Category: Data Governance

Why Is Data Important for Business?

Businesses rely on data to make informed decisions, measure performance, and drive continuous improvement. Whether it’s improving operational efficiency, shaping business strategies, or enhancing customer experiences, understanding and utilising data is key to long-term success. At Oakland, we believe that data is not just a useful tool but a critical element in every aspect of…

Data Governance in the Age of AI

In an era where artificial intelligence (AI) is revolutionising industries, many organisations embark on ambitious AI projects with the hope of driving efficiency, automation, and competitiveness. However, a significant portion of these projects falter due to foundational data challenges. According to Gartner, by 2025, 30% of generative AI projects will be abandoned due to poor…

Target Operating Model: Delivering your Business Strategy

Chances are that your organisation’s operations are under constant pressure to stay competitive. At the heart of the transformation required to align your business operations and your business strategy successfully is the Target Operating Model (known as a TOM to its friends) – which is used as a strategic framework to describe your business capabilities…

What is the Role of Data Governance in AI? Should You Even Care?

 Data Governance is having a moment or, at the very least, is about to. Governance was one of the key topics discussed in the opening address at the recent Gartner IT symposium. Obviously, it goes without saying that the main topic was Artificial Intelligence and Agentic AI. But before we get carried away, here’s some context…

Microsoft Purview Latest Insights

As Oakland is ‘everything data’ we are always working on the latest and best ways we can help our clients deliver value, with data governance tooling such a huge part of enterprise organisations data governance journey, we jumped at the chance to host a workshop with our Microsoft partners focused on our Microsoft Purview consulting…

Is Microsoft Purview The Answer to Modern Data Governance?

In today’s data-driven world, effective governance is crucial for managing vast volumes of information while ensuring security and compliance. Microsoft Purview promises a robust solution to modern data governance challenges, offering seamless integration with Microsoft’s ecosystem. As businesses increasingly rely on data to drive decision-making, tools like Purview help streamline data cataloguing, classification, and protection. …

Oakland Partners with Data Literacy Academy: Bridging the imagination gap

In today’s data-driven world, businesses are increasingly reliant on their ability to leverage information effectively. This has led to a growing demand for data literacy, not just within data-focused teams, but across all levels of an organisation. And a greater understanding of what data is, how you use your data, and the impact of both…

How can you demonstrate the ROI of Data Governance?

Imagine being a shopper in a store, where every aisle is filled with items and multiple choices. As you stroll through the store looking at the items on the shelves, the ‘unwritten’ rule of purchase pops into your mind. If something doesn’t offer value, it is likely to stay on the shelf and not make…

What is the environmental impact of your data?

There is Something Human about Waste Let’s start by setting the scene – an all too familiar one. Humans love waste. We throw away around 100 billion pieces of plastic every year in the UK, and around 1.9 billion tonnes of food that can be eaten is discarded on an annual basis, and even on…

Why Invest in Data Quality?

This can seem like a rhetorical question: you should always invest in Data Quality! But we are still not investing enough: surveys show Data Quality issues are increasing in most organisations and on average, take up 34% of a Data Engineers time instead of them creating value by adding new features. This increases to 50% in large…

Data Governance Maturity Assessment: The Secret Ingredient to Creating Great Insights

I was gifted a visit to a Michelin restaurant once. It looked and felt like a nice country pub in every way, but when I tasted the leek and potato soup… wow. And I mean, WOW! I know, how good could leek and potato soup be, you ask? Well, let me tell you, my wife…

People, The missing element in Data Governance

An F1 team could have the fastest, most reliable car out of all the other teams in the line-up – the technology being used is cutting edge, something other teams are yet to adopt or invest in. Unfortunately, despite having this technological advantage, the F1 team boss has failed to look at his driver (People)…