Most organisations think they’re doing data governance. The truth is, they’re just ticking boxes, and it’s costing them.

 

The Terms and Conditions Applied series cuts through the noise surrounding data governance with straightforward, practical insight into why governance efforts often stall and what to do differently. Designed for business and technical audiences alike, the series offers:

 

  • Practical strategies for evolving governance from tick-box compliance to a scalable, value-driven capability.
  • Clarity on the often-misunderstood roles of metadata management and MDM in a complete governance framework.
  • A blueprint for turning proof of concept efforts into robust, scalable governance solutions.
  • Guidance on integrating governance seamlessly into enterprise-wide data strategies.
  • A forward-looking view of how AI, automation, and real-time governance are reshaping the landscape.

 

Over eight instalments, Terms and Conditions Applied challenges conventional thinking and provides actionable guidance drawn from real-world experience. The goal? To help organisations turn governance from an overhead into a genuine competitive advantage.

Governance as a Product

This is the third post in the Terms and Conditions Applied series. So far, we’ve looked at how data governance can be the weak link quietly that is slowing down your data initiatives and how different toolsets such as metadata management, MDM, and governance frameworks, fit into a complete governance picture.

The logical next step is to consider how governance itself can evolve from a process-oriented mindset to a product-oriented one. It’s a subtle but powerful shift, with far-reaching implications for how governance is adopted, embedded, and valued across an organisation.

 

 

Moving beyond checklists and static frameworks

Traditional governance approaches often focus on rigid frameworks and checklists. The problem isn’t that these approaches are wrong, it’s that they’re incomplete. Checklists provide structure and standardisation, but they rarely inspire true adoption. Governance that exists only as a compliance exercise will struggle to deliver real business value.

Instead of treating governance as a series of compliance tasks, consider it as a product that continuously evolves to deliver value. By applying a product mindset, governance becomes more agile, scalable, and responsive adapting to changing business needs and delivering lasting impact. Just as data platforms are increasingly being built around data products, governance can be treated as a deliverable that adds measurable value.

 

 

What does ‘Governance as a Product’ mean?

Taking a product-oriented approach to governance means:

  • Defining governance outcomes clearly – Rather than focusing solely on processes, identify what governance is meant to achieve. Better data quality? Faster reporting? Reduced compliance risk? These outcomes become your ‘product features’.
  • Aligning governance with OKRs – Governance objectives are tied to clear, measurable outcomes. With tools like Purview, OKRs can be embedded directly within governance domains and data products which enhances visibility and accountability.
  • Establishing data ownership and stewardship – Effective governance requires a structured approach to ownership. By defining data owners who are accountable for specific datasets or governance domains, and assigning stewards responsible for maintaining quality and integrity, organisations can establish clear ownership structures. This mirrors the concept of product ownership in software development where a dedicated owner is responsible for guiding a product’s development, adapting it based on feedback, and continuously delivering value. Applying that mindset to governance helps move away from rigid frameworks to something more agile and responsive. It’s about having someone responsible for governance initiatives that are delivering their intended outcomes and evolving to meet changing needs.
  • Iterating based on feedback – Effective governance isn’t static. By treating it as a product, you can continuously improve it based on user feedback, adoption metrics, and evolving business needs.
  • Embedding governance into data products – Governance doesn’t exist in isolation. It should be integrated into your data platform, where it can directly influence how data products are built, shared, and consumed.
  • Measuring adoption and value – Adoption is the ultimate test of success. Like any product, governance needs clear metrics to demonstrate its impact.

 

 

Governance in practice

As organisations increasingly move towards data product architectures, the opportunity to embed governance directly into those products becomes both necessary and advantageous.

For example, tools like Microsoft Purview provide the critical metadata management capabilities and defining ownership through governance domains. When integrated into data products, these capabilities enhance visibility and trust allowing governance to be a natural part of data consumption rather than an additional administrative burden.

Similarly, when working within Databricks environments, Unity Catalog provides the structure that delivers scalable governance alongside your data platform providing the right level of control without sacrificing agility.

And for organisations looking to establish authoritative sources of truth, MDM platforms like CluedIn can complement metadata management tools with data that itself is accurate, consistent, and trustworthy.

 

 

The GAP perspective

At Telefónica Tech, our Governance Accelerator Programme (GAP) and Data Navigator Programme are built on the principle that effective governance is a product—one that evolves and improves over time. These frameworks are designed to provide structure without imposing rigidity, supporting a governance approach that can adapt, grow, and deliver consistent value. Based on best practice and practical experience, GAP is designed to help organisations move away from static, checklist-based governance and towards an approach that is adaptive, measurable, and value-driven.

 

 

The bigger picture

Governance as a product isn’t about abandoning frameworks and processes. It’s about enhancing them, making them part of a broader system where governance is continuously refined and embedded into daily operations.

Building this approach around clear OKRs, ownership structures, and integrated tooling makes governance more practical and valuable. Establishing a governance roadmap that incorporates these elements means that the pieces fit together effectively, delivering tangible results over time.

Understanding governance as a product is just the beginning. To create lasting value, it needs to be scaled effectively. In the next post, we’ll explore how to move from proof of concept to a minimum viable product in governance, with the latter being significantly more valuable, to turn those early wins into lasting value.

 

#DataGovernance #Metadata #Purview #Compliance #Analytics #TelefónicaTech #TermsAndConditionsApplied

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