Data only delivers value if its accessible, accurate, and reliable. But with so many sources pumping a continuous flow of potential insights into your business, your data ecosystem can quickly grow out of control.
To help you get the most out of your data, here are 4 data management best practices you should implement in your business.
Data management best practices
1. Centralise your data
Most businesses follow a cookie-cutter approach to data storage and sharing. They save the bulk of their insights locally or on a shared drive, like SharePoint or Google Drive. And if they want to share a specific data set, they simply pop it in an Excel spreadsheet and send it manually.
The problem with this approach is that the more data you store, the harder it is to find the information you need.
When it comes to data management at scale, the best thing you can do is to centralise your business insights. And the best way to do that is with a data lake or a data warehouse.
Data lakes
Data lakes are cost-effective and flexible storage solutions. They help you organise raw, unstructured data and identify the most valuable business insights, but lack the analytical capabilities of a data warehouse.
Data warehouses
Data warehouses form a central repository for structured data that’s ready for analysis. They tend to be more expensive than data lakes, due to the added processing power. But you can offset some of that cost by moving any unused or dormant data to cold storage.
2. Catalogue your data
You can’t analyse and visualise data – let alone turn it into a strategic asset – if you don’t know where to find it. And this is difficult to do if you don’t have a consistent, company-wide process for collecting, storing, and processing data.
One way to do this is to create a data catalogue.
A data catalogue uses metadata and consistent naming conventions to organise your business insights, so people can find the information they need when they need it.
But data catalogues are more than glorified glossaries. By harnessing automation, you get instant feedback on any changes or quality issues within your data stack. This gives you complete visibility and helps you answer vital questions like:
- Who owns the data from source?
- Who processes the data?
- Which reports is it used in?
- Does the quality match our expectations?
3. Focus on privacy and security
Even a single data breach can have dire consequences for your business.
The Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) can levy fines of up to £17.5 million or 4% of annual global turnover (whichever is greater) for an infringement. And then there’s the reputational damage. Data breaches can erode trust and confidence in your business, sending customers to look elsewhere.
A systematic approach to data management, with robust privacy and security standards at its core, provides an extra layer of protection. It ensures everyone in your business knows how to manage data properly, so it complies with data privacy regulations.
Here are some data privacy and security best practices we recommend:
- Implement multi-factor authentication
- Use strong and unique passwords for every account
- Encrypt your data and devices
- Only use secure networks
- Incorporate the principle of least privilege
4. Invest in backup
From hardware failure and human error to software corruption and ransomware, your data faces many threats.
In 2021, 39% of UK businesses experienced a cyber-attack – costing an average of £4,200 per incident. So, it’s crucial that you invest in backup and business continuity as a central feature of your data management strategy.
There are many backup solutions on the market. But in terms of data management best practice, the 3-2-1 rule is a good place to start.
- Create 3 copies of your data
- On 2 different formats
- With at least 1 offsite backup
This eliminates single points of failure and allows you to recover quickly should the worst happen.
Maintaining data management best practices requires collaboration
Good data management requires participation at every level to succeed. But it’s worth the effort.
These best practice principles will help you streamline internal processes, optimise resources, and make data more accessible. It also allows you to be more agile, so you can spot trends and take advantage of new opportunities before your competitors.
