The Role of Data Stewards Today

Many organizations are overwhelmed with data and information from an ever-increasing number of sources. Effectively managing this is crucial for making informed decisions, driving innovation, and increasingly, maintaining compliance. Enter the data steward, a role that has become indispensable in ensuring data assets are trustworthy, well-managed, and fit for use.

What is a data steward?

A data steward is a team member who is responsible for overseeing a subset of an organization's information to ensure its quality, integrity, and security. They act as a bridge between the technical and business sides of an organization. Data stewards play a crucial role in data governance by implementing (and sometimes creating) policies, procedures, and standards that manage data effectively throughout its lifecycle.

Who is a data steward?

It’s important to note that data stewardship isn’t often a full-time, dedicated position. Often, data stewardship responsibilities are integrated into other roles. People in various positions take on data stewardship tasks as part of their broader job functions. Some of the common roles include:

• Business Analysts: They interpret data to provide actionable insights, ensuring data quality and relevance.

• Data Engineers: They are responsible for building and maintaining data infrastructure, they ensure data is accessible and properly managed.

• IT Managers: They oversee technology systems and implement data governance policies and security measures.

• Department Heads: They ensure the data used within their departments meets quality standards and complies with regulatory requirements.

• Compliance Officers: They focus on adhering to legal requirements, overseeing data handling to ensure compliance with laws.

By incorporating data stewardship into these roles, organizations can promote a responsible data culture that ensures data governance is practiced across all domains and levels.

What are the key responsibilities of data stewards?

Data stewards play a multifaceted role that encompasses various aspects of data management. Their key responsibilities include:

Metadata management

Understanding, documenting and sharing the context and provenance of data is essential. Data stewards manage the metadata (the data about the data) to provide clarity on data definitions, sources, and usage. This helps users find the data they need and understand how to use it appropriately.

Data governance and compliance

Stewards develop and can help enforce data governance policies that align with regulatory requirements and organizational objectives. This includes setting data standards, defining data ownership, and ensuring compliance with laws like GDPR or CCPA.

Data security and privacy

Protecting sensitive information is a critical part of the job. Data stewards work closely with IT and security teams to implement access controls, encryption, and other security measures to prevent unauthorized access and data breaches.

Facilitating communication

As liaisons between technical teams and business units, data stewards translate complex technical concepts into understandable terms. They educate stakeholders about data policies, quality issues, and governance practices.

Data quality management

Data stewards ensure that data is accurate, complete, consistent, and reliable. They implement processes and tools to monitor data quality, address anomalies, and maintain high standards. By safeguarding data quality, they enable stakeholders to make decisions based on trustworthy information.

By fulfilling these responsibilities, data stewards ensure that an organization’s data assets are not only well-maintained but also leveraged effectively.

How has data stewardship evolved?

With the ever-expanding scope of data, cloud computing, and advanced analytics, the role of data stewards has also expanded to include key duties like:

• Supporting data democratization: As organizations aim to make data more accessible to more employees, data stewards are key enablers, documenting the data and providing the necessary context for those employees. They also ensure that this democratization doesn't compromise data quality or security.

• Enabling advanced analytics: High-quality data and metadata are the backbone of AI and machine learning initiatives. Data stewards ensure that datasets used for advanced analytics are correct, relevant, and properly handled.

• Promoting ethical data use: Stewards are increasingly involved in establishing ethical guidelines for data usage, preventing misuse, and fostering trust with customers and partners.

The evolving landscape demands that data stewards adapt and expand their skill set. Their role is no longer confined to maintaining data assets but extends to strategic involvement in shaping how organizations utilize data.

Core challenges faced by data stewards

Despite their critical importance, data stewards face several challenges that can hinder effective stewardship:

Data silos and integration

Information is created, and resides, in disparate systems. It’s a universal challenge across organizations to provide a unified view. Data stewards work to break down these silos and integrate data sources for consistency and accessibility, but corporate dynamics and politics can sometimes make this challenging.

Rapid data growth

The exponential increase in data volume and the dynamic nature of most data structures require constant oversight, evolving solutions, and innovative approaches to manage and curate data effectively. Data stewards handle these issues, but poor corporate data literacy and culture can make this more difficult.

Keeping up with regulatory changes

Regulations around data privacy and protection are continually evolving. Data stewards must stay informed and adapt policies to remain compliant.

By proactively addressing these challenges organizations can enable data stewards to better perform their functions, enhancing data quality and governance while ensuring that data remains a valuable asset rather than devolving into a liability.

The importance of data stewards today

Data stewards are essential in a responsible enterprise today. They help shepherd the raw data as it’s engineered into valuable assets and products to enable:

• Enhanced decision-making: By ensuring data is accurate and reliable, they enable better business decisions.

• Increased efficiency: Proper data management reduces redundancies and errors, saving time and resources.

• Compliance assurance and reducing risk: They help organizations avoid legal penalties and reputational damage by maintaining compliance with data regulations.

Today’s business environment is high-paced and competitive. Agility is a major competitive advantage. The role of data stewards is more important than ever for organizations that want to be nimble. They not only protect and manage data but also unlock its potential to drive innovation, insights and growth.

Case study: Sallie Mae promotes data stewardship with a data catalog

At Sallie Mae, a comprehensive education solutions company, the need for well-governed and accessible data became crucial as the company sought to tailor customer experiences. Elizabeth Friend, Senior Director of Data Governance, recognized the challenge posed by distributed data, with over 500 data users and 250 terabytes of accumulated data spread across 350,000 database fields. Sallie Mae needed a centralized, consistent way to manage data stewardship and ensure data quality.

To achieve this, Sallie Mae turned to Alation, which not only cataloged data but also became the "front door" for trusted information across the enterprise. The implementation of Alation transformed data access by streamlining how users search for and discover data. A stewardship program was introduced to empower domain experts to curate data, enabling self-service data usage while reducing the burden on data stewards. Alation also facilitated collaboration and policy enforcement, further embedding data stewardship into Sallie Mae's culture.

This approach allowed Sallie Mae to strengthen its data literacy, improve analytics capabilities, and create a robust governance framework that ensured data was trusted, accessible, and actionable throughout the organization.

Final thoughts

In an era where data is often called the new oil, data stewards are the custodians who refine and protect this valuable resource. Their role is crucial for any organization aiming to leverage data effectively while navigating the complexities of data governance and compliance.

Want to learn more? Reach out to us today and discover how Alation enables better data stewardship to increase the leverage your organization gets from its data.