Activities 2.6–2.11 — Operating Design, Change, Issues & Compliance
2.6 Define the Data Governance Operating Framework
Choose structures, roles, decision rights, interactions and issue pathways that fit organizational context.
Design factors include: - value/criticality of data; - business model and organizational structure; - culture; - regulatory environment; - stewardship/accountability requirements; - projects and change-management needs; - issue-resolution pathways.
No operating model is automatically best.
2.7 Develop Goals, Principles and Policies
Draft/refine/adopt governing guidance, then communicate, monitor, enforce and re-evaluate it. Policy is not complete merely because a document was approved.
2.8 Underwrite Data Management Projects
Governance supports business cases, sponsorship and coordination for significant Data Management improvements and major projects.
Underwrite does not mean execute every project. Governance ensures important data requirements are considered, often in coordination with PMO/large programs.
Critical data requirements should enter project planning/design early — architecture, system-of-record, Data Quality, regulatory and stewardship requirements should not wait until testing.
2.9 Engage Change Management
Governance changes how people work. Organizational Change Management is broader than communication.
Chapter 3 uses five change outcomes:
- Awareness — understand the need to change.
- Desire — willing to participate/support.
- Knowledge — know how to change.
- Ability — can perform the new skills/behaviors.
- Reinforcement — mechanisms keep the change in place.
OCM includes sponsor/stakeholder work, training, communications, policy/process/SDLC integration, feedback, incentives/KPIs and reinforcement.
2.10 Engage in Issue Management
Identify, quantify, prioritize, resolve, log, track, communicate, facilitate and escalate governance issues.
Typical issues include authority, conformance, contracts, security/privacy, ownership, Data Quality and cross-domain conflict.
Six control-mechanism tasks to remember
- capture/log/track;
- action items;
- document viewpoints/options;
- communicate resolution;
- neutral facilitation;
- escalation.
Figure 20 — resolve low, escalate narrow
Most conflicts should resolve at tactical/operational stewardship or business-unit levels. The illustrative figure shows roughly 80–85% resolving low, fewer than ~20% reaching the DGC and fewer than ~5% reaching the Steering Committee.
These percentages are illustrative, not mandatory quotas. The concept is a narrowing escalation funnel.
2.11 Assess Regulatory Compliance Requirements
Determine: - whether a requirement applies; - what constitutes compliance; - required policies/controls; - how compliance will be demonstrated/monitored; - evidence/reporting/deadlines; - penalties/risk; - how non-compliance is identified, reported and rectified.
Named laws/regulations in Chapter 3 are source examples, not an exhaustive/current legal syllabus.
Issue Management vs Compliance
- Resolve broad governance conflict/problem → Issue Management.
- Determine/prove/monitor a specific external obligation → Compliance Assessment.
A regulatory failure can later become a governance issue; the primary question determines the classification.
Source anchors: Chapter 3 pp. 84–90; Figures 19–20.