Creating a Business Database: Some Things to Consider

Creating a business database can be expensive, but in today’s day and age it is one of the basic necessities.  If you are a business owner, a good data entry and retrieval system will save time, money and paperwork.  You might not see that saving in money until years down the road, but you will see it, guaranteed.
 
There are a number of different things to consider when you are working with your design team.  The first and most important step is to choose an experienced designer or design company.  You need to realize that the designer is working for you and should be interviewed, as you would any other employee. 

The questions to ask include:
•    What is your level of education?
•    How long have you been in business?
•    Will you be using SQL? (Yes)
•    Will you be using more than one table to hold different domain values? (Yes)
•    Will you build generic objects? (No)
•    Will you run a complete test of the system? (Yes)
•    Will you train my employees to use the program?
•    What will you do if we have a problem?

Some companies will set up a business database and then leave the owners on their own in terms of training and trouble shooting.  The answer to the last two questions will indicate how much customer support the company provides.  You can’t expect future support to be free, but the services should come with some guarantee concerning performance and down time.

Formal education may not be as important as years of experience.  The better designers have references from other satisfied customers and companies they have serviced.  Call up a few of the companies on their list and ask the owners if they had any problems and how those problems were resolved.

The costs of setting up a business database vary greatly.  Some of the variance is due to different needs and the amount of existing equipment that the company has.  For example, if you currently have a database, but your company has outgrown it, you might not have to pay as much as someone that is starting out from scratch.  On the other hand, it may be impossible for a designer to upgrade your current database, depending on the methods used by the original developer.
 
The cost variables that have to do with your needs include:
•    How many users will access the information?
•    What type of functions do you need?
•    How much information do you need to store?

A good business database designer will sit down and consult with you about your current and future needs.  So, find someone that you can talk to easily.  It’s an important part of the process.