Data Transformation

Convert data between different formats so your apps can actually understand each other, turning information silos into connected systems.

What is Data Transformation?

Data transformation is the process of converting data from one format (e.g. a database file, XML document, or Excel sheet) to another. Because data often resides in different locations and formats across the enterprise, data transformation is necessary to ensure data from one application or database is intelligible to other applications and databases, a critical feature for applications integration.

In a typical scenario where information needs to be shared, data is extracted from the source application or data warehouse, transformed into another format, and then loaded into the target location. Extraction, transformation, and loading (together known as ETL) are the central processes of data integration. Depending on the nature of the integration scenario, data may need to be merged, aggregated, enriched, summarized, or filtered.

The first step of data transformation is data mapping. Data mapping determines the relationship between the data elements of two applications and establishes instructions for how the data from the source application is transformed before it is loaded into the target application. In other words, data mapping produces the critical metadata that is needed before the actual data conversion takes place.

For instance, in field mapping, the information in one application might be rendered in lowercase letters while another application stores information in uppercase letters. This means the data from the source application needs to be converted to uppercase letters before being loaded into the corresponding fields in the target application.

The structure of stored data may also vary between applications, requiring semantic mapping prior to the transformation process. For instance, two applications might store the same customer credit card information using slightly different structures:

APPLICATION A EXAMPLE APPLICATION B EXAMPLE
Cardholder First Name JOHN Cardholder Name JOHN DOE
Cardholder Last Name DOE Card Type VISA
Card Type and Card Number VISA
0123 4567 8910 1112
Card Number 0123 4567 8910 1112
Expiration Date 05/2012 Expiration Date 05/2012
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