Navigating the Organization to Ensure Data Governance - Data Governance: Creating Value from Information Assets - page 34

changes in the underlying governance process. All the above reasons cause a
change in the data governance policies and procedures of the organization.
For effective data governance, these changes have to be managed both
proactively and reactively. Change control data policies and procedures
have to developed and implemented. Along with change comes resistance
to new policies and procedures. Resistance to change is a phenomenon
widely seen in organizations today. People cling to the status quo, and to
overcome resistance, data governance initiative leaders need to address
change management early on. Rapid innovation in technology is forcing
people to face change at an ever-quickening pace. Change affects people's
ability to feel comfortable, capable, and confident because it means that
they must learn new systems, work in new ways, and accept new respon-
sibilities. It may result in reassignment, retraining, and reengineering.
Clear communication and sharing of information can reduce the levels
of anxiety and uncertainty. Successful change management processes
involve key players and stakeholders and use a structured approach to
implement and minimize resistance to change. Providing information
about the purpose of the change, providing a vision of the expected out-
comes and the future, and providing clear and specific expectations are
some ways to overcome the resistance. With any change management pro-
cess, the primary concern is to understand the change, assess the impact
on existing processes, and develop ways to either minimize the impact or
update existing processes to absorb that change (Vednere, 2010).
Data governance policies and procedures are subject to change and need
to be reevaluated periodically. Organizational changes, transformations
in business processes, audits, regulatory changes, or other circumstances
leading to a change in data management can lead to a revision and updat-
ing of the current data governance policies and procedures. These updates
to data governance policies should be made after proper assessment, eval-
uation, and understanding of the impact of the changes taking place. Data
governance committees evaluate and approve all modifications. These
modifications must be reflected in all documentation, procedure manuals,
and training materials. This should be followed by training and commu-
nication of the policy changes or procedure changes to all stakeholders in
the data governance process. If the change in the data governance policy
is substantial, a slow and structured approach to implement the changes
should be adopted. Rolling out all the changes at once may not be the opti-
mal approach. Development of appropriate training and documentation