Data Management Software

What Is Data Management Software?

Data management software collects and analyzes data from a wide range of data sources. With the help of this software, organizations can combine all their data effectively for easy access and complete control. This powerful tool is used for fulfilling important business objectives such as data integration, extraction, virtualization, warehousing, etc.

It tracks the entire life span of data and provides optimum security during all phases that include data generation, data storage, and data disposal. To answer important questions regarding compliance and data security and ensure minimal maintenance burden on the system, data managers might set multiple time frames for every phase of the data lifecycle.

What Does Data Management Software Do?

Data management software is specifically designed to assist organizations in the effective storage, management and analysis of data. The main goal of this system is to ensure that stored data is accurate, secure, and consistent.

This software further helps in maintaining the data quality by identifying and eliminating duplicate records. Moreover, machine learning, statistical analysis and data visualization tools can help in extracting data insights.

Why Use Data Management Software?

Data management software helps in detecting and correcting errors, redundancies, and inconsistencies in data to ensure its accuracy. By using this software, you can get real-time insights into your data, making it easier for you to take critical decisions and quickly respond to changing market trends.

As the data management system will be the single source of data for your organization and stakeholders, it can improve collaboration and avoid any misunderstanding.

Lastly, the software can help you in complying with security and data privacy regulations. The tools for access control, audit trails and data governance will ensure that data is being used according to ethical and legal standards.

Who Can Use Data Management Software?

DBMS software is used by a wide range of organizations and individuals that include:

• Small & large-scale companies: This software helps all businesses to store and manage large quantities of data, and it also provides them valuable insights that help in better decision-making.
• Individuals: It can be used by any individual to streamline personal data like documents, financial records, photos etc. Moreover, owing to this software, they can easily find and manage critical information.
• Researchers: They use this software to organize and analyze their research data. It enables them in understanding their findings which leads to more reliable and accurate conclusions.
• Healthcare industry: Hospitals, clinics, medical insurance companies and pharmaceutical industries use the data management system to analyze medical data, track patient records, check their medical history, and keep a tab on medicines and equipment.
• Education institutions: It is widely used in schools, colleges, universities, local and government education authorities for managing student data, tracking their academic record, and analyzing performance and educational outcomes.

Types of Data Management Software

Data management systems are classified into 2 different types that include:

On Premise Data Management System

This system is primarily installed on desktops and can be purchased at a one-time price. The main benefits of using an on-premises data management system are total control, customization facility, total ownership of the software, and it doesn't require a Wi-Fi connection to work. However, there are some drawbacks as well, such as scalability issues and high installation costs.

Cloud Data Management Software

Cloud-based solutions can be accessed on any device, which gives users the added benefit of accessibility and collaboration. For companies that have offices in multiple locations, this is an important point to consider before buying software. It is mainly available on a monthly or yearly subscription-based model. The only drawback of using this system is complete reliability on internet connection. Thus, you need a fast and uninterrupted internet connection to use it at its full potential.

Features of Data Management Software

Here are five key features of a data management software:

Data Integration and Cleaning

Data management software comes with the ability to integrate and collect information from multiple sources. It helps you in streamlining the data which is already stored in your databases and servers, plus it also saves you time and money. The software also has the ability to clean the stored data. In this process, the data is prepared for analysis by modifying or removing irrelevant, corrupted, incorrect, incorrectly formatted, or duplicate data.

Robust Reporting

DBMS database management system offers a robust reporting feature that helps you in generating accurate and timely reports that can easily be accessed by anyone. You can use the data visualization tool to identify valuable data, spot trends and make informed decisions. All comprehensive software systems offer standardized or customized reporting options and also allow you to filter and view data in different ways like department wise, users, data range etc. Furthermore, it can be integrated with existing report generation tools, therefore you can view all your data across multiple platforms in one place.

Data Protection and Retention

The profound security features protect the data from misuse, unauthorized access, tampering and data breach. A data recovery option is also available to recover lost data due to system malfunctions, disasters, bugs or power failures. Additionally, investing in a data management system is a wise choice as it protects your data from both external and internal threats.

Real time data management

This feature of the software lets you manage data in real-time, thus you can detect any issues and resolve them as soon as possible. To take complete advantage of this attribute, you should store all the data at a centralized location. Even if you collect data from multiple sources, data management systems’ feature will compile all data in a unified view.

Automated data visualization

The system helps you in identifying unique patterns and trends and make data-backed decisions. Even when the data is stored at the source, you can streamline visualization and data analytics by integrating the software with the analytics platform. It lets you see all data at a one central location, without switching between multiple systems.

Intuitive interface

If the software is difficult to navigate, it defeats the purpose of having software in the first place. But, thankfully, DBMS has a user-friendly interface plus it offers ease to the users while finding the information in just a few clicks of a button. Moreover, the modern and intuitive design provides a personalized experience.

Characteristics of a Successful Data Management Software

Database management systems provide an extensive array of functionalities for data storage and retrieval, data management, analytics, report generation, and data processing. Some most popular ones are MangoDB, Oracle Database, Apache Hadoop, Snowflake and Talend.

Some of the major characteristics of DBMS database management systems are:

Store data in a realistic form

DBMS software is designed according to the varying requirements of business organizations and can efficiently store large datasets in the form of realistic entities. For example, a database can store the cost of multiple brands of mill or bread, the cost of various vegetables etc. Similarly, when it is used in a school, all student details stored in the system are like real-world entities (objects) and have numerous properties like name, gender, roll number, age etc.

Store all types of structured data

Data management system can store all types of data. It is not restricted to address, salary, employee name etc. Any type of data which is available in the real world can be easily stored in this system. It is an important characteristic, as your work is not limited to any specific kind of data format.

Easy access to data

Before data management software, finding info from thousands of names was a time-consuming process. However, in DBMS systems, you can easily run a search query and find any data with just a few clicks. Moreover, the software allows you to perform CRUD (Create, Read, Update & Delete) operations at a lightning-fast speed.

Data security and integrity

One of the main features of database management software is that it protects data from unauthorized access. The access to make modifications in the document by employees can be controlled, or sometimes a user can also be given complete control of the data as per requirement. It comes with data encryption technology which protects your data from malicious attacks. The data loss prevention (DLP) system further helps in preventing the leakage of sensitive or critical information.

Examples/Capabilities of Data Management Software

Let's look at some noteworthy capabilities of data management software:

• Data storage: This software stores data in the database in a structured and organized format. It supports numerous data types that include numbers, images, texts, dates, videos, audio and more.
• Integration of data: The next important capability is data integration, which means that it can be integrated with many other software systems like customer relationship management, enterprise resource planning (ERP), marketing automation systems etc. With the help of an integration facility, you can share data across various departments for valuable insights.
• Data extraction: The stored data can be retrieved with help of search, sorting and filtering functionalities. Moreover, you can use complex queries to extract beneficial insights from the software.
• Data processing: Billions of complicated data records can be efficiently processed as per service legal agreements.
• Data Lineage: Users can easily capture data lineage as it moves through data stores and numerous systems.

Here are 5 of the most famous database management systems that can take your business to the pinnacle of success:

How to Choose the Right Data Management Software

• Application Agility: You must look for software that meets your organization's need for performance, should be simple to use, and ensure a minimal cost of ownership. You must look for software that meets your organization's need for performance, should be simple to use and ensure a minimal cost of ownership. It should also support data agility, as it promotes better decision-making. Moreover, being flexible and agile with the data can help in improving business operations and propels growth.
• Flexibility: Different organizations will have varied requirements, and they will look for varying types of features and benefits when choosing a DBMS database management system. Thus, you should make a list of attributes you need in a system and what purpose you want to fulfil with those features. More importantly, the system you choose should be flexible and come with a customization facility so that it can be modified according to specific business needs.
• User Access and Control: Next, you need to determine the number of internal users who will access the database management systems. If you have a smaller time, then a few database experts would be enough, and they can share a single software license with each other. But, if your company is a mid-sized or large scale, you'll need various teams that require access to multiple modules in the chosen software. Software that comes with an access control functionality can help you in running things smoothly.
• Security: You should choose software that offers foolproof security features such as access controls, encryption, and audit trails to protect the data. It should come with a wide array of tools, controls, and techniques to safeguard sensitive information and prevent the loss of critical data.
• User-friendly interface: The data management software should have a user-friendly interface, intuitive & modern design and must be easy to navigate. Its usability should offer a positive experience and help you quickly find the required information. Moreover, it should also provide a self-service facility so that you can find the required information without any assistance from the IT team.
• Scalable with your business: The next important thing you should look for in DBMS software is scalability. Its database should effectively handle the current and future data handling requirements of your business. The system must be fully capable of managing a large volume of data along with a high number of users. This feature is extremely critical for companies that expect significant growth in their business and anticipate large chunks of data in the coming years.