Data Governance Matters

Guardrails and Data Governance

Recently I heard the term guardrails used to describe a certain approach to governing data. I thought it was an interesting metaphor, and a term worth adding to my vocabulary.

Many times I’ve watched data stakeholders shut down emotionally when the terms control and authority were introduced. And, I’ve watched conference speakers lose portions of their audiences when they claimed that Data Governance was the exercise of authority. Not where I work, I heard those dissenters mutter; we don’t do things that way.

So how can you suggest what to do – or how to do something – without using language that isn’t acceptable in your environment? The person giving me an education suggested that I consider road systems. Once you get on roads, there are a few laws you have to obey. But mostly you’re on your own, deciding where to go, and when.

It makes sense. If you’re driving around a mountain, guardrails won’t usually save you if you do something really stupid. But if you bump into them, hopefully you’ll have enough time to adjust course. And often, that’s the level of guidance Data Governance programs want to provide.

So in the past, when I described the continuum of guidance, I would recite policies, requirements, guidelines, recommendations. Now, I think I’ll say policies, requirements, guardrails, guidelines, and recommendations.