Hi Community,

I’d like to share some thoughts about the business glossary. After considering how we wanted to use the glossary, we applied customizations in the metamodel, so we have a specific implementation. I suppose that others have a different approach to using the glossary, so it would be great if we could share and discuss our visions. I am looking forward to your feedback!

Let’s start.

The business glossary provides a way to describe terms that have relevance to the organization. Obvious properties like name, definition and owner describe a term. It is possible to connect catalog items and its attribute to a term, so that physical data elements becomes meaningful.

The question is, can we describe these elements with the same properties? (Indeed a rhetorical question)

To logically describe a catalog item attribute, besides its name and definition also properties like its (logical) datatype, an indicator to mark a ‘personal identifying information’ term and the GDPR classification.

These additional properties however are of no relevance when a catalog item is linked to a term; then other properties like the data domain and source of record are more suitable.

Of course it is possible to add all the required new properties to the Business term entity in the metamodel, but your glossary screen will become cluttered with fields that are often empty, depending whether it relates to a catalog item or a catalog item attribute. Therefore we created two extra entities as extension of term, each with its own set of properties as mentioned above:

• Attribute terms
• Entity terms

It is important to notice the similarity with data modelling, which of course is all about metadata as well. Where the data catalog reflects the physical implementation of data structures, based on a physical data model, the attribute and entity terms in the business glossary contain metadata that relates to the logical data model. Finally business terms can support the further understanding of your business, by providing background information on relevant topics of all kinds.

How attribute terms relate to entity terms will be the topic for the next article.

Kind regards.,

Albert de Ruiter