Here’s How EDM Council Is Setting Best Practice for Cloud Data Management
Data is becoming an ever more critical component of modern business. In fact, it is the lifeblood which makes all other digital transformation efforts possible.
Data makes it possible for businesses around the world – particularly those in the financial sector – to better understand their customers, make more intelligent and well-informed decisions and recommendations, and gain deeper insights into the results of your efforts. In short, data makes any business better at serving the people it serves and more profitable while doing so.
However, an increased reliance on data requires a more comprehensive and detailed data management strategy. Unfortunately, the industry can often lack a structured approach to this concept and has been crying out for someone to come along and establish best practices for data management.
EDM Council
Into this space steps the EDM Council. As a leading advocate for the development and implementation of standards, best practices and comprehensive training and certification programs for data management, the global association is ideally placed to guide businesses through the nascent stages of data maturity.
To this end, the EDM Council has recently launched its Cloud Data Management Capabilities Framework. The new framework has been established to ensure trusted best practices when it comes to managing cloud data and encompasses everything from business and operations to the technology used to make cloud data possible.
"EDM Council’s CDMC Workgroup is pleased to release the full CDMC framework v1.1, comprising of all six of its major components and capabilities," said EDM Council on its website. "This release makes openly available the world’s first best practices, assessment and certification framework for effectively managing data in the cloud and accelerating adoption of cloud and hybrid cloud ecosystems. The CDMC framework is available as a free license for internal use to all organizations in all industries, including both EDM Council members and non-members."
The creation of the Cloud Data Management Capabilities Framework [CDMC] is the result of a global effort by over 300 data science, technology, and IT professionals, representing 100 companies including AWS, Google Cloud, IBM, and Microsoft and, leading firms and consultancies operating in the financial and tech spaces. Financial heavyweights, Morgan Stanley and LSEG chaired the group, with EDM Council acting as the neutral body overseeing the whole endeavor.
While the new framework was designed with the financial industry in mind, EDM council has the aim of applying it to all sectors of global business.
"This wide array of professionals and represented industries, all hosted by EDM Council as a neutral body, has ensured a high degree of expertise to produce a very relevant and comprehensive framework for both protecting sensitive data and implementing controls guidelines that any business can comprehensively apply," adds EDM Council. "CDMC was initially developed with input from the financial sector, but was designed to be industry agnostic, available and applicable to all industries."
Cloud Data Management
The CDMC framework is composed of six components, 14 capabilities, and 37 sub-capabilities which will allow companies across all industries to manage their cloud data strategies more effectively.
These six components cover every aspect of cloud data management, including data governance and accountability, cataloguing and classification, data accessibility and usage, data protection and privacy, data lifecycle, and technical architecture. The framework can be applied to all cloud, multi-cloud, and hybrid-cloud implementations, and incorporates automated key controls for protecting sensitive data – something which is a major concern for all data savvy companies in a world rife with cybercrime and an ever-stricter regulatory environment.
"The EDM Council is honored to have facilitated the development of the CDMC framework to provide an auditable and certified cloud data management best practice available as a free license for all industries," said President of the EDM Council, John Bottega in a press release announcing the launch. "We’re very excited to be releasing the CDMC framework and appreciate the global industry efforts of everyone involved in this 18-month initiative."
Final Thoughts
Data management is going to continue to become an ever more critical element of the modern business arena. Customers around the world expect the companies they deal with to use data to offer a more personalized and more intelligent experience, while simultaneously taking their cybersecurity responsibilities seriously.
Balancing these elements can be challenging, so it’s encouraging to see such a wide range of companies, overseen by the EDM Council, come together to try and establish a new standard of best practices in this regard.