You’ve probably already heard of data governance, and if you’re reading this article, you’re probably interested in the subject. We’d like to explain what data governance really is and why it’s important, as well as giving you some advice on how to implement this practice within your company.
What is data governance?
Data governance refers to all the actions and procedures put in place by a company to manage the collection and use of data.
Data governance therefore requires a balance between the profitability of the data collected and compliance with regulations, with the aim of gaining the trust of the authorities and customers alike.
Why is data governance so important?
Data governance is effective when data is consistent and reliable and is used appropriately, while complying with legislation. It is becoming increasingly essential as businesses face new privacy regulations and rely more and more on data analysis to optimise their operations and guide their decisions.
Without effective data governance, inconsistencies in different areas of your organisation could remain unresolved. For example, customer names may be listed differently in sales, logistics and customer service systems. This could complicate data integration efforts and create problems in terms of reliability. What’s more, this kind of erroneous information is not always detectable and often goes unnoticed. This could affect the accuracy of your company’s business intelligence, reporting and analysis.
A data governance programme usually results in the development of common data standards and formats that are applied across the business, enhancing data consistency for both business activities and compliance.
How can you introduce data governance in your company?
Firstly, as you will have realised, data governance should not just be applied to a single level of your organisation, but to the whole of it. It will be crucial to keep this objective in sight;
You will need to identify who owns or is responsible for the various data assets in your company. They will need to participate in the governance programme, or share the data with others who will be designated for this task.
A structure will then be established to define who will be responsible for managing the various data-related issues, such as :
- setting up a system for securing company and customer data,
- consolidating data to facilitate decision-making,
- or maximising the potential of the data collected in terms of financial gains, productivity and efficiency.
One or more people will then have access to the data. But always take care to minimise the risk of errors by managing the various authorisations and specifying each person’s responsibilities.
We also advise you to make a regular copy of the data, called a backup, in case of loss or problems.
Finally, don’t forget that one of the major challenges of data governance is to give value to data. To achieve this, a centralised approach that brings together the different sources of data collection is the key to success.
It’s up to you!
In short, data governance can help you to comply with legislation, but also to put in place an internal framework to optimise the use of data. It should not be seen as a constraint, but as a practice that opens up new business opportunities.
Don’t wait any longer to implement this practice in your business!
Meticulous and perfectionist, Céline specializes in the creation of SEO-oriented content. But these are not her only assets! She also puts her creativity at the service of our Social Media Strategy team to create ultra-targeted campaigns designed to convince and convert.
