Senior VP, Rick Kochhar, of Wachovia's risk information strategy group is pursuing a Master Data Management (MDM) strategy to unite its four core divisions: corporate investment banking, wealth management, capital management, and retail and commerical banking. Kochhar is preparing the company for Basel II compliance, but is also using it as a springboard to unite its customer data.

MDM is a set of technologies that helps enterprises better manage data flow, integrity and synchronization, plus it contains a governance mechanism for enforcing data policies. Simply stated, it offers a "single version of the truth."

Wachovia is taking a phased approach to addressing the cultural, business, and technological components of the MDM change. With more than $706 billion in assets, Wachoiva has completed more than 90 mergers in the past several years. Now, reconciling the data from the merged companies is not only a challenge, but it's a top priority in creating a single version of the truth.