- A data warehouse is a store of information over time by a business or other organization.
- New data is added periodically by people from various key departments such as marketing and sales.
- The warehouse becomes a library of historical data that can be retrieved and analyzed to inform business decision making.
- Key factors in building an effective data warehouse include identifying the information that is critical to the organization and identifying sources of information.
- The database is designed to provide information in real time. The data warehouse is designed as an archive of historical information.