Press Release • October 3, 2017

Alation’s Enterprise Data Catalog Values Data Assets for the Chief Data Officer

Alation 5.0 includes new features and a services package to extend the data catalog to support valuing data through Infonomics, a methodology promoted by Gartner’s Doug Laney

GARTNER SYMPOSIUM/ITxpo, Orlando, FL., Oct. 3, 2017Alation Inc., the data intelligence company, today announced increased support for Chief Data Officers looking to manage their data as an asset. Alation 5.0 will include new features and a services package to make data asset valuation simple by promoting the adoption of Infonomics. The Alation Data Catalog 5.0 will be the first solution to incorporate these metrics into an enterprise data catalog. These new capabilities further Alation’s commitment to delivering the most complete enterprise data catalog in the market.

Increasingly, Chief Data Officers are finding that the adoption of a data catalog is only a starting point for information asset management. By automating an inventory of the data available in an organization, data catalogs track information assets just as one would inventory physical assets for accounting purposes. However, to properly manage information assets, Chief Data Officers require a robust and consistent way to calculate potential economic benefits for every information asset. Standard accounting practices today are limited to physical asset evaluation.

In his newly released book, “Infonomics: How to Monetize, Manage, and Measure Information as an Asset for Competitive Advantage,” Doug Laney, vice president (VP) and distinguished analyst with Gartner’s Chief Data Officer (CDO) Research team, describes how calculating the value of each information asset delivers clarity to complex decisions around data accessibility, data governance and data management.

According to Doug Laney, “Most of the thousands of CDOs appointed in the past few years have been chartered with improving the efficiency and value-generating capacity of their organization’s information ecosystem. That is, they’ve been asked to lead their organization in treating and leveraging information with the same discipline as its other, more traditional assets.”*

Two fundamental valuation models are introduced in Infonomics to assist with these decisions, the intrinsic value of information (IVI) and the business value of information (BVI). IVI gauges how correct and complete the information asset is and its uniqueness to the organization. BVI considers how relevant an information asset is for a specific business purpose. Together, these models enable consistent comparisons across information classes and assist in identifying critical gaps in information’s realized versus potential value.

“For some time Alation has tracked detailed usage metrics as a way to evaluate the impact of data assets in an organization,” said Satyen Sangani, CEO, Alation. “The inclusion of Infonomics models in the Alation Platform, combined with the understanding of how data is used, creates an unprecedented foundation of accountability in data management initiatives. Tracking information asset impact and return over an applicable period of time is critical to the success of today’s Chief Data Officer.”

The Alation Data Catalog 5.0 will embed Infonomics metrics as part of the context automatically created for each data asset in the enterprise. Data consumers, data curators and chief data officers will have access to these metrics on the catalog page of every data asset inventoried in Alation. For evaluating the intrinsic value of information, this will include metrics such as the validity and completeness of the data. Data catalog pages will also include measurements of the business value of information such as relevance and popularity. These features will be complemented by Alation’s professional services offering designed to guide organizations through a process of aligning Infonomics with their data usage and management strategies – a top concern for the CDOs and data leaders responsible for their organizations’ strategic data initiatives.

Meet with Alation at the Gartner Symposium/ITxpo See Alation demo its new services package at the Gartner Symposium/ITxpo taking place in Orlando, Florida from Oct. 1–5 at booth #737 in the Pacific Hall.

Learn more about Infonomics at the Gartner Symposium/ITxpo

  • Session: Methods for Monetizing Your (and Others’!) Information Assets

  • Speaker: Doug Laney, VP and distinguished analyst, Gartner

  • Date/Time: Thursday, Oct. 5, 2017, 2:00–2:45 p.m. ET

Doug Laney will discuss why monetizing data is about much more than selling or licensing it. It’s about generating measurable economic benefits from it. This session explores: why you should monetize your data, how to organize and plan for monetizing your data, and what are some inspirational examples of organizations monetizing available information assets.

About Gartner Symposium/ITxpo

Gartner Symposium/ITxpo is the world’s most important gathering of CIOs and senior IT executives. This event delivers independent and objective content with the authority and weight of the world’s leading IT research and advisory organization, and provides access to the latest solutions from key technology providers. CIOs and IT executives rely on Gartner Symposium/ITxpo to gain insight into how their organizations can use IT to address business challenges and improve operational efficiency. For more information, please visit www.gartner.com/us/symposium

About Alation

Alation is the leader in enterprise data intelligence solutions, enabling self-service analytics, cloud transformation, and data governance. More than 550 enterprises build data culture and improve data-driven decision-making with Alation, including Cisco, Nasdaq, Pfizer, Salesforce, and Virgin Australia. Alation has been named to Inc. Magazine’s Best Workplaces list four times, is a 2022 UK’s Best Workplaces™ in tech and Best Workplaces™ for Women, and recognized as a 2022 and 2023 UK’s Best Workplaces™. For more information, visit www.alation.com.

Alation Media Contact

Lauren Lloyd

Director of Public Relations

lauren.lloyd@alation.com541-490-6115