- Identify a business process or event, such as Retail Sales or Stock Trades, which you will develop in the assignment. You need not be confined to traditional areas and events; for example, one student is a baseball fan and has selected baseball as his subject data area. If you select something such as baseball, make sure you carefully identify the events to capture in your star schema. For example, I thinkPlayer Statistics is a good candidate for a fact table with facts such as homeruns, hits, and batting average (or, all of these metrics, depending on the grain you select).
- Identify where and how you will access the data necessary to build your star schema. Describe where in your company or on the Internet this data exists and how you plan to access it. Include the departments and systems you plan to access as well as web sites and social media sites.
- Design your dimensional model, identifying fact(s), fact table(s), and dimension tables as well as selected attributes and keys. Provide an annotation as you progress in your design. Highlight important design considerations and techniques in your discussion (e.g., explaining the grain you selected). This item is the central part of the assignment.
