8 Points: Impact Of Strong Data Culture On Data Governance

8 Points: Impact Of Strong Data Culture On Data Governance

Data forms the core of all the business strategies of modern enterprises. Most companies hire data management services to establish a framework for controlling their information assets. This is followed by the entry of data governance consulting firms who create a monitoring mechanism for the entire initiative. The central role being played by data has changed the manner in which corporations conduct their operations. In this article, we are focusing on how a strong data culture impacts the governance initiative of an organization. The general perception is treating information as an asset provides only benefits to corporations. However, there are two sides to every coin and adopting a data-centric approach poses some interesting questions to business owners. Let’s take a look at how a strong emphasis on these assets affects the data governance program at organizations.

1. Workforce Understands The Importance Of Data Assets:

The biggest benefit of having an info-centric attitude is that the entire organization understands the importance of the assets. Whether it is the junior most employee responsible for managing a small element or the top executive making key business decisions, the entire workforce knows the significance of preserving and handling the assets efficiently. This makes the job of the governance group easier as they do not have to direct many efforts towards educating the staff about the value of effective management.

2. Increased Dangers Of Unauthorized Access:

The fact that all the information owned by an organization is valuable to their existence makes it an attractive target for unethical elements. Gaining access to all kinds of details stored in the digital ecosystem of an enterprise can give them unimaginable leverage over the company. There have been numerous cases in which hackers have stolen the precious resource and caused serious damage to a company. Being data-centric leads corporations to convert all kinds of statistics and other details into digital format. Irrespective of the sophisticated security mechanisms, it does increase the chances of the resource being targeted by unscrupulous elements.

3. Better Implementation Of Specified Policies:

A business with a digitally aware workforce will always be helpful in the governance initiative. The personnel will know all the policies and procedures specified for handling the different resources. There will be fewer errors caused by users not following the designated manner of processing an element. Monitoring an environment where all the participants are following the rules most of the time becomes easier. It will also improve the performance of the entire management program as fewer errors will occur and the information will remain accurate and consistent.

4. Creation Of Silos:

Most information management initiatives become inefficient because of the creation of data silos. The resources then become accessible only to some users and not everyone. This can easily happen at enterprises which have invested too much in digitizing their environment. Technical or structural reasons can cause the resources to get stored in locations where only a specific section can access them. This beats the purpose of all the items being easily available to all authorized users. The overall productivity of the entire organization goes down because of silo formation.

5. Improved Collaboration Between IT And Business Sections:

A lack of coordination between the Information Technology (IT) and the business arms of a company ca derail the entire management program. The prime reason data governance consulting experts advocate the adoption of an info-centric approach is that it helps foster confidence between the technical and the commercial sections of an organization. The business departments will not feel that the protocols they need to follow while processing digital items have been thrust upon them by the technical team. They will know that following the rules will help them improve their own efficiency.

6. Identifying The Best Data Sources Becomes Difficult:

Companies are accessing information from a variety of sources nowadays. It is not like earlier when there were only a few points from where an element can enter a digital storage system. Technology has pervaded all walks of human life and all kinds of transactions are being conducted digitally. This had led to the creation of multiple origin points for a single element. It has become increasingly difficult to identify the best one for a specific item. Governance teams have to deal with a lot more cases of duplicate or unfit elements entering the organization’s ecosystem.

7. Data Quality Maintenance Becomes Complicated:

A significant objective of having a supervisory framework to monitor the management processes is to ensure that the assets remain accurate and consistent in nature throughout the duration of their lifecycle. However, an increased number of resources and rising security concerns can cause the monitoring group to shift its focus towards access rules rather than quality control. Moreover, a strong data culture can bring distinct challenges like the one related to dependable sources mentioned in the above point. All these factors make maintaining standards of information assets a difficult task.

8. Greater Legal Implications For Organizations:

The rising cases of data breaches led to the enactment of strict privacy laws like the European Union’s General Data Protection Regulation. These rules make the organization accessing the personal information of individuals responsible for its preservation. Such laws along with increased security threats have resulted in greater legal implications for the corporations acquiring critical individual data. The governance personnel have to be alert always to prevent the leakage of any sensitive information to unapproved users.

Conclusion:

Creating the environment for fostering a strong data culture can create some unique challenges for the data governance initiative. In order to enjoy the benefits of an info-centric approach, organizations have to be prepared to overcome the hurdles.