I'm the Enterprise Data Architect for my company. I would like to create a data retention policy for cloud and implement it in 2024. On the analytics team we integrate data from 50+ different sources supporting 10+ lines of business (LOB). Each line of business has a separate set of data retention needs and datasets are different. I'd like to be able to meet with business stakeholders to share program and get their insights into retention needs for their respective lob's, can anyone help with a template that has worked for you in the past in communicating with business stakeholders on data retention?
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Thank you, Cynthia.<br>The company does not currently have a D&A Governance program in part due to the business thinking it is an "IT" initiative when IT is a part of assisting with the solutioning. We are working on providing information to the business to hopefully get the D&A program up and running this year. With that said, this is a health care services company and there are some regulatory requirements for retention of data from that aspect. <br><br>Thank you for addressing the governing/ownership of data sources. What I take from that is that we need to build a business process flow diagram to understand the various data points and "hand-offs" between various business stakeholders. It will also highlight the groups that I need to communicate with to understand each groups retention needs. <br><br>I appreciate your insights!
In my decades of navigating state government systems, I've found that tailoring a data retention policy for multiple branches or entities within government is much like the challenges of aligning diverse business lines in the private sector. One approach that could resonate with your situation would be initiating dialogues with department heads or representatives from various state agencies. These sessions, somewhat resembling a private sector scenario, aim to understand each department's unique data needs. While my experience may not directly mirror private industry practices, I've seen the value in using successful examples or case studies from government divisions, allowing stakeholders to visualize tailored solutions in action. Adapting industry-standard techniques within the realm of government operations often involves bridging technical necessities with the unique goals and mandates of each agency.
Thank you! I'm sorry I did not see your response before today. I appreciate your insights. As a health services company, we do a lot of business with government agencies. I can educate myself on the government retention standards/policies by type of data and combine that with our business policies to come with with a solution that meets both needs. It will be a challenge due to the number of data sources and lines of business, however, it is possible to achieve.
Ideas/questions to consider:
1.) Do the 50+ data sources governed by data stewards? They may have internal documentation that identifies the requirements/lifecycle of the data to support your data retention policy needs.
2.) Could you identify the governing/ownership of the data sources or data sets throughout its lifecycle? For example, Office A is responsible for data set Y during the create/manage phases, and when it no longer serves Office A's data needs, it is then transferred to Office B. Office B is required to manage it for data transformation requests during the data lifecycle "use" phase. Once requests are completed, Office C takes ownership of the data set for records management purposes and identifies the retention requirements based on the authority for the org to maintain.
3.) If it's helpful, check out the below links for ideas:
https://www.egnyte.com/guides/governance/data-retention
https://www.archives.gov/records-mgmt/policy
https://ussm.gsa.gov/fibf-ERM/