1. A Comprehensive Data Governance Program
Steve Sugulas Business Development Executive QiSlogic
Despite the tremendous cost of issues, most organizations are struggling to addresses
their Data Quality issues. We believe there are 5 primary reasons why they are failing:
* Our Systems are more complex than ever before. Companies now have more
information and are conducting more integration between systems than ever before. New
regulations, M&As, globalization and increasing customer demands mean that
information management challenges are increasingly formidable.
* Silo-ed, short-term project delivery focus. As projects are often funded at a
departmental level, they don’t account for the impacts of how data will be used by others.
Data flows between systems and the design of these connection points must go across
strict project boundaries.
* Traditional development methods do not give enough focus to data management.
Many projects are focused more on function and feature than on information – the desire
to build new functionality has resulted in information being left by the wayside.
* Data Quality issues are Hidden and Persistent. Data quality issues can exist
unnoticed for some time; although some users may suspect the data in the systems they
rely on to make their decisions are not accurate, complete, current, valid, or consistent.
This data can then get propagated to other systems as we increase connectivity.
Organizations tend to underestimate the data quality issues in their systems.
* Data Quality is fit for Purpose. It is difficult for users of downstream systems to
improve the data quality of their system because the data they derive information from is
entered via customer facing operational systems. These customer facing system operators
do not have the same incentive to maintain high data quality and they are focused on
entering the data quickly and without rejection by the system at the point of entry. It is
often when data is integrated, summarized, standardized and used in another context that
quality issues begin to surface.
A comprehensive Data Governance program must be defined to meet these challenges.
Why is a New Competency Model Required?
Many organizations have struggled to meet these challenges because they fail to focus
their techniques on the enterprise-wide problem. They see information as a technology
issue, rather than a fundamental and core business activity. In many ways information is
the new accounting. Solutions required to address complex infrastructure and information
issues are often contradictory to business funding models that are departmentally focused.
2. Defining an enterprise-wide program, on the other hand, is also very difficult. Building
momentum for these initiatives takes a long period of time and can easily lead to an
approach that is out of touch with what the business needs. Attempts to enforce
architectural governance, for example, quite easily become a disabling approach for the
business or a "toothless watchdog" that provides little value.
Therefore, what is required is an approach that can address the inherit challenges on a
federated business model and technology architecture in a manageable and effective
fashion that fosters innovation - not an easy task. This is the rationale for and the need for
a new competency of Information Development.
Moving from Data Governance to Information Governance
Because Information Management is a new field, practitioners have focused on what they
know are structured data and have been wary of the more ambiguous aspects of
governance such as Information Lifecycle Management (ILM), accountability,
monitoring and Information Return on Investment (ROI) management. Therefore, a
starting point for this solution relates to a consistent definition of this area and then
provides assets related to people, process, organization and technologies required for
improved Information Governance.
Info management has initially focused on an improved approach to Data Governance,
with the aim of this solution being extended more broadly to also cover other forms of
content. Through the collaborative method, Contributors are encouraged to help develop
this solution in an emerging area.
The target scope for this offering is defined in the Solution Offering Definition section
Solution Offering Purpose
This is a Core Solution Offering. Core Solution Offerings bring together all assets in that
are relevant to solving a specific business and technology problem. Many of these assets
may already exist and as the suite is built out over time, assets can be progressively added
to an Offering.
A Core Solution Offering contains all the elements required to define and deliver a go-to-
market offering. It can use a combination of open, shared and private assets.
The Information Governance Offering is also a Foundational Solution. Foundational
Solutions are "background" solutions that support the Core Solution Offerings of the this
Methodology.
Foundational Solutions are the lowest-assets assets within the Core Solutions offerings
that are comprehensive in nature. They may tie together multiple Supporting Assets and
are referenced from the Overall Implementation Guide and other Solution Offerings.
Steve Sugulas
November 2009
