Data advocacy panel: I’ve assembled my team, now what?

Data advocacy panels are an effective way to gain consensus and provide oversight to issues around consumer data.

Creating a data advocacy panel is the first step in the process (See Part 1 of our three-part blog series to learn how to build one). Next comes defining its scope of work. But once the data advocacy panel is built and ready to work comes the question: How do you get started?

What is a data advocacy panel?

A data advocacy panel is a cross-functional team responsible for oversight, prioritization and budgeting of and for first-party consumer data. The panel oversees compliance, security and best practices regarding these data within the organization.

A data advocacy panel has the core responsibilities of how an organization accesses, collects, creates, protects and shares data. Typically, the panel consists of members from each business unit and representatives from accounting, consumer relations, human resources, IT, IT security, legal and sales.

What a data advocacy panel does

Once you’ve formed your Data Advocacy Panel comes the key question: What does it do?

First, let’s explore what the charge or mission of a Data Advocacy Panel should be. Its goals are primarily two-fold:

• To establish the policies and strategy regarding how data is handled throughout the organization
• React quickly to data issues, including data breaches, shifting consumer attitudes, new technologies or changing regulatory mandates

With those goals in mind, here are key tasks for the panel to take on:

1. Establishing a meeting cadence

A regular meeting cadence ensures that time is committed to address important data issues. Whether daily, weekly, monthly or quarterly, the cadence should align with the most pressing business needs. That means the cadence may change over time.

For example, the imminent launch of a new product or platform may necessitate a daily check-in meeting. Business-as-usual operations may allow for monthly or quarterly meetings. Special meetings may be scheduled to review reports provided for boards or regulatory agencies.

2. Determining the processes

Each data advocacy project needs well-established and agreed-upon processes, methods and measures. These rules of the road ensure everyone is aligned on the work. They also help clarify how work will be accomplished, how progress will be reported and allow for more transparent decision-making.

3. Minimizing data distribution

Organizations need to shift their thinking from one that collects as much consumer data as possible and pushes it out widely and freely. Instead, organizations should consider a data minimization strategy that limits the amount of data that exits your organization’s in-house consumer data environment.

4. Moving data operations in-house

Moving your consumer data operations in-house eliminates reliance on third-party service providers. It also means you can better control you collect, send, copy and share consumer data among various databases, tools and applications.

5. Establishing a data model

Data modeling provides consistency for data architecture throughout the organization. From account structures to tagging protocols to taxonomies, a data model that is documented and audited ensures quality and accuracy. Standardizing everything from naming conventions to data schema ensures everyone is working from the same playbook when it comes to data.

6. Creating best practices

Develop a best-practices playbook for the organization. Start with an assessment of practices across business units and those that have developed a track record of efficiency, accuracy, integrity and compliance. Help the organization by identifying those places where data is onboarded. Use those entry points to assess why the data is needed, how it benefits the business and how it benefits the customer.

7. Reviewing tools and services

Position the panel as a governing panel responsible for overseeing major, high-impact and complex projects and use cases. The panel, with broad insights from various vantage points in the organization, can ask the hard questions. These should include:

• Who has access to our platform?
• What is the platform used for?
• What data points are being requested?
• Why are those data needed?
• How do we manage requests for data?

Providing this relatively impartial oversight, and applying it consistently, ensures that projects and initiatives are in keeping with sound data governance.

8. Auditing the data

The Data Advocacy Panel should be responsible for establishing quality assurance (QA) procedures, automated wherever possible. Using a standardized global taxonomy, these processes ensure that there is maximum efficiency, resource optimization and availability of consumer data when needed.

9. Reviewing processes with legal and data privacy

Once you’ve established your panel, invite the legal and data privacy teams to everything you do. That means every meeting, every brainstorming session, every training. This open invitation raises awareness and ensures that they are aware of what you are doing. It also provides transparency about what data you are evaluating, how it’s being used and why your panel is committed to the cause.

10. Communicating … everything

Transparency and explainability are important. You want to be sure that the panel’s work is seen and understood. That means internal communications. It also means helping vendors and partners understand the work being done, the data they are collecting and how they are using it.

A data advocacy panel can be a powerful component of your data transparency and policy. In the end, its work benefits the business and its customers.