Chief Data Officer's Role Growing in Importance

Over 60 percent of financial services firms are actively working towards creating specialized data stewards, and eventually Chief Data Officers, for their enterprise, according to survey results released by GoldenSource, an enterprise data management (EDM) technology provider.

The survey, taken at GoldenSource's biannual client forum, also revealed that nearly all financial firms were moving from a decentralized to commonly shared model for oversight and control functions.

"Four years after the financial crisis, institutions are still struggling to get a 360 degree view of their data," Stephen Engdahl, senior vice president of product strategy for GoldenSource in a statement. "Relying solely on mapping instrument data to security masters is no longer an option. It is essential to risk management, regulatory requirements and operational efficiency that data management is viewed as a business function, whose quality and governance apply across the enterprise. ... Appointing data stewards and Chief Data Officers to galvanize governance as a shared service across these firms will be crucial to success."

Part of the survey was fielded the GoldenSource client forum, held for the first time in Asia-Pacific. APAC participants echoed their global counterparts, affirming that the data stewardship role has improved quality and ownership of shared data assets. Of those who participated in the survey, 80% of clients in the Americas, 60% in Europe, and 50% in Asia Pacific are already structuring their organizations in a way that empowers an enterprise wide data officer. GoldenSource's client survey was a participant based survey of the company's clients who attended the global client forum events in New York, London, and Singapore. The companies who participated included global banks, asset managers, insurance companies and exchanges. Greg MacSweeney is editorial director of InformationWeek Financial Services, whose brands include Wall Street & Technology, Bank Systems & Technology, Advanced Trading, and Insurance & Technology. View Full Bio