Data governance and management are critical components of any organization’s success in the digital age. As more and more rely on data-driven insights to inform their decision-making processes, the importance of managing and governing that data becomes increasingly clear. 

With this, Public Spectrum has caught up with Professor Bryan Ng, Chief Data & Analytics Officer at New Zealand Trade & Enterprise (NZTE). 

Bryan’s experience and track record in the data & analytics space spans the financial services industry, media, smart buildings, computer networks, unmanned vehicle navigation and blockchain technologies. Prior to NZTE, he led data teams at Stuff and Panahome in addition to research & consulting with Orange and McKinsey.  

Bryan is also an Honorary researcher at Victoria University and was visiting professor at Kyoto University, Japan and National Chiao Tung University, Taiwan. 

He is presently an adjunct professor at Inti University and teaching a course at Victoria University. He has published over a hundred articles in prestigious venues and is extensively consulted in the Data & Analytics industry within Australia and New Zealand. 

In this interview, Bryan explains how necessary it is to have good data governance and management in an organisation. 

Professor Bryan Ng will be speaking at the upcoming Aus Government Data Summit 2023. Catch his talk at the summit as well as other talks from key data leaders by clicking here. 

When it comes to managing and governing data assets in your profession, how have you been able to ensure the accuracy, completeness, and consistency of the data? 

To ensure accuracy, completeness and consistency, I use a change management approach. This means I help create awareness within the business units (closer to the front line) to instigate change.  

This awareness then drives the business units to take ownership of ensuring good quality data. As the business unit starts to ask and desire better data quality, the Data team then partners with the business unit to provide guidance and frameworks to help them along.  

I also rely on a network of data stewards and champions across the organization to drive better accuracy, completeness and consistency. 

In what ways can one monitor and measure the success of their data governance and management efforts? 

Monitoring and measuring are key requirements for the success of data governance. I advocate for measures that reflect the organizational goals and objectives. It is always tough to measure success for data governance, but investing time upfront to think over the crucial measures needed for assessing data governance work is well worth it.  

At NZTE, we’re looking at time-to-value, internal NPS and also measurable customer outcomes as measures of success for data governance. In my experience, measures of success for a Data Governance and Management that are not aligned with business outcomes are less likely to gain cross-organization traction. 

As Chief Data & Analytics Officer of the New Zealand Trade & Enterprise, how do you stay informed and up-to-date on best practices, emerging trends, and regulatory changes in data governance and management? 

Keeping up-to-date involves networking with peers across the government landscape, both in New Zealand and also abroad.  

I also subscribe to newsletters from data management organisations and follow key thought leaders in the data governance & management space. Maintaining good relationships with vendors (and potential vendors) is also key for me. 

How would you advise organisations that wish to prioritize and allocate their resources for data management and governance initiatives? 

My advice is to be clear about what benefits you want from your data management & governance and be ready to invest in people and technology to get the most of your program. 

Eliza Sayon

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Eliza is a content producer and editor at Public Spectrum. She is an experienced writer on topics related to the government and to the public, as well as stories that uplift and improve the community.

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