Establishing a business is a process of research, planning, organizing, and managing. It does take a lot of time and experts to professionalize and finalize all processes of a company. Most companies started as small businesses that expanded over time. Here it takes a lot of evaluation and monitoring to make sure the expansion works properly. Including new and technically developed machines, briefing the staff, adapting all processes, and keeping everything rolling without failures is a complex system. There are always experts and professionals with a lot of experience and knowledge who work together to make a company grow most efficiently with the lowest risk of failure or loss. 

One of the most important aspects of a good business is professional data governance. Even small businesses rely on different software or mdm tools to manage all the data and information. So do big businesses.

Definition of data governance

Data governance is the process of managing the data of a company or entity. That includes the availability, usability, integrity, and security of valuable information. Companies use various tools and software to manage their data. This means that internal data standards and policies are defined especially for the business and their needs. Based on this all data are processed. Through data governance, data can be consistent and trustworthy, and most importantly the risk of data misuse can be reduced or in the best case eliminated. Companies ensure that their most important information like master data and variable information is protected, and well managed.  

In other words, data governance is a set of policies, procedures, protocols, and metrics that control how data is used, managed, and stored. It is important that the variety of information can be put together and also be adapted to the needs of the end-user.

What is master data?

Master data is the most valuable data of a company. It includes information about customers, employees, vendors, and suppliers. Furthermore, production processes, products, parts, locations, contracts, and accounting items are master data. A company creates a single master record for all critical and most valuable information. They must be included in the data governance. Therefore, Master Data Management is part of data governance.

The important role of data governance for a business

Generally, data governance is very important for every business. It leads to better data analytics because the information is visually evaluable, accessible, and usable. At the same time, the data is protected from any misuse or attack. Being able to monitor and evaluate the data the informed decision-making can be improved and possible mistakes can be avoided. Furthermore, the operation service can be improved because a stable database is accessible to find problems and their solutions easier. 

A company that applies professional data governance unifies and standardizes process, software, and access. Everybody; staff, managers, and bosses work with the same programs and therefore they are on the same page. Data governance is an internal system that is managed by a briefed team where three main roles exist: data trustee, data steward, data custodian. Together with the company, they are responsible for the data of a company. 

With standards of transparency, accountability, rules, and regulations a company has a reliable form and data governance and can improve the productivity and efficiency of a business.