view the data lineage for each base object record,
unmerge previously-consolidated records, and view different types of history on each
consolidated record.

Hierarchy Used to define and manage hierarchical relationships in the Hub Store.
Manager

Documentation Resources for Informatica MDM Hub Data

Stewards
You can refer to the following Informatica MDM Hub documentation for data stewards:

Task Topic(s)

Concepts Informatica MDM Hub Overview

Usage Informatica MDM Hub Data Steward Guide

22 Chapter 4: Topics for Informatica MDM Hub Users

INDEX

A I
about batch processing 12 incremental data loads 16
administrators 20 Informatica Data Director 8
Informatica MDM Hub
about Informatica MDM Hub 3

B architecture 5
components of 5
base objects 11, 17 core capabilities 3
batch processing initial data loads 12
consolidate process 16 introduction 1
land process 13
load process 14
match process 15
publish process 16 J
stage process 14 JMS message queues 16
tokenize process 15
best version of the truth (BVT) 11

L
C land process 13
landing tables 13
cleanse functions 14 load process 14
consolidate process 16
consolidated record 11
content metadata 17
cross-reference tables 17 M
mappings 14
master data 1

D Master Data Management (MDM) 1

Master Database 17
data model 17 master records 11
data stewards 21 match columns 15
database administrators 20 match key tables 15
developers 21 match keys 15
distribution 12 match process 15
match rules 15
match tokens 15

E merging duplicate records 16

message queues 16
entities 18
ETL tools 13
external match 15
extraction-transformation-load tools 13 O
Operational Reference Store (ORS) 17
overmatching 15

H
hierarchies 18
Hierarchy Manager (HM) 7 P
history tables 18 preface iii
hotspots 15 Process Server 6
Hub Console 6 publish process 16
Hub Server 6
Hub Store 6

23
R T
real-time processing timeline 19
about real-time processing 16 tokenize process 15
reconciliation 11 trust 14
relationships 18
Repository Manager 7

V
S validation rules 14

schema 17
Security Access Manager (SAM) 7
Services Integration Framework (SIF) 8, 16 W
source systems 11 workflow integration 18
stage process 14
staging tables 14
state management 18
system administrators 20 X
XREF tables 17

24 Index