Regular readers know we stress the importance of focusing on business requirements when designing dimensional data models to support the data warehouse/business intelligence (DW/BI) environment. As described in Design Tip #157, it is critical to include business partners in the dimensional design process. But including business representatives on the design team obviously increases the size […]

The Kimball Group has always stressed the importance of keeping a keen eye on the business requirements when designing dimensional data models for the data warehouse/business intelligence (DW/BI) environment. Gathering business requirements is typically undertaken just prior to beginning the dimensional data model design process. Design Tip #110 is a reminder of requirements gathering do’s […]

The logical dimensional model should be developed jointly by representatives from all interested groups: business users, reporting teams, and the DW/BI project team. It is important that the appropriate individuals are represented on the dimensional data model design team as described in Design Tip #103 in order to achieve an effective design. The best dimensional […]

The Kimball Group has frequently written about the importance of focusing on business requirements as the foundation for a successful DW/BI implementation. Design Tip #110 provides a crisp set of dos and don’ts for gathering requirements. However, some organizations find it difficult to land on the right level of detail when documenting the requirements, and […]

Over the years, we’ve described common dimensional modeling mistakes, such as our October ’03 “Fistful of Flaws” article in Intelligent Enterprise magazine. And we’ve recommended dimensional modeling best practices countless times; our May ’09 “Kimball’s Ten Rules of Dimensional Modeling” article has been widely read. While we’ve identified frequently-observed errors and suggested patterns, we haven’t […]

There is a tendency for data warehouse project teams to jump immediately into implementation tasks as the dimensional data model design is finalized. But we’d like to remind you that you’re not quite done when you think you might be. The last major design activity that needs to be completed is a review and validation of the dimensional […]

What does it take to develop a robust dimensional model? Here’s how to get from requirements-gathering to final approval in a process that will ferret out the good, bad and ugly realities of your source data and help you avoid surprises, delays and cost overruns. Kimball Group has written more than 250 Intelligent Enterprise columns and […]

It’s surprising the number of DW/BI teams that confine the responsibility for designing dimensional models to a single data modeler or perhaps a small team of dedicated data modelers. This is clearly shortsighted. The best dimensional models result from a collaborative team effort. No single individual is likely to have the detailed knowledge of the business requirements and the […]

People often engage us to conduct dimensional model design reviews. In this column, I’ll provide a laundry list of common design flaws to scout for when performing a review. I encourage you to use this list to critically review your own draft schemas in search of potential improvements. What’s the Grain? When a data warehouse team […]