Last month, I was at the IRM UK Master Data Management and Data Governance conferences in London. It's great to attend data conferences as they provide valuable opportunities to both learn from others and network with fellow data professionals. This conference was no exception. There was a real buzz and enthusiasm amongst everyone and I was really pleased to see that once again there were an increasing number of attendees with Data Governance in their job titles.

As well as presenting a tutorial on Communicating Your Data Governance Message, I also co-presented with Conrad Chuang of Orchestra Networks. I'd never presented with Conrad before, but as soon as we started preparing for the presentation it was clear that he is as passionate about data as I am. In preparation for the presentation, our conversations frequently included sharing our anecdotes from helping companies with their data. In fact, we did this so much so that it soon became clear that we both had valuable experiences that we ought to share with an audience and by the time we got to deliver the presentation it felt more like Conrad and I were having a conversation about data governance than doing a formal presentation.

The topic of our presentation was Automating Data Governance Policy. The title itself is an indication of how the Data Governance arena is evolving and maturing. Only a few years ago, there were no tools that could help you with your Data Governance initiative whereas today there is a choice of tools.

Last month Conrad and I shared a number of facets of Data Governance as well as related activities that can now all be facilitated with the use of tools. Please note that facilitated is the important word in the previous sentence and you cannot get away from the fact that Data Governance is primarily about people and processes. Tools cannot change this, they can just make life easier for you when implementing and embedding Data Governance. Anyone who forgets this will struggle to be successful!

But if you are clear on the best way to use such tools, they can be very valuable in accelerating and embedding your data governance initiative. If you were not able to attend the conference and missed our presentation don't worry. The feedback was so positive that Orchestra Networks have asked me to repeat the presentation with Conrad as a webinar later this month. You can find out more and register for the webinar here.

If you did make the conference and have found other ways to automate your Data Governance activities please let me know. I'm always keen to hear about innovative practices!

My free report reveals why companies struggle to successfully implement data governance.

Discover how to quickly get you data governance initiative on track by downloading this free report