When data modeling first evolved as a discipline, the primary focus was to specify the definition and format of data, enabling the development of information systems. The intent has always been to represent real world objects, with higher levels of abstraction. As corporate environments have become very complex, consisting of many disparate systems, data architecture has shifted to provide integration between and across those systems, as well as a foundation for data warehouses, business intelligence and analytics.

Many organizations have embraced initiatives such as service oriented architecture (SOA) to address these issues, resulting in a proliferation of additional terms and concepts including canonical models, messages, data services and business services.

This session will discuss the concept of Business Data Objects (BDOs), and how they can:

• Add clarity as a logical and physical modeling construct, through to physical implementation in architectural frameworks
• Serve as a common basis to simplify and facilitate discussion of real world concepts with business stakeholders
• Represent underlying concepts consistently across modelers and developers utilizing objects, DBAs working with tables and constraints, and data modelers using entities and relationships