Chapter 1: Why Data Stewardship is the basis for successful digitalization
Data volumes in companies are growing rapidly and increasing the complexity of processes. Diverse data sources, inconsistent formats, and manual maintenance processes quickly lead to inconsistencies, incomplete data sets, and risks related to compliance, data protection, or business decisions.
While large corporations have the resources to address these problems, it is often more difficult for medium-sized businesses. Limited budgets, a lack of interfaces, little technical expertise in the specialist departments, and overburdened IT departments further exacerbate the situation.
This is where data stewardship comes in: It ensures that data is treated as a strategic asset with clear roles, processes, and responsibilities. This discipline is particularly essential in regulated industries such as finance, public administration, or healthcare. Only those with clean, reliable data can act efficiently, compliantly, and in a customer-centric manner.
Chapter 2: The 4 steps to successful Data Stewardship
An effective Data Stewardship program is based on a structured approach:
1. Create a governance framework
Who is responsible for which data? What standards apply? How is quality measured? A clearly defined framework creates transparency and accountability. Low-code creates the foundation for translating specifications from the governance framework into applications, forms, and processes that can be used and further developed in day-to-day business.
2. Identify data domains and assign ownership
Whether it's customer, product, or transaction data, every domain needs a data steward with specialist knowledge and clear decision-making authority. Low-code allows access rights to be controlled so that each person has a precise definition of which data they can view, edit, or share, and for which content they are responsible. Changes are logged in an audit-compliant manner.
3. Establish quality metrics and monitoring
Only what is measured can be improved: Completeness, consistency, timeliness, and accuracy are typical metrics. Consistent reporting is crucial here. Dashboards and automated reports provide the necessary visibility for quality metrics and reveal deviations in real time.
4. Introduce tools and processes
Effective data stewardship requires tools that complement existing structures and address new requirements. Low-code makes it possible to deploy applications without programming knowledge, automate recurring tasks using workflows, integrate existing systems in a targeted manner, and flexibly extend solutions.
Chapter 3: Low-Code brings Data Stewardship from concept to practice
For a governance framework to be effective within a company, it must be connectable: to teams, tools, and processes. Low-code lowers the barriers to entry, directly integrates business departments, and makes data ownership a manageable part of the working reality.
Low-code gives business departments access to real-time data, which they can analyze independently using filters and drilldowns. Additionally, rule-based review mechanisms can be set up that automatically flag anomalies and forward them to the responsible departments for correction. This way, data maintenance and control are directly intertwined.
Anyone who wants to establish this approach within their own company should start with a clear introduction, both at the technical and organizational levels.
Chapter 4: From vision to reality: Successfully implementing Data Stewardship
A typical approach to implementing Data Stewardship with low-code looks like this:
As-is analysis and target vision: What problems currently exist, which regulatory requirements must be met?
Launch a pilot project: For example, build a master data dashboard for customers or products that automatically detects errors.
Training and role allocation: Train data stewards, clearly define processes and responsibilities.
Scaling: Transfer successful approaches to other areas and domains.
Importantly, it's not just about technology; it's about a cultural shift in how we handle data. Low-code is the technical foundation, and Data Stewardship is the method.
Data is a crucial competitive factor. However, only a clear, methodical approach can ensure quality, consistency, and trust in the long term. Data stewardship brings structure and accountability to data management, while low-code ensures speed, flexibility, and feasibility. Combining the two lays the foundation for sustainable digitalization and real value creation.
Chapter 5: Practical example with Dataciders and Intrexx:
In the Partner Lounge, we, together with our long-standing partner Dataciders, demonstrated how Data Stewardship is implemented in practice with low-code.
Watch the recording and learn how to pragmatically solve typical data management challenges.
