A third alternative to the DAMA Wheel is depicted in the DAMA Data Management Function Framework. This also draws on architectural concepts to propose a set of relationships between the DAMA Knowledge Areas. It provides additional detail about the content of some Knowledge Areas in order to clarify these relationships.
The framework starts with the guiding purpose of data management: To enable organizations to get value from their data assets as they do from other assets. Deriving value requires lifecycle management, so data management functions related to the data lifecycle are depicted in the center of the diagram. These include planning and designing for reliable, high-quality data; establishing processes and functions through which data can be enabled for use and also maintained; and, finally, using the data in various types of analysis and through those processes, enhancing its value.
The lifecycle management section depicts the data management design and operational functions (modeling, architecture, storage and operations, etc.) that are required to support traditional uses of data (Business Intelligence, document and content management). It also recognizes emerging data management functions (Big Data storage) that support emerging uses of data (data Science, predictive analytics, etc.) In cases where data is truly managed as an asset, organizations may be able to get direct value from their data by selling it to other organizations (data monetization).
Organizations that focus only on direct lifecycle functions will not get as much value from their data as those that support the data lifecycle through foundational and oversight activities. Foundational activities, like data risk management, Metadata, and Data Quality management, span the data lifecycle. They enable better design decisions and make data easier to use. If these are executed well, data is less expensive to maintain, data consumers have more confidence in it, and the opportunities for using it expand.
To successfully support data production and use and to ensure that foundational activities are executed with discipline, many organizations establish oversight in the form of data governance. A data governance program enables an organization to be data-driven, by putting in place the strategy and supporting principles, policies, and stewardship practices that ensure the organization recognizes and acts on opportunities to get value from its data. A data governance program should also engage in organizational change management activities to educate the organization and encourage behaviors that enable strategic uses of data. Thus, the necessity of culture change spans the breath of data governance responsibilities, especially as an organization matures its data practices.
