Have you ever heard of the term SQL? If not, you may want to take note.

So-called Structured Query Language (SQL) is a programming language, meaning it requires users to learn the code to utilise it effectively. However, it's quite different to other programming languages.

While languages like Python and C are focused on instructing computers to perform different tasks, SQL is a query language, meaning it's all about retrieving data. In the context of a business, SQL will be used to retrieve data from different tables across databases. Then, it's able to combine the data to produce useful reports.

More than just a programming language, SQL is a very powerful database system. It is built from the ground up to store large amounts of related data. It also makes it very easy to retrieve and analyse that information. By its very nature accounting and business data is all related. Customers are related to the invoices we send them as are the invoices we receive from suppliers. On those invoices are stock items to track, and the whole lot is summarised in the General Ledger.

To get the most out of data, businesses will want to consider SQL software that stores its data in an SQL server. So what are some of the other benefits?

It's a fast way to access information

When querying a database using SQL, information can be accessed quickly and efficiently. What's more, using SQL means you can retrieve significant amounts of data. This can prove especially useful when attempting to quickly understand a particular group of customers, for instance.

You don't have to write much code

While SQL is a programming language, you don't have to be a coding expert to use it effectively. It consists mostly of English statements, and the actual coding required is relatively light.

It's easy to learn

This point follows on from the above – SQL isn't coding intensive. Getting started with SQL is easy, and it's not a difficult task to learn how it can be used to efficiently retrieve data.

You can run it anywhere

SQL runs across a significant number of systems, from mobile devices right through to mainframes and servers. It's no trouble to move databases using SQL from one device to another.

A well-defined language

SQL isn't new, it's proven a useful programming language over decades of use across the globe. In fact, did you know the first standard for SQL was actually established back in 1986 by the American National Standards Institute? In 1989 it was again expanded, followed by further expansions in 1992 and 1999.

This means that it is easy to get different systems to talk to each other and ensure that your data will never have to be keyed in more than once.

If you're interested in learning more about making the most of your business data, it may be time to start thinking seriously about SQL with Jiwa Training. Reach out to either myself or the team and we'll be happy to help. There's really no better way to access important business data as soon as it's needed.