Data Governance is the overall management of the availability, usability, integrity, and security of data used in an organization. It encompasses the people, processes, and technology required to ensure data is used in a manner that supports the organization’s goals and objectives.
Data Governance is an essential component of people analytics, as it ensures that the data used to support HR initiatives is accurate, consistent, and secure. By implementing effective data governance, organizations can improve the quality of their data, increase trust in the data, and make better-informed decisions.
Theories of Data Governance include:
- Total Data Management (TDM): A comprehensive approach that views data as a valuable corporate asset and manages it as such.
- Data Stewardship: The act of managing data to ensure it is accurate, consistent, and secure.
- Data Quality Management: The process of improving data quality to support the needs of the organization.
There are several types of Data Governance, including:
- Enterprise Data Governance: A top-down approach that defines and implements data governance across the entire organization.
- Business Unit Data Governance: A bottom-up approach that enables business units to manage their own data.
- Project Data Governance: A project-specific approach that governs data used in specific projects.
The Data Governance process typically includes the following steps:
- Define the purpose and scope of the data governance program.
- Assess the current state of data governance.
- Define data governance policies and procedures.
- Implement the data governance program.
- Monitor and evaluate the effectiveness of the data governance program.
Advantages of Data Governance include:
- Improved Data Quality: Data governance ensures that data is accurate, consistent, and secure, which leads to improved data quality.
- Better Decision Making: By using high-quality data, organizations can make better decisions.
- Increased Trust in Data: Data governance builds trust in data by ensuring it is accurate, consistent, and secure.
- Improved Compliance: Data governance helps organizations meet regulatory and legal requirements by ensuring data is handled properly.
- Increased Efficiency: Data governance streamlines processes and reduces redundancies, which leads to increased efficiency.