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Table of contents:

• What is data transformation?
• Why is the data mining process necessary?
• How is data transformation carried out in the Conciliac EDM platform?
• What does data transformation consist of?
• Recommendations for data driven companies.

 

Today, organizations that make the effort to do so have more and more information about their customers and their operations at their disposal. The proper handling of this ever-increasing amount of data makes it possible to make sound decisions.

But organizations do not have data sources that are ready to be properly managed. Sometimes, they are sources that present the information in an untidy, uneven way, in different formats or with variations from one period to another, making it difficult to process.

Until a few years ago, the only solution to this problem was to load and clean the data manually, at the risk of making mistakes.

Today, with the proliferation of data and management tools, it is increasingly necessary to have a comprehensive solution that allows converting and unifying formats in order to automate processes in the right way.

This management is what we call “transformation”. What is this transformation about, what is it for, how and with what tools is it carried out?

Read on for the answers.

What is data transformation?

If we go back to the literal conceptualization of this expression, data transformation refers to the collection of data and the treatment by which they pass from one format to another.

But the truth is that data collection is not a contemporary action; organizations have been doing this for a long time, but they used to do it manually, using spreadsheets and collating data by data, assuming risks and losses due to errors.

Today, with the use of integrated exponential technologies, these issues can be resolved quickly and efficiently. For example, companies that use the Conciliac EDM platform to manage their data, make use of the Data Transformation module to extract data from different files or sources, and automate this process.

Why is the data conversion process necessary?

Because many times companies receive information in different formats that need to be homogenized in order to process them properly.

For example: Travel agencies receive information in PDF format with the number of air tickets used by their customers in a given period.

However, it is necessary to extract the data contained in the PDF to be processed in an automatic reconciliation against the back office data.

If these processes are not executed properly with a data extraction and transformation tool, they can be time-consuming and lead to unintentional human errors. On the other hand, what would happen if a platform did it alone based on a primary indication?

To answer this question we will explore the process that takes place in the Data Transformation module of Conciliac EDM.

How is data transformation carried out in the Conciliac EDM platform?

The Data Transformation module referred to in the previous section allows the simple and practical creation of data extraction templates from files in formats such as PDF, TXT, XLS or CSV.

Specifically, it involves the use of automatic and intelligent data extraction logic. Transformation and automation can be applied to the various formats mentioned.

Users have the ability and autonomy to transform an infinite number of files or data, with no limitations on the amount of data they can process. What is even more remarkable is that no programming or technical knowledge is required to create the data extraction logics for each of the scenarios.

What does data transformation consist of?

The procedure of this module is very simple. Once the document type has been selected and the file has been loaded, it is possible to easily define the start and end points of the document, which makes it possible to eliminate superfluous information such as headers or titles.

For example, in the case of a bank reconciliation, banks present statements that by default have a header with information that is not necessary for this procedure, and just below it is the table with part of the data that will be reconciled.

The company must create an extraction logic, where it disregards the headers and makes a cut of the data that must be considered. These are read and processed without touching or modifying anything in the source file.

According to this example, it is clear that it is also possible to specify which parameters are relevant for the extraction, such as amounts, dates, descriptions and more, thanks to the platform’s ability to read by coordinates. This allows the creation of a template with specific criteria that will automate the extraction of information in future files of this format.

All of this information will be transferred to a tabular structure that can also be further automated. This includes the ability to delete rows, add useful headers, replace text or remove unnecessary items.

Once an extraction logic is implemented, the user can apply it to as many files as required. As a result, you get raw data that you can use for any process or automation such as reconciliation, data entry, data integration with other systems, among others.

Another example that can illustrate the usefulness of this module can be seen in the automotive industry. Retailers in this industry have to upload data from imports or maritime exports of products for sale. All this generates a large amount of paperwork that is usually uploaded to the management system manually.

Recommendations for data driven companies

Implementing exponential tools such as those provided by Conciliac EDM for the comprehensive management of data is a very important step for companies that understand and value the resources allocated for their processing, but above all, that visualize all the opportunities they will obtain with this data driven mentality.

For this reason, one of the recommendations that we provide from the platform to our users, to carry out proactively, is that good practice that encourages creativity in the use of our technologies.

Technological tools are a great plus, but they do not replace the human mind when it comes to designing strategies in line with business growth. It can be said, then, that human and artificial intelligence can generate an extraordinary and powerful synergy.

As long as humans provide these logics to process data, in this case from a module such as Data Transformation, the platform will take these extraction logics, learn from these practices and automate their operation, allowing companies to use that time for more profitable actions than data loading.

Companies now have end-to-end solutions with which they can scale their business as routine actions that were error-prone are addressed with a data-driven mindset.

The best thing about this is that each advance on the platform solutions opens the door to new options to be discovered and of great impact on business. If you are ready to take this step but still have doubts, you should know that more than 200 companies around the world have already chosen our platform to manage the data on which they base their decisions.

You can start right now with a demo. Request it now.