In today’s data-driven world, organizations grapple with vast amounts of information scattered across disparate systems. This data sprawl creates silos, hinders decision-making, and impedes innovation. Appian Data Fabric offers a solution by providing a unified approach to accessing, managing, and leveraging enterprise data.
What is Data Fabric?
A data fabric is an architecture that provides consistent data management capabilities across various data sources, regardless of their location or format. It creates a unified view of data, enabling businesses to access and utilize information more efficiently.
How Appian Data Fabric Works
Appian Data Fabric simplifies data complexity by:
- Connecting to Any Data Source: Appian can connect to a wide range of data sources, including databases, data warehouses, cloud storage, and external systems, using pre-built integrations and connectors.
- Virtualizing Data: Data virtualization allows users to access data without physically moving it, reducing data duplication and storage costs.
- Providing a Unified Data View: Appian creates a single, logical view of data, making it easier for business users to understand and work with information.
- Enabling Real-Time Access: Appian provides real-time data access, ensuring that users have the most up-to-date information for decision-making.
Key Benefits of Appian Data Fabric
- Simplified Data Access: Appian Data Fabric eliminates the need for complex data integration projects, making it easier for users to access the data they need.
- Improved Data Quality: By providing a consistent view of data, Appian helps to improve data quality and reduce errors.
- Faster Application Development: Appian’s low-code platform, combined with Data Fabric, enables developers to build data-driven applications more quickly and easily.
- Enhanced Decision-Making: Real-time data access and a unified data view empower business users to make more informed decisions.
- Increased Agility: Appian Data Fabric provides the flexibility to adapt to changing data needs and business requirements.
Use Cases for Appian Data Fabric
Appian Data Fabric can be used across various industries and use cases, including:
- Customer 360: Create a comprehensive view of customers by unifying data from CRM, marketing, and other systems.
- Claims Processing: Streamline insurance claims processing by accessing policyholder, claim, and other relevant data in a single view. (As seen in the case study above)
- Supply Chain Management: Improve supply chain visibility by integrating data from suppliers, logistics providers, and internal systems.
- Financial Services: Enhance risk management and compliance by providing a unified view of financial data.
- Human Resources: Employee History Tracking:
- Scenario: A company needs to track employee information, including changes in their employment status, department, or salary over time.
- Implementation with Appian Data Fabric:
- Create an “Employee” record type to store current employee data (name, employee ID, current department, current status).
- Create an “Employee History” record type to store historical employee data. This record type would include fields like “employee ID,” “effective date,” “department,” “status,” and “salary.”
- Establish a relationship between the “Employee” and “Employee History” record types using the “employee ID” as the common field.
- When an employee’s status changes (e.g., promotion, transfer, termination), create a new entry in the “Employee History” record type with the effective date and the updated information.
- The “Employee” record type always displays the employee’s current information.
- Use Appian’s interfaces and reports to:
- View the current employee data from the “Employee” record type.
- View the history of changes for a specific employee by querying the “Employee History” record type.
- Create reports showing trends in employee status changes over time.
- Benefits:
- Maintain a complete audit trail of employee changes.
- Easily access historical data for analysis and reporting.
- Ensure data accuracy by separating current and historical data.
- Support compliance requirements related to employee data retention.
Conclusion
Appian Data Fabric empowers organizations to overcome data challenges and unlock the full potential of their information. By simplifying data access, improving data quality, and enabling faster application development, Appian helps businesses to make better decisions, improve operations, and drive innovation.