Conceptual data modelling in theory and practice

Conceptual data modelling (CDM) refers to the phase of the information systems development process that involves the abstraction and representation of the real world data pertinent to an organization. When CDM is properly and rigorously performed, the delivered system is expected to be functionally richer, less error-prone, more fully attuned to meet user needs, more able to adjust to changing user requirements and less expensive. However, there is little evidence that conceptual data modelling for the enterprise is actually conducted. There is the feeling that the 'corporate reality' is much different. In many organizations, CDM is never employed. In others, it is applied in a haphazard, project-to-project basis, thus leading to considerable redundancy. The academic community has mainly focused on proposing semantic data models but has not demonstrated a rigorous basis for conceptual data modelling. Specifically, the community has failed to show how a conceptual data model can map to an accurate logical data model. It is the purpose of this paper to discuss and compare the perspectives of academic and practitioner communities regarding the application of conceptual data modelling.