Incorrect customer information in the master data - greater resource consumption, high costs
The poor quality of customer data in the master database can mean that goods are undelivered, and great effort is needed to research addresses. Systematic, cost-efficient tour planning in the logistics becomes a lottery, and incorrect bank account details, supplied intentionally or inadvertently, can lead to delays in payment or even non-payment.
Incorrect supplier data - badly informed, higher risk
Correct supplier addresses and telephone numbers play an important role, especially in purchasing, procurement, quality engineering and logistics. In the extreme case, poor data quality can cause supply bottlenecks which may even result in an expensive production stop - with unforeseeable consequences for customer relationships. On the other hand, additional information, e.g. about the creditworthiness of the suppliers, can considerably improve risk management.
Inadequate compliance data - risk of legal consequences
Every company in the European Union is obliged to match all the business partners against the EU embargo list for goods and payment transactions and e.g. to inform the authorities if terrorism is suspected. Heavy fines may be the consequence if this is not complied with on account of poor data quality. The reputation of the company also suffers, whereby the confidence of customers and partners is adversely affected, which in turn puts the company's activities at risk.
Inconsistent product and material master data – a brake on effective processes
The data records for products and materials in master databases frequently run to five figures in larger companies. This makes it difficult for the employees to select correct, unambiguous product and material descriptions which comply with the directives when creating master data. This results in individual descriptions which can only be found by other employees after protracted searching or not at all in some cases. Poor master data quality decreases productivity, delays business processes and causes unnecessary research costs.
Inefficient business processes – a breeding ground for uncertain business decisions
The data of an ERP system is not only required for operative business processes, but also serves as a basis for strategic analyses and decisions (
Business Intelligence). Poor data quality here can compromise compliance with the business rules, reduce the utility value of analyses and delay important business decisions or mean that their basis is unsound.