Data Migration and Consolidation

for International Visualization with Qlik

Background:

Groupe SEB is an international company operating in multiple global markets. They utilize CRM systems and websites specific to each market. The goal is to integrate data from these diverse sources into a uniform data structure suitable for visualization using the Qlik tool. This endeavor presents a significant challenge: varying applications inherently entail different data source types, including CSV, Excel sheets, APIs, SQL databases, and document-oriented databases. This diversity encompasses data structure, business rules, and formats, making coherent consolidation a formidable task.

Challenges:

  1. Diversity of Data Sources: Each market employs a unique data format, adding complexity to the consolidation process.

  2. Data Standardization: Standardizing data is imperative to ensure equivalence across markets.

  3. Stream Migration: Continuously migrating data to accommodate real-time updates is a fundamental requirement.

  4. Data Preparation for Qlik: Data must be “prepared” to seamlessly integrate with the Qlik visualization tool.

Approach:

  1. Identification of Data Sources: The BI team meticulously identifies all data sources utilized across international markets.

  2. Data Extraction: Data is extracted from each source using methods tailored to individual formats (e.g., APIs for real-time data, CSV and Excel file imports, SQL database extractions).

  3. Data Transformation: Data is transformed to ensure consistency. This step involves data cleaning, handling of missing values, and uniform field naming.

  4. Data Standardization: After undergoing transformation, data is formatted to a standardized structure that is compatible with Qlik.

  5. Continuous Integration: A continuous integration process is in place to monitor and manage changes in data sources.

  6. Visualization with Qlik: Standardized data is integrated into Qlik, facilitating the creation of interactive dashboards and reports.

Expected Results:

A consolidated and standardized data structure accessible via a central data warehouse.

A continuous migration process accommodating real-time data updates.

Interactive dashboards and reports within Qlik, simplifying the visualization and analysis of consolidated data.

Enhanced insight into international business performance, enabling more informed decision-making.

Conclusion:

This case highlights the critical role of data preparation in Business Intelligence, particularly when dealing with multiple and heterogeneous data sources. 

Data consolidation and standardization are indispensable, ensuring data equivalence, thus facilitating visualization and analysis with tools like Qlik.