Organizations are generating and using data more than they ever had. The value of data is undisputed — comparisons are being made with oil and gold. The ecosystem that organizations operate in is also changing, both externally as access to technology has been democratized by cloud providers, and internally as organizations try to become lean and optimize operations.
Data governance is a discipline of data management which deals with understanding the data assets, securing the data, and managing the data. The field has been around as long as people have been using data, however the need for data governance has become far more important in this digital era.
Key Factors Driving the Need for Data Governance
Technology Democratization
Cloud providers have made it easier for organizations to consume technology, experiment with options, and scale with zero upfront investment. The competition and size of the market also ensure continuous innovation and disruptive technologies are being commoditized.
Changing Business Models
Changing business models, new industry verticals, and digitalization of processes have caused significant changes in the way organizations operate. Companies now want to run lean, be more agile, and adapt to the changing landscape.
Security and Privacy
Security refers to prevention from attacks and keeping bad actors away. We have seen a major cyber attack unfolding almost every month. Privacy refers to the way organizations use the data of partners and customers. There are multiple laws being created around the globe on data security and privacy — GDPR being one of the pivotal ones. Security and privacy go hand in hand but need a robust Data Governance strategy to be successful.
Social Factors
Like people and their growing affinity to create and maintain social scores on apps such as Instagram and Facebook, organizations are also looked upon by their social impact. This includes social awareness, social listening, and social responsibility. Cyber attacks don’t only cause data breaches but also impact social scores for companies — making this another prominent reason to embrace Data Governance.
Digital Assets
With the advent of technology, digital assets are making their way into the daily working of organizations. Companies have created or modified many new devices as part of their business models. On average we can see 6–8 things connected to the internet in every room. With that level of connectivity, it is far more important to govern things now than it was in the past.
In the following blogs I will talk about how to implement the Governance Framework.