Which model is used to represent how a business perceives its information?

The conceptual data model is utilized to represent how a business perceives its information by providing a high-level framework that outlines the entities involved, their attributes, and the relationships between them. This model serves as an abstract representation that focuses on the data requirements and the way the business thinks about information, rather than the technical details of how it will be physically implemented in a database.

This model allows stakeholders, including business analysts and managers, to visualize and understand the key components of their information ecosystem, ensuring it aligns with their strategic objectives. It captures the essence of the business’s data vision without delving into how the data will be structured or stored, which is why it is fundamental in the requirements analysis phase.

In contrast, the hierarchical, relational, and network data models focus more on the structural aspects of the data and how it is organized within a database system. They are more technical in nature and specify different ways of implementing the conceptual model in terms of schemas, relationships, and data manipulation methods rather than the business perspective on its information.