Business leaders and technology experts spend a lot of time referring to data management and data governance. Many technology experts confuse the two terms without maintaining a clear understanding of the difference between data management and governance. In the broadest terms, the management of data covers how data is used daily. In contrast, governance covers the use of data from a management point of view, with issues surrounding data ownership and who is allowed access to their layers of information.

What is Data Management?

Without governance, there would be no data management. Data management is involved with the everyday use of information in the era of big data. The data management sector asks specific questions regarding the use of data, including the monitoring of rules and regulations regarding data use in an organization. The issues discussed in data management include determining which roles are allowed to access information within an organization. The management of data is a key area that involves the updating of security measures to make sure any threats do not compromise the reputation of the organization, according to Tableau.

What is the Effective Governance of Data?

Data governance is an area of business operated by management figures from across an organization. The effective governance of data and information is focused on how data can be a financial benefit to a company. The University of Alabama at Birmingham reports the appointment of governors to oversee the development and use of data can make information a success for a business.

The governance of data is concerned with ensuring the quality of the information being collected and stored reaches the needs of the organization. Governors are responsible for ensuring the data use policies are complied with and limit the use of information by employees. Alongside ensuring the data collected by an organization is of the correct quality, policies are put into place to cover the type of data a company stores for the long term.

The Key Differences

There are several differences between data management and governance. Those appointed to create the policies surrounding how data is stored and used establish the policies used by an organization. The governance of data puts into place the policies and procedures needed to keep information safe and determine who has the right to access it.

A key difference between data management and governance is the use of technology. Data management is concerned with the technology used to clean, store, and access information. The governance of data creates the framework and policies that allow the correct technology to be put into place for an organization.

Two Areas of the Same Business

Organizations often become concerned with the differences between data management and governance without discussing the similarities. The best policies and frameworks offer a complementary way of working to clean, store, and use data. The establishment of the governance framework will take into account how the management of data takes place in successful organizations.

There are more similarities between data management and governance than there are differences. By considering both aspects of the use of data, an organization can protect itself from future problems.