The Roles of Data Stewards

Data stewardship is a relatively new role. Likely they also possess the best window into the business. What most data stewards are not provided in advance is a roadmap to eliminating data debt as a necessary prerequisite to smoothly functioning data governance. Well thought out plans crash and burn on the rocks of reality–the existing data environment! Several issues are illustrative of these types of challenges:

–  The specific role of data ownership
–  Full time versus part time support/resourcing
–  Generally low data literacy everywhere
–  The confounding complexity of data debit

Data stewards are the implementation arm of data governance. They are also the first line of defense against bad data practices. Whether it’s data profiling or in-depth root cause analysis, data stewards ensure the organization shared data is reliably interconnected. Whether starting or restarting your data stewardship program, success comes from

–  Understanding the cadence/role of foundational
    data practices supporting organizational operations
–  Proving value with tangible ROI
–  Improving effectiveness/efficiencies
    using organization-wide insight
–  Comprehending how stewards need to be
    multifunctional and dexterous, especially at first
–  Integrating the role of Data Debt fighting