Data Governance

The Ultimate Beginner

to Expert Course

By George Smarts (Udemy course)

What is Data Governance?

● Rules, Processes and Accountability that allow the organization to

better manage the availability, usability, security and integrity of the
corporate data sources.

● Tip - Think about it as bringing data under control and keeping it

secure and consistent.
Examples of Data Governance?

● Rules, Processes and Accountability that allow the organization to

better manage the availability, usability, security and integrity of the
corporate data sources.

● Tip - Think about at as bringing data under control and keeping it

secure.
Data Governance Goals
● Correct level of access for everyone

● Consistent data

● Compliance with legal rules

● Correct ownership of the data

● Useful to the organization

 Why Data Governance
usually fails?
● Data Governance is not well-defined

● Data Governance is seen as on top activity for already

overstretched resources

● The organization works in silos without centralized

decision making from management
Tip
Tell the audience about ● Executives do not understand the importance of data
the problem through a governance and believe it is not a business issue but an
story, ideally a person. “IT thing”

● Data Governance framework is not actually followed after

initial implementation

● ROI is not clear for executives from the start which leads
to lack of focus on execution
Data Governance
vs
Data Management
 Data Governance Roles and Responsibilities

Image Credit: Robert S. Seiner, KIK Consulting

 Steps to Implement Data Governance

Step 1 Step 3 Step 5 Step 7 Step 9

Identify the Data Governance Choose a model for the Select the Data Governance
Set Up the Data Governance Establish a Skilled
Leadership & Scope Data Governance Team Office Support Team Business Team

Preparation > Setup > Implementation > Maintenance

Step 2 Step 4 Step 6 Step 8 Step 10

Develop a Data Choose the Data Governance Policy and Procedures Establish a
Select the Steering
Governance Charter Working Group Development and Skilled IT Team
Committee
Enforcement
Resources used:
1 Steps to an Effective Data Governance Structure, Michael Ott, TDAN
2 Kelle O’Neal, How to Choose the Right Data Governance Resources
3 Lance Miller, Team works, Teradata Magazine Online
4 Building a Data Governance Team for Better Data Quality
 Data Governance Core Principles

Image Credit: Robert S. Seiner, KIK Consulting

 Data Governance Core Principles

Top Skills for Data Governance

● Comprehensive Data Governance knowledge

● Engaging with sponsors, users and senior

management

● Effective training

● Influence senior management

● Vast experience working in a data driven

environment (Master Data Management technology
landscape, processes, design principles, data catalogues, data
quality technologies, data management trends, etc)

Image Credit: Robert S. Seiner, KIK Consulting

What is a Data Governance Framework?
> Data access and delivery
> Data integrity
> Data loss prevention (DLP)
> Data synchronization
> Master data management (MDM)
What should be within a successful Data
Governance Framework?
> Data access and delivery
> Data integrity
> Data loss prevention (DLP)
> Data synchronization
> Master data management (MDM)
7 reasons why you need
Data Governance
1. Secure your data
2. Ensure compliance with regulations
and data privacy laws
3. Improve the data quality
4. Avoid inconsistent data silos
5. Improve trust in the data
6. Better decision making
7. Improve efficiency
Regulations and Data
Amazon: $886 million

WhatsApp - $267 million

Home Depot: $200 million

Uber: $148 million

Yahoo: $85 million

Capital One: $80 million

*The U.S. relies on a “combination of legislation, regulation and self-regulation” rather than government intervention alone. There are
approximately 20 industry- or sector-specific federal laws, and more than 100 privacy laws at the state level (in fact, there are 25
privacy-related laws in California alone).
 Most Common Data
Governance Questions
and Answers!
 Tips:
> Keep it high level
> Explain it as if the person has no prior
Question 1 - What is Data Governance? knowledge
> Provide your own definition

Answer: “You can think of Data Governance as

introducing Rules, Processes and Accountability
that allow the organization to better manage the
availability, usability, security and integrity of the
corporate data sources”
 Tips:
> It really depends on the size and
structure of the organization. Make sure
to mention this
Question 2 - Who is Responsible for Data > Provide an example - large company vs
Governance? small company

Answer: “It really depends on the structure of the

company. But in general as per Data Governance
best practices from the industry. It is the business
side of the organization that should be responsible
for it, not IT! For large organizations usually the CDO
office that is responsible. For smaller companies this
may be someone in the Operations, Finance, etc
side of the business if there is no Data team.”
 Tips:
> Data Governance is the strategy,
while Data Management is the
implementation
Question 3 - What is the difference between > Data Governance is driven by the
Data Management and Data Governance? business side of the organization,
while Data Management is driven by
IT
Answer: “Data Governance establishes the
policies, processes and procedures around data in
the organization, while Data Management enforces
those policies, processes and procedures”
 Tips:
> Data Governance Framework is a
set of guidelines and rules for
building a model for managing
Question 4 - What is a Data Governance enterprise data.

Framework? > The framework should set the

rules for data ownership, processes
for data governance, etc
Answer: “I believe the easiest way to explain this
will be to use the Data Governance Institute
definition. Their definition is that a data governance
framework is the logical structure for classifying,
organizing, and communicating complex activities
involved in making decisions about and taking
action on enterprise data”

Reference: https://datagovernance.com
 Tips:
> The most important part of
Enterprise Data Governance is the
focus and sponsorship by the
Question 5 - What is the difference Data organization leadership. This means
funding and better chance for long
Governance and Enterprise Data Governance? term success

Answer: “Every organization usually has Data

Governance of some sort. However Enterprise Data
Governance means that the organization has
invested in an Enterprise Program that include
having a governing body that sets expectations and
holds data owners accountable for the overall Data
Governance within the organization.”
 Tips:
You can also mention some of the
following issues:
> duplicated systems, processes,
Question 6- What is usually the biggest people roles
> change pushback from senior
challenge in implementing Data Governance? stakeholders (this is why it is important
that the Data Governance is sponsored
at highest level)
Answer: “In general, for companies that do not
have existing Data Governance Program the
biggest challenges are the lack of
ownership/accountability and the silo approach to
data management within the different departments
of the same company”
 Tips:
> You cannot expect to implement a
Data Governance Program within the
same time for a 500 employees
Question 7- How long does it take to establish company and 300 000 employees.

a Data Governance Program?

Answer: “It really depends on the structure of the

organization and the complexity. It can take
anywhere from 60 days to 180 days from my
experience. Usually we aim to establish the Data
Governance Program within a 3 month period. Then
beyond this to actually mature the program!”
 Tips:
> Having the correct engagement
and commitment will make even the
most challenging Data Governance
Question 8 - What is most important for Program achievable.

establishing a Data Governance Program?

Answer: “The sponsorship from the highest level

in the organization!”
 Tips:
> Report the results to Program
Question 9 - How do you measure the success sponsors on monthly/quarterly basis
> You can use a spreadsheet to
of a Data Governance Program? create the Scorecard
> The KPIs will be the baseline
against which you will measure

Answer: “You implement a Data Governance progress

Scorecard. A great Scorecard will show the progress

against:
1. Data Quality - data accuracy rates, number of approved
reference data, number of data issues resolved, etc
2. Financial - Total budget spend on data infrastructure
3. Data control - Compliance test results
4. Data Infrastructure - number of systems (the less the better)”
 Tips:
> Keep the answer high level. The
Question 10 - What is a typical Data actual implementation will depend
on specifics
Governance Program roadmap?

Answer: “A really high level roadmap will look something

like this:
1. Create the Data Governance Charter
2. Define the Data Governance operating model
3. Define the KPIs for tracking the progress
4. Define the rules, processes, policies, etc
5. Decide on the tools that you will use
6. Implement
7. Monitor and Improve”
Data Governance Tools
How to choose the right tool for you?

● Clarify your company needs

● Involve the business team

● Use the free trial