Imaging running a data warehouse (or live data feeds) for a trading floor such as the New York Stock Exchange or NASDAQ and the immense amount of data flowing through the organization. I’ve recently become familiar with the Online Trading Academy, a highly rated & reviewed learning center where they teach you how to day trade. Trading stocks is very data dependent, and peoples’ livelyhood depends on it, and this data is used on a daily basis in realtime. Can you imagine if bad (or no) data governance is in place and how this could seriously impact a lot of people?  This would literally jeopardize people’s lives as they know it, and one bad move by a trading floor could mean more government regulations and overhead – something that they absolutely do not want.

Consider companies like MorningStar, whose job it is to compile massive amounts of data and make stock ratings and recommendations based on that data.  Can you image the intense amount of data governance and data quality that occurs in that organization? (incidentally, I can related as I saw their Data Quality Director speak at a conference in Vegas on the topic).  If MorningStar has a corrupt set of data that impacts just one small portion of their business, it could literally mean thousands of people get bad advice on their retirement investments.  If that mistake is discovered too late, we are talking about a catastrophic loss of money and potentially the credibility of their company going completely out the door.

I wanted to share this with you, because often times we just think of the worst case scenario being an ‘out of compliance’ finding, but it really can be so much worse than that.  Job loss, income loss, bankruptcy and more all all serious possibilities if data isn’t treated like gold with an organization.

The difficulty with training an entire organization around data governance is that there are often so many groups focusing on different projects and completing different tasks. The cost of getting everyone into training courses and workshops can quickly add up. Thankfully, there is a solution that an organization can implement that is both cost effective and successful at training an entire staff on proper data governance techniques.

Data Governance Training Through eLearning

One of the most cost effective ways of explaining the importance of Data Governance with your employees is through an eLearning solution. This training approach can be very similar to the security training sessions organization conduct each year to make sure staff is keeping proper protocols for protecting an organizations intelectual property.

An elearning solution can be custom developed to demonstrate the specific approach you’d like to implement for proper data governance in your organization. These approaches are excellent as they can be repeated, easily required of all new incoming employees, and can be used be different parts of the organization as needed.

An even better idea would be to make the implementation of required eLearning course completion be part of every new project your organization undertakes. As they review the material continually they’ll develop a strong understanding of how the organization works with data.

eLearning courses can be developed for Computer Based Training or Web Best Training approaches. They can be taken by your employees at their desk. They are often less expensive than requiring week long training sessions and the ability to test an employees knowledge at the end of the course allows for an assurance that staff understands the material presented to them.

If your organization is not using elearning approaches to data governance it is something you should seriously investigate.

An area that grammar is most important when applying it to data governance is when you’re considering data elements that accept open ended information from individuals entering data into your system. This scenario may allow for data entry employees to use short hand, improper grammar, or text that only they can read. This makes it difficult to gain any value from the data you’ve collected and entered into your enterprise systems.

Data Governance Tools – Grammar Checkers

One of the first things you can do when developing a data governance plan is to identify systems that allow for the open ended data input. These systems should be sure to build in a grammar check function before the data is saved into the system. This allows software to do a lot of the major checking for you and allows you to focus on other areas of your data governance plan.

If system modifications are not an option, it maybe a good idea to offer data entry training to ensure employees understand the importance of providing clear input into your data collection systems.

Grammar Strategy Development at Conferences

Another option to improve your proper grammar implementation is by developing strategies with other data stewards at the next conference you attend. Often different organizations have implemented different approaches to ensure high quality data. Be prepared to ask specifics about how other organizations implemented their strategy, what they felt were the most important lessons learned and what they’d do differently next time.

Proper Grammar = Data Quality

When your organization takes the time insure that the data entered into its systems are grammatically correct they are also making sure that they are prepared for future use and analysis of that data. This is always most easily identified when historic data is accessed for analysis and quality data will be much more useful for future business decisions.

While data governance has shifted from hard copy to software, you should realize that the automated processes will not be sustained on its own. This kind of data management still needs a point of contact to be held accountable to the accuracy and security of the records you keep.  Aside from that, you also want to be sure that all pertinent information can easily be shared with all employees when needed. This may not be a huge problem to small and medium sized businesses, but as your company starts to grow and you start to employ more staff, the records may grow to an extent that managing paper trails may not be the most efficient way to do business.

Since we have been working towards data governance for maximum efficiency, another advantage of being able to implement data management strategies would be the prevention of fraud. This is especially true for any type of company. Managing financial records and information is not limited to sales or banking organizations. Nothing can be worse than losing important financial or accounting information, and if not managed properly, you can end up losing hundreds to thousands of dollars in an instant. Being able to secure your company’s records will play a critical role to your company. The sooner you are able to implement data governance processes, the more time you can devote to other things that will make your business successful.

In some cases, the Data Stewardship group within an organization is composed of the Data Stakeholders themselves.  These Data Stewards ensure that data-related decisions are carried out in a way that doesn’t conflict with another person or entity within the organization.   Aside from technical skills, a Data Steward should also have a clear, crisp way of communicating issues and ideas and will be responsible for ensuring that any ambiguities in the data are removed.

Responsibilities of a Data Steward include:

1. Data Stewards must see to it that the data being carried out doesn’t overlap any existing, contradicting data within the organization
2. Data Stewards are always on the look out for possible errors in the structure.
3. Data Stewards must help ensure that the data is error-free.
4. Data warehousing is one of the key roles of a Data Steward.
5. Data Stewards ensure consistency of data. They maybe one level below the Data Governance board, but these stewards also play a big role in data decision-making.

In a large enterprise, it is not sufficient that a single Data Steward is employed.   It usually takes a team of experts in their respective fields to come up with a successful Data Stewardship council.

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One issue that must be reviewed is deciding on just exactly who has the power to decide. Likewise, questions regarding when and how decisions can be made and conceptualized should also be settled.  Therefore, to avoid any inconsistencies, the Data Governance program must clearly define and document all decision rights. This documentation should also include those detailed and further information on all decisions made in regards to data. These decision rights must be defined very well to avoid any conflict, specifically when it comes to settling issues.

On the other hand, decision-rights for programs related to compliance are quite easy to identify. The executive level of an organization has the power to choose if they will follow a certain standard, law or regulation; of course, these choices should be in relation to the organization’s mission and visions. Although the executive level can identify which rule to follow, it is the duty of different Data Stakeholders to discuss and come up with a general decision on how their group will comply and follow these certain rules.

Other than deciding on which rule to follow, other decisions related to data-processes need constant concession and analysis from one organization to the next. In line with this, different sectors within an organization have a specific right to decide but should be a result of thorough discussion between different data stakeholders. For example, Data Architecture has the right to decide on how long the data field will be in the new system as a result of different ideas and opinions from its stakeholders.

Data governance operates like this kind of government with its three separate branches: the executive branch, legislative branch and the judicial branch- all having their own duties, functions, and checks & balances. For background, the legislative passes, makes and even changes laws, the judicial branch interprets these laws specifically in terms of settling and resolving issues and the executive branch makes sure that these laws are followed and reinforced while providing all services to its constituents.

On the other hand, Data Stakeholders are like citizens particularly in terms on their rights, privileges and obligations. Just like a citizen whose actions is governed by laws, Data Stakeholders should be aware that there are rules governing their actions when it comes to traveling to different data domains. And they are also liable and can be sanctioned according to the rules set by the Data Governance office.

Those in the lower level can have their own mission specifically for their type of program and data. However, these specific missions must still be in accordance or in response to the general three missions of Data Governance.

Along with mission is vision, which should also be concise and comprehensible. When crafting your program’s visions, use inspiring words that can entice and persuade Data Stakeholders to set their own data-related goals.

In order to achieve utmost data quality, it has to start from the bottom-up. An enterprise needs to solidify and integrate this information into one silo and create processes and profiles to collect the data upstream.  Effective Data Governance requires that customer information be available where need be at the most opportune time when it is needed. Data should be centralized in a way that it would be easy for the Data Stewards to look for information and make necessary changes where applicable.

We need to gain a complete and timely understanding of our customers in order to effectively gather information. We need to know which information is needed at a given time. When all the needed information has already been collected, it should be compiled and consolidated into one big effective structure that can easily be accessed by people within the organization.  To reduce operational risks, and to lessen situations where customers get irate because of wrong information given to them, Data Quality should (as always) be observed. This regulating body ensures that various processes are being met in order to provide a flawless data structure.

A unified front end system must be employed by every enterprise if they want to maintain the integrity of their systems and their data.  With the overwhelming amount of information from both internal and external customers, Global organizations should start to see Data Governance not only as a single entity in an enterprise but its vital importance to the welfare of the enterprise as a whole.

An effective Data Governance team must know which Data Stakeholders to get in contact with depending on what type of data they need or are working on.  For example, if a company needs to know the current market trends and behavior, the Data Governance team should be able to identify at first brush that they need to get a hold of a representative from the Marketing department. If data about providing quality customer service is needed, then they need to get in contact with someone from the Quality Assurance department and so on and so forth.

Since this is the case, it is the responsibility of the Data Governance board to identify specific Points-of-Contact (POCs) from each of these departments for when there is a need to change and update people across the board. It is tedious to speak to everyone in the department to find the right POC, so it is extremely beneficial that an identified representative from each department be present when there is a Data Governance meeting.

Data Stakeholders can take either an active or a passive stand when it comes to these matters but it is best to get them involved in the decision-making process in some capacity.  We have to make these people understand how the business works, how the data within the business works and how it affects the department and the company as a whole if the data calls don’t go to the correct channels.

WHO ARE THE PEOPLE BEHIND DATA GOVERNANCE?

Data Governance is all about accumulating, gathering, storing and integrating raw customer data and making this information available when needed.  The people who are behind this process are called “Data Stakeholders” and they are composed of a mixed line-up of people from various departments in an enterprise – some coming from IT, Marketing, Human Resources, etc.

WHAT IS DATA GOVERNANCE AND HOW DOES IT WORK?

Data Governance is the discipline used by companies to ensure that accuracy, consistency and flow of data are stream-lined depending on the focus of the business.  The use of Data Governance ensures a smooth collection and dissemination of data information that are of quality, thereby solidifying the company’s integrity.

WHEN IS THE BEST TIME TO MAKE USE OF FORMAL DATA GOVERNANCE?

The local data management of an enterprise can only take you so far. When there is more data that needs to be managed than is practical for ad-hoc management, the best bet is to implement the use of a formal Data Governance initiative.  Here are situations that call for such big transition:

1. When there is a bigger volume of data that needs to be spread out within an organization.
2. When the local data management system is so primordial that it cannot efficiently store and show data when needed.  Formal Data Governance uses a more sophisticated system to ensure the quality of data being used in the enterprise.
3. The Data Architects in the organization needs to look at the enterprise from a macro-perspective in order to understand how data should be managed.
4. A compliance system is needed to manage risk, legal obligations, or other regulations.

WHAT DEPARTMENTS ARE INVOLVED IN DATA GOVERNANCE?

Data Governance is mostly seen on a larger scale than most programs in an organization.  Its participants vary, but these resources generally represent IT, Human Capital, Marketing and Finance and Operations and Management.  It looks at information from a global scale and inputs from people from these departments are highly valued and taken into consideration.

WHY IS THERE A NEED FOR DATA GOVERNANCE?

Most companies create an elaborate Data Management System because it is important that different methods and procedures are aligned with this set-up.  Data Governance guarantees that information is properly carried out within an enterprise.  In doing so, data is disseminated to the right people at the time it is needed and, in return, makes the whole process efficient and cost-effective. Data Governance is generally a win-win situation for companies that choose to integrate it into their system.

HOW TO IMPLEMENT DATA GOVERNANCE FROM THE GROUND UP?

Do you notice how most companies develop a mission/vision statement? The same holds true for Data Governance. In order to fully maximize its use, the program manager needs to sit down with its people first and talk about where they want to be heading and what areas or key drivers they want to put focus on.  Identifying these things will help keep the program organized and will help steer it into the direction that executive management ultimately wants it to go in.

HOW MUCH DATA GOVERNANCE DO WE NEED?

It is extremely helpful to incorporate data governance when the data is not yet complex. This is usually a utopian-like thought, however, because most organizations have very complex data before they ever begin thinking about introducing data governance.

If you do start early, however, it becomes very easy to scale the program;  just add data as the need arises and put more structure into the program.  In order for data governance to work cohesively, departments should make use of common variables and terminologies and use them correctly and efficiently at all times.  It is wise to use it in a localized setting but with a global mindset.

WHAT KEY AREAS DO WE NEED TO PUT FOCUS ON WHEN IMPLEMENTING DATA GOVERNANCE?

We have been stressing that Data Governance is all about the accuracy and effectiveness of data accumulation and dissemination, hence, people who implement it should have the ability to communicate their thoughts effectively – both in action and in writing.  They need to be able to translate complex issues in a way that will be easily understood no matter which line of business utilizes the information.  The people behind Data Governance should have the ability to create, influence and assertively implement the data framework within the enterprise.

Proper training, effective training articles and materials can help the Data Governance team stay up to date in the ever-changing world of data management.