How do we plan a data governance roadmap? | Amazon Web Services

Summary

In the AWS data governance masterclass, Kevin Lewis emphasizes the importance of integrating data governance into an overarching data strategy, aligning it with business initiatives. He outlines a simple yet powerful roadmap structure, highlighting workstreams such as targeted business initiatives, data-intensive applications, data domains, data management, data architecture, data security, and the operating model. Lewis advocates for a focused approach, prioritizing data steward tasks to support specific initiatives, and illustrates how aligning data governance with business needs can prevent common pitfalls and significantly enhance a company's data strategy.

Takeaways

• 😀 Building an effective data governance roadmap is best integrated into an overall data strategy to ensure alignment with business initiatives.
• 📈 The structure of a good data governance roadmap should be simple yet powerful, focusing on key workstreams that support business objectives.
• 🎯 The first step in a data governance roadmap is identifying targeted business initiatives, which should be real, funded, and sponsored outside the data program.
• 🔍 The application track involves considering specific data-intensive applications that will be deployed within the business initiatives.
• 🗂️ The data domain track focuses on the relevant data segments necessary to support near-term use cases within the business initiatives.
• 🛠️ The data management track prioritizes data management practices based on the condition of the data needed to support business initiatives.
• 🏛️ Data architecture involves holistic planning for the end-to-end data ecosystem, including data lakes, warehouses, and security, in support of business initiatives.
• 🔐 Data security is crucial and is often referred to as 'job zero', meaning it's foundational and must be considered before all else.
• 👥 The operating model track addresses the people and process side, ensuring data stewards have specific, prioritized work that supports major initiatives.
• ⏳ Aligning data governance with business initiatives can save significant time and struggle, making it a transformational approach to data management.

Q & A

What is the main focus of the masterclass on data governance with AWS?

The main focus of the masterclass is on building an effective data governance roadmap that is aligned with overall business initiatives and integrated as part of an overall data strategy roadmap.

Why is it important to align the data governance program with business initiatives?

Aligning the data governance program with business initiatives ensures that the data strategy directly supports the company's core objectives, enhancing the program's relevance and effectiveness.

What is the significance of including data governance as part of the overall data strategy?

Including data governance as part of the overall data strategy ensures that data management practices are prioritized and deployed in a way that supports specific business initiatives and use cases.

What are the key workstreams that should be included in a data governance roadmap?

The key workstreams in a data governance roadmap include targeted business initiatives, application track, data domain, data management track, data architecture, data security, and operating model.

Why is it crucial to consider data-intensive applications when planning a data governance roadmap?

Data-intensive applications are crucial as they provide direct value to the business and help in understanding the specific data needs and the technologies required to support business initiatives.

How does the data domain workstream contribute to a data governance roadmap?

The data domain workstream identifies the specific types of data needed to support targeted use cases within business initiatives, helping to prioritize and deploy relevant data segments.

What is the role of the data management track in a data governance roadmap?

The data management track focuses on prioritizing and deploying data management practices such as data quality management, data cataloging, and security, based on the needs of targeted applications and business initiatives.

Why is data security given a separate track of work in the data governance roadmap?

Data security is given a separate track of work due to its foundational importance. It is considered 'job zero' at Amazon, meaning it must be addressed before all other elements of the data strategy.

How does the operating model workstream help in executing a data governance roadmap?

The operating model workstream addresses the people and process aspects, ensuring that data stewards and other stakeholders have clear roles and responsibilities, and that there is a structured approach to support business initiatives.

What is the significance of aligning data governance with funded and externally sponsored initiatives?

Aligning with funded and externally sponsored initiatives ensures that the data governance program is tied to initiatives that have proven value and are more likely to receive the necessary resources and support for success.

Why is it beneficial to target business initiatives that require data widely needed by other initiatives?

Targeting initiatives that require data widely needed by others ensures that the data governance efforts will have broad impact and can be leveraged across multiple projects, maximizing the reuse and effectiveness of data management practices.