ACME Global Consulting
Brenda Lucas

Entity relationship modeling is extremely valuable in a complex data environment. In relational database management system, entity relationship modeling becomes essential when dealing with a large number of entities and/or complex relationships. In addition, some entities that have many different relationships, or even multiple relationships with a single entity, can be difficult to conceptualize without the assistance of a well-thought-out model. As pointed out by Allen (2005), entity relationship modeling provides a highly intuitive reference for developers of a database system.

ACME Global Consulting is an organization that services a vast number of clients across many domains. They deal with thousands of orders and products on a daily basis. From their customer service department to their order fulfillment department, the need for an efficient, accurate information system is self-evident. However, when dealing with so much information in such a complex system, the importance of proper planning and design cannot be overstated. There is no area of the system development lifecycle more critical than planning and design.

The purpose of the entity relationship model to be developed for ACME Global Consulting is to visualize the entities and relationships that will exist within the relational database. As is discussed by Chilton (2006), it can be difficult to wrap one’s mind around the concept of relational databases at first. It really is not that difficult. It is exactly what it sounds like. Consider all of the different entities of which a sales transaction might consist. There would probably be a customer, a product, a sale, a salesperson, and a shipment. This is just a very simplified example of the entities that could exist in a system. Now consider that each of these entities have very obvious relationships