What is the Difference Between Transactional Data and Operational Data

September 2022 · 3 minute read

The main difference between transactional data and operational data is that transactional data is the data that describes business events of the organization while operational data is the data that is used to manage the information and technology assets of the organization.

Data is important for every business organization. And, transactional and operational data are two types of data. The senior management of the organization use these data to make decisions on the organization’s future and increase profits.

Key Areas Covered

1. What is Transactional Data
      – Definition, Functionality
2. What is Operational Data
     – Definition, Functionality
3. Difference Between Transactional and Operational Data
     – Comparison of Key Differences

Key Terms

Data, Operational Data, Transactional Data

Difference Between Transactional Data and Operational Data - Comparison Summary

What is Transactional Data

Transactional data is the data that describes business events. There is a large volume of transactional data in a business organization. Some common events that create transactional data are buying products from suppliers, selling products to customers, delivering items to customer sites, hiring employees, etc. Therefore, transactional data is generated regularly. Moreover, this data is commonly used in operational applications such as ERP systems, SCM, HR systems, etc.

Difference Between Transactional Data and Operational Data

Furthermore, transactional data has a time dimension and a numerical value. Also, it refers to one or more objects. For example, orders, invoices, payments, plans, activity records, deliveries, storage records and travel records are transactional data.

What is Operational Data

Operational data is the data that is related to information and technology assets of the organization. Thus, it provides an idea of the critical operations of an organization. Also, it optimizes the operations and helps to identify the risks. Therefore, to take maximum use of operational data, it is important to ensure the reliability and the quality of data.

Moreover, there are three types of operational data: business operational data, IT operational data, and Integrated Business–IT operational data. Business operational data is the data on business processes and user experiences. IT operational data is the data that is related to technology and services. It helps the managers to take business insights. Moreover, Integrated Business-IT operational data is a combination of both business and IT operational data. It provides business insight and helps to take decisions on best investments on organizational resources.

Difference Between Transactional and Operational Data

Definition

Transactional data is a type of data that describes business events. On the other hand, operational data is a type of data that supervise the IT assets of an organization. Thus, this is the main difference between transactional data and operational data.

Usage

Moreover, transactional data is used to explain business events while operational data is used to describe IT operations.

Conclusion

In brief, transactional and operational data are two types of data. The main difference between transactional data and operational data is that transactional data is the data that describes business events of the organization while operational data is the data that is used to manage the information and technology assets of the organization.

References:

1.“Transaction Data.” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 9 May 2018, Available here.
2.“Why Is Operational Data Important for IT? – Blazent | IT Data Intelligence.” Blazent, 30 Nov. 2018, Available here.
3.Nicolas. “Back to Basics: Transactional, Master, Golden and Reference Data Explained.” Semarchy, Available here.

Image Courtesy:

1.” Types of data” By João Batista Neto – Data types – pt br.svg (CC BY 3.0) via Commons Wikimedia

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