With abundant and diverse data, it is important to know how to manage this data consistently. Also, it is important to know how to govern the data so that you can extract meaningful information from it and become compliant in the regulatory and security sectors.

Data Governance has an impact on members, stakeholders, the business environment, and the vision and goals of the Credit Union. There are certain costs associated with not investing in data governance, and this article throws light on the same.

1. Reduced value from data- ‘With bad data, we keep making bad decisions. We just don’t realize they are bad decisions until later.’ – Scott Taylor, MetaMeta Consulting.
   As a Credit Union, the data within your organization is your strongest asset. But you will able to take advantage of this data or employ it beneficially only if you have a supportive data governance framework in place. It will help you with better, organized data that you can then direct towards achieving the goals and objectives of various departments. This will also lead to a better position in the market, and not having to plan the structure of data every time you wish to divert your attention to a different purpose.
   
2. Higher risk due to data security and compliance issues.
   Your data should be trustworthy. The access controls which are related to the data should be well documented. Data governance helps you avoid these regulatory risks. When the data ownership has been established, you can be compliant in security and also work on improving it. The data distribution policies can be kept updated and verified, which in the absence of data governance would be a complex task to perform. With a diligent data governance team, it will also be possible to mitigate cybersecurity threats and risks. Members also expect their data to remain secure, which can be best achieved with data governance.
   
3. Inefficiencies across the board
   A data governance framework helps you to set and control the data quality standards and then delegate the responsibilities within the organization. For the board members, it helps provide oversight of the data with an insight of impact and outlook. This helps keep in check the existing trends within and outside the Credit Union. The effectiveness will increase if the board is aware and understanding of the value data drives. In the absence of a data governance system in place, the data will be meaningless and drive inefficiencies.

CONCLUSION-

While there is no exhaustive list of what data governance can help you to achieve and perform, the result of not having data governance systems and processes in place is the same- mismanagement of data and an ability to handle and utilize it to your advantage. The Data Governance workshop by Culytics, helps you define the perfect data governance program for your organization, with tips and insights for enhancing the quality of your data and building a data-driven culture.