The Procurement Glossary » Master Data Management (MDM)

Master Data Management (MDM)

Technology & Systems

Also known as: MDM

Definition

The discipline of maintaining a single, accurate, consistent set of core reference data across systems.

Explanation

In procurement, master data covers suppliers, materials, categories and units of measure. MDM prevents the duplicates, gaps and inconsistencies that break analytics, matching and payments — it is the quiet foundation on which spend visibility depends.

Example

MDM merges three duplicate records for the same supplier into one clean master used by every system.

Related terms

• Data Quality — The accuracy, completeness and consistency of the data underpinning procurement analysis and decisions.
• Vendor Master Data — The authoritative record of each supplier's key details — legal name, addresses, tax IDs, bank and payment terms.
• Duplicate Vendor — More than one vendor-master record representing the same real supplier, caused by data-entry variation.
• Spend Taxonomy — A structured, hierarchical classification scheme used to organise spend into consistent categories.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is Master Data Management (MDM)?

The discipline of maintaining a single, accurate, consistent set of core reference data across systems. In procurement, master data covers suppliers, materials, categories and units of measure. MDM prevents the duplicates, gaps and inconsistencies that break analytics, matching and payments — it is the quiet foundation on which spend visibility depends.

Can you give an example of Master Data Management (MDM)?

MDM merges three duplicate records for the same supplier into one clean master used by every system.

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