CDQ & Henkel Data Quality as a Service

Q: How did you deal with the data in the USA? Due to legal reasons we currently have 3 duplicates per customer.
A: Henkel has globally available customer data; restrictions apply only at application level. Authorization management handled via the application layer. No special US restrictions; only indirect sales required additional visibility controls.

Q: How did you define rules for identifying duplicates across different systems and data models?
A: A consultant calibrated deduplication settings. It is like research: find inconsistencies, define rules for things like caps/no-caps. CDQ provides many out-of-the-box capabilities; customer decides if consulting support is needed.

Q: When matching indirect end-customers, what approach was used to identify corporate hierarchy? Did CDQ help?
A: Secondary sales: they use a separate database mapped to DUNS IDs. Corporate hierarchy comes from DUNS hierarchy. Not part of the CDQ golden record project yet.

Q: Can you share the Data Quality Model?
A: Yes, CDQ uses its own model developed with customers and the University of Lausanne. Consultants use it as well.

Q: Which data quality model do you use: CDQ, DAMA, or custom?
A: CDQ model.

Q: When CDQ is editing data, are all data stored and managed within Europe?
A: Yes.

Q: Were you able to find good quality credit data in all relevant countries?
A: CDQ does not provide credit data currently. The focus is on Master data and compliance.

Q: How do you handle customers operating in both consumer goods and adhesives-one category or two?
A: Currently Adhesives is handling their own data however, the solutions mentioned could also be implemented over all divisions of Henkel.

Q: Preventive vs. proactive/reactive actions for data already in operation? Is CDQ used?
A: CDQ is being used for "Zero Maintenance" which provides real time updates on Business Partners. Currently it is being used via reports and will be implemented via API in the next months. The updates come from legal sources e.g. offical registers

Q: Before implementing trust prevention via CDQ trust score, how did you stay safe from fraudulent transactions?
A: CDQ community informs members of fraudulent cases. When notified, Henkel checks if affected supplier exists and immediately blocks them if needed.

Q: Did you ever face a wrongly flagged insolvent supplier?
A: No. Registers like VIES and AT.FON are reliable. One past case showed how big the risk is – paying a large amount to an insolvent supplier results in lost funds.

Q: Approach to secondary sales data: How do you convince distributors to share customer-level data? Is it mandatory in contracts? What do they gain?
A: Very strict rules, tight contracts, strict training (including anti-trust). Access to the system requires trainings and compliance. It is mainly a business question, not purely technical.

Q: Was compliance integrated into the process? How did golden records assist compliance and reporting?
A: Compliance and data privacy were always involved to ensure safe handling of customer/prospect data.

Q: Data quality challenges in the People domain with downstream service providers?
A: If you mean Personal data rather than business data, CDQ can support with a "Natural Person Screening" that indicates which record rather belongs to natural persons than businesses. Sometimes you cannot find out finally.

Q: Why did you have to convince your C-Level? What were the most important arguments? Financial or commercial?
A: Focus was on KPIs: “we will sell more products with better data.” Key arguments: reduced cost of duplicates, reduced waste, preventing multiple salespeople calling same customer. Cost-driven rather than value-driven arguments.

Q: Community with right level of knowledge? How do you involve the community?
A: The community regularly meets online/ onsite and there members exchange their knowledge and discuss on certain topics. They are also connected directly by CDQ if required.

Q: Which external providers were required for the Data Mirror (e.g., VIES, VERTEX)? How do these services reduce manual work?
A: It is a long list of external providers e.g. VIES which is available via CDQ. Additionally Henkel uses D&B for parts of use cases.

Q: How did you support and train users (middle management & users) to change/avoid old habits?
A: Training is difficult; repetition needed. Back office adapts well; field sales struggles because they are not incentivized to reduce duplicates. Henkel uses training platforms, quizzes, and continuous training, still room to improve.

Q: CDQ integration in SAP MDG via side panel? Standard or custom?
A: The Side panel is custom made by Henkel

Q: Henkel implemented CDQ with external partners: What was the scope of Buko IT and Accenture? Did Henkel have a full-time project manager?
A: The scope for external  implementation partners was to provide the Henkel data quality API (as a wrapper of the CDQ APIs) on the SAP BTP and to connect and map the data models of the existing systems (ERP, CRM) to the data mirror data model  to enable them to integrate the CDQ functionalities. Also, some UI adapations of those systems were performed by the external implementation partners. Yes, Henkel had a project manager (around 0.6 FTE in the main implementation phase).