Data Cataloguing for Dummies

Your company was told to launch a data governance program, but the reason behind investing in specialised teams and new technologies still isn’t entirely clear? Let’s bring the set square and look at this topic from a different angle.

Libraries are spaces dedicated to the collection, organisation, preservation, and availability of books and other materials (magazines, newspapers, films, and digital resources). They promote access to knowledge and information.

Now, think of a database, regardless of the underlying technology, as a system designed to store, manage, and retrieve information. It allows data to be searched, read, and transformed into meaningful insights. Starting to see the connection?

Let’s go a bit further. In a library, books are neatly arranged on shelves, categorised by subject, and indexed in a catalogue, a system that describes each book and its location. So, when you search for a book on Java, you know:

• It’s in the technical section, on the computer science shelf, in the programming languages row, with the spine code CIJ007, making it easy and fast to find.

• How many books on the topic are available, giving you a sense of the volume of resources?

• Who the authors are, helping you filter by preference.

• The synopsis of each book so that you can choose the one most relevant to your needs.

• Whether it’s available for checkout, so you know if you can access it immediately, need to wait, or require special permission.

Thanks to the library catalogue, you become an independent user of the library. And if the catalogue doesn’t answer all your questions? You speak to the librarian, the person with the deepest knowledge of the collection, because:

• Together with the director, he helps define how books are organised and how the spine codes are structured, as well as the rules for borrowing.

• He works continuously to ensure books are properly shelved and borrowing rules are followed, maintaining order and accessibility.

  
  

Getting clearer?

The books in a library are the data, and the library itself is the database. Just like books are organised in a library, data must be organised in its storage systems. That means:

• A categorisation structure, using domains and subdomains to group data by business line, department, or area (like book sections).

• A classification system to identify the nature of the data (like knowing a book belongs to computer science).

• Access control rules, to determine who is authorised to read the data (like borrowing rules).

• Descriptive information, so users can assess relevance before accessing (like book synopses).

• A data catalogue, to understand the scope of available data and search efficiently for what matters.

• Data stewards and data owners, the guardians who ensure data quality, compliance, and security (like librarians and directors).

Conclusion:

Having a data catalogue makes data easier to access, preserves the integrity of your databases, prevents loss, duplication, and misuse, and supports the autonomy of data teams by ensuring data is available and understandable. It promotes data democratisation, allowing all users to know what data exists across the organisation, and improves efficiency and governance through structured access and organisation.

User autonomy and data quality assurance are just two of the many reasons to organise your data and unlock its full value, driving business growth and enabling advanced technologies like machine learning and artificial intelligence through a governance program tailored to your context. The data governance program, defined as the set of policies, roles, processes, and technologies, supports the management, use, and protection of data across the organisation. It promotes responsible data usage, fosters a data-driven culture, and lays the foundation for becoming a truly data-centric company.

Ready to explore how data governance can unlock your data’s potential and drive smarter decisions?

Let’s do it together.

______

by Rita Pinto

@ Passio Consulting