How do you know if data management audits and reviews are improving your data?

1 Define your audit and review objectives

Before you conduct any data management audit or review, you need to have a clear idea of what you want to achieve and how you will measure it. For example, you may want to assess the compliance of your data with legal or ethical standards, the completeness and accuracy of your data, the efficiency and reliability of your data processes, or the alignment of your data with your business objectives. Depending on your purpose, you will need to define specific criteria, indicators, and metrics that will help you evaluate your data management performance.

2 Collect and analyze your audit and review data

Once you have defined your objectives, you need to collect and analyze the data that will help you answer your audit or review questions. This may involve reviewing your data documentation, policies, and procedures, interviewing your data stakeholders, conducting surveys or tests, or using data quality tools or software. You should use appropriate methods and techniques to collect and analyze your data, such as sampling, benchmarking, gap analysis, or root cause analysis. You should also ensure that your data collection and analysis are consistent, transparent, and unbiased.

3 Report and communicate your audit and review findings

After you have collected and analyzed your data, you need to report and communicate your audit or review findings to your data stakeholders and decision-makers. You should present your findings in a clear, concise, and actionable way, highlighting the strengths and weaknesses of your data management, the opportunities and risks for improvement, and the recommendations and best practices for addressing the issues. You should also use visual aids, such as charts, graphs, or dashboards, to illustrate your findings and make them easier to understand.

4 Implement and monitor your audit and review actions

The final step of your data management audit or review is to implement and monitor the actions that you have identified to improve your data management. You should prioritize the actions based on their urgency, feasibility, and impact, and assign roles and responsibilities for carrying them out. You should also establish a timeline and a budget for implementing the actions, and define the expected outcomes and benefits. Moreover, you should monitor the progress and results of your actions, using the same criteria, indicators, and metrics that you used for your audit or review, and adjust them as needed.

5 Learn and improve from your audit and review feedback

One of the most important aspects of your data management audit or review is to learn and improve from the feedback that you receive from your data stakeholders and decision-makers. You should solicit and listen to their opinions, suggestions, and concerns, and use them to refine your data management strategy, processes, and practices. You should also document and share your audit or review lessons learned, best practices, and success stories, and use them to foster a culture of continuous improvement and innovation in your data management.

6 Repeat your audit and review cycle

The last way to know if your data management audits and reviews are improving your data is to repeat them periodically and compare the results. You should conduct your audits and reviews at regular intervals, such as annually, quarterly, or monthly, depending on your data management needs and goals. You should also use the same or similar objectives, criteria, indicators, and metrics for each audit or review, and track the changes and trends in your data management performance over time. By doing so, you will be able to measure the impact of your audits and reviews on your data quality, accuracy, security, and value.

7 Here’s what else to consider

This is a space to share examples, stories, or insights that don’t fit into any of the previous sections. What else would you like to add?