Many of us have been reading about things like “Big Data” and the ability of automated tools to search through enormous volumes of data to find relationships, insights and business opportunities.
These technical developments have raised the importance of treating data as an asset for an organization to store, manage and use, just as organizations manage and use other assets – money, human resources, physical facilities. Recognizing and handling data in ways similar to these other assets has real tangible benefits, particularly in the age of Big Data.
The great thing about thinking about data as an asset is that, unlike other assets, data can be endlessly reused – using it to drive a set of actionable insights does not deplete it for other use. As a result, the importance of actively managing data becomes more evident.
The data you collect and process through regular operations, about clients, products, sales, external markets and conditions, and the resources used by the organization, all has additional value for you if you can harness it. But harnessing it means you have to know what data you hold, who has collected it and how; periodically assessing its quality, accuracy and completeness; storing it in a logical way that so it can be retrieved, combined and analyzed. Just as organizations manage people, financials and facilities, they also need to direct time and money to managing data.
For a more tangible perspective, the following chart shows some of the management tools and processes used to manage different types of assets. As you read it consider that most organizations have strong and robust elements in the first three columns of this chart – but how many have equal interest, investment and support for the last column? How does your organization stack up?
| Asset | People | Money | Facilities | Data |
| Asset Planning (Based on overall business and strategic plans) | Hiring plan | Budget | Capital Budget | Information Technology Plan for data acquisition and storage |
| Acquisition | Recruiting and hiring processes | Sales Plan (Revenue); Fund raising plans and processes (Investment or funding) | Capital Investment plans and activities | Systems Implementation, Development, Enhancements consider data implications; Data definitions, collections responsibilities |
| Ongoing Management | Staff management; Performance management and reviews | YTD updates; budget updates | Scheduled maintenance; ongoing asset tracking and replacement plans | Data administration and database administration; Data Quality assessments; Backups and security measures |
| Policies and Processes | Health and Safety; Harassment;
Accessibility |
Professional Standards; Separation of Duties; Expenses | Procurement; Annual Maintenance and Inspection | Security; Privacy; Data Access; Archive and Disposal |
| Systems Support | HR Information Systems | Financial Systems | Asset Management Solutions | Data Management Tools |
