Modern Data Governance is Live (Webinar Recap)
Get the slides and watch the recording from the April 2, 2026 webinar here.
data governance
When the Report Becomes the System of Record
At many universities, the most authoritative source of institutional data is not the student information system, the data warehouse, or even the institutional research office.
It’s a dashboard. Or a spreadsheet. Or sometimes, a PDF circulated to a committee.
Data Governance as Risk Management, Not Documentation
One of the most common failure modes in data governance initiatives is an overemphasis on documentation. Institutions build large data glossaries, establish committees, and catalogue new definitions. But over time it becomes clear that while documentation exists the underlying problems remain.
Shadow Systems: The Data Infrastructure Nobody Wants to Talk About
Shadow systems are rarely documented centrally. As a result, it may not be obvious who owns a dataset, business definitions may diverge across units, and institutional data may be duplicated across dozens of small environments. When this happens, governance becomes reactive rather than proactive.
From Data Standards to Data Strategy: Why MortarCAPS is Necessary But Just the Start
At Re-University, the hallway talk was “Our systems still don’t talk to each other.”
This stagnancy has downstream impacts that become more profound over time as strategic decision-making, collaboration, and future planning information sources decline in meaning, accessibility, and currency.
What's Data Governance got to do with it (Power BI)?
While the initial lift of getting data set up for Power BI is going to be time-consuming, you'll get compounding returns as developing new dashboards gets faster. What happens with and without a centralized metadata management tool when an analyst is asked to transfer an existing report to Power BI:
Building a Data Governance Team from Within: Matching Data Governance Roles to Existing Employees
Data governance is already happening at your institution, whether or not you have an explicit framework. As Bob Seiner, non-invasive data governance expert puts it, your “Data stewards are already in the building,” you just need to know where.
Data Literacy & Governance for Leaders, Strategic Planners, Operations and Financial Managers
In higher education, leadership and management steer their institutions toward success. However, there are data literacy skills that can get overlooked by those in leadership, strategic planning, operations, and finance roles.
Data Governance in Higher Ed: Empowering IT Professionals
Every person on campus, from employees, leaders, and students, will interact with the work produced by IT professionals. IT employees can be a crucial asset in data governance adoption, promotion, and management.
Data Governance in Higher Education: Empowering Admissions and Financial Aid Officers
Good data governance practices, or the lack thereof, can impact a student's earliest impressions of an institution, as they interact with Admissions and Financial Aid Officers. These professionals are central to shaping student experiences and ensuring institutional success.