White Paper:

Agile data
management
in 3 steps
 Data management as the
cornerstone of the data-
driven organization

Data is the oil of the digital economy. And the quantity

and diversity of data just continues to grow. More and
more sources of data from within and outside an orga-
nization can be accessed and integrated, analyzed and
made available to the organization. As an increasing
number of directors and managers want to be able to
make decisions on the basis of data, the quality of that
data is of great importance. This paper aims to show
how robust data management can be configured in such
a way that data, in whatever quantity, can become and
remain a reliable resource. Clearly defined ownership and
management of data pave the way to a truly data-driven
organization. A way that leads to proper coordination of
people, processes and technology so that data can be
used efficiently and effectively. And good data manage-
ment makes organizations agile.
This paper is neither a model for the development of a
data vision, nor a manual for reorganization, but rather
a pointer. In this paper you will read how to make your
organization ready for a data-driven future in three steps
using the independent DMBoK data management model.
Quint Wellington Redwood has used this approach
successfully many times. Two cases illustrate that.

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 INTRODUCTION: WHAT
IS A DATA-DRIVEN
ORGANIZATION?
The term ‘data-driven’ means that a business or institu-
tion makes decisions on the basis of data, rather than
on intuition or personal experience. This is also called
fact-based or evidence-based decision-making. So, it is
decision-making based on facts, at all levels of the orga-
nization: business strategy, marketing, sales, finance – in
all business units and departments. Businesses that have
started up since the turn of the century are almost all
data driven: it is, as it were, in their DNA. And they have
great success with new digital products and business
models that allow them to derail existing markets and
threaten the established order. This is not scaremonger-
ing, it is a fact. Half of the businesses on the Fortune 500
list in 2000 are no longer trading; the number of digital,
data-driven enterprises is thus growing rapidly. That un-
derlines the importance of digital services and data-driven
decision-making. It implies that existing businesses
need to transform into digital enterprises if they want to
remain relevant in the digital age.

Why become a data-

driven enterprise?
The most significant reason for becoming a data-driven
enterprise is to create a competitive advantage. General
market information is the same for all providers on the
market; what makes the difference is the data – for
instance on customers – that an enterprise possesses.
The collation of specific information, smart combinations
of data and analyzing these elements intelligently with
methods developed in-house sharpens the competitive
edge. Analytics also makes it possible to further improve
the customer experience, which in this online age really
equates to a competitive advantage. Management
consultants McKinsey did a study into the motivations of
organizations (see chart).

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Senior-leader involvement and organizational structure play a critical role in how effective (or
not) a company’s analytics efforts are.

Most significant reason for Most significant challenge for

organizations’ effectiveness at organizations’ effectiveness at
data and analytics1 data and analytics1

% of respondents at high- % of respondents at low- per-

performing organizations2, forming organizations3,
n = 138 n = 138

Ensuring senior- manage- 25 6

ment involvement in data
and analytics activities

Designing effective data 15 11

architecture and technolo-
gy infrastructure to support
analytics activities

Securing internal leadership 12 21

for analytics projects

Providing business func- 11 4

tions with access to support
for both data and analytics

Tracking business impact of 9 7

analytics activities

Creating flexibility in 7 1
existing processes to take
advantage of new analytics
insights

Designing an appropriate 7 25
organizational structure to
support analytics activities

Attracting and/or retaining 6 4

appropriate talent (ie, both
functional and technical)

Constructing a strategy 6 14
to prioritize investment in
analytics

Investing at scale in 2 8
analytics initiatives

1 Respondents who answered “other” or “don’t know” are not shown.

2 Respondents who answered “other” or “don’t know” are not shown.
3 Respondents who say their organizations have been ineffective at reaching the main objective
of their data and analytics activities, and have Iess developed analytics capabilities than industry
competitors. This question was asked only of respondents who said their organizations have not
met their analytics objectives effectively. McKinsey&Company Source: www.mckinsey.com/business-
functions/digital-mckinsey/our-insights/the-need-to-lead-in-dataand- analytics

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 Data is an asset
A growing number of organizations are discovering the potential
of data. They play with data (and so-called ‘big data’) and realize
that data-driven decision-making is of great benefit, and want
to make even more use of data. They are aware that this places
high demands on the quality and continuity of the data, and that
it is absolutely imperative to set up their data management prop-
erly. In this endeavor, they have powerful support from the top.
Or at least that’s the idea. Alas, in practice it seems that not all
high-level managers realize that data is crucial to the enterprise
as a whole, regardless of what people throughout the organiza-
tion say or how passionately they advocate it. The plans for big
data analytics also often appear to be no more than ambitions
in an environment in which day-to-day business intelligence is
not yet properly set up. One in which the springing of data leaks
shows that data governance is a mess. And in which a
data-driven approach is not on the board’s agenda.

Factors behind successful

data management
Senior leadership, an organization in which the processes are
in line with the use of data, and good data governance are
essential conditions for implementing a data-driven approach.
Data is an asset, although many organizations fail to manage
it in the same way as other assets, such as people, resources,
capital, IT infrastructure and applications. Only then can an asset
be valuable, and remain so. Good data management is essential
to organizations. Organizations with well-structured governance,
in which the ownership of data sets 1, 2 and 3 is crystal clear.
Organizations in which it is clear what information needs special
attention due to its mission-critical, distinctive nature: so-called
‘golden data’. Organizations that employ data professionals, not
‘data enthusiasts’.

Professionally organized data

governance:
provides coherent governance company-wide
keeps data under control
maintains high data-quality levels
makes data reliable and ensures compliance
does not take a ‘scattergun’ approach to data – the real value lies in just a small portion of it
makes it possible to get information to the business rapidly
creates agility – when something has to be changed, that is possible. And it can happen
relatively quickly

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 How mature is the
organization?
Once management has developed a strategy and vision on the
use of data in the organization, the data revolution can com-
mence. The primary question is whether or not the enterprise or
institution is ready. Is everyone, at all levels of the organization,
prepared to adopt a different working method? Is top-level man-
agement giving its unconditional backing? Are the processes by
which this is to be achieved in place, and is IT ready? In other
words, how mature is the organization and what steps need to
be taken for data to be made into an asset? A tried and trust-
ed method for determining this is to assume that the desired
situation is up and running, and then backtrack to the current
situation. This is a good way of accurately visualizing all the steps
that need to be taken. Of course, that only works if the targeted
to-be situation can be established accurately and independently.

Technically speaking,
almost anything is possible
Storing large amounts of data is not a problem in technical
terms. The problem of accessing and collating different data –
from a range of sources, in different formats, and with varying
levels of quality – is also one that can be resolved in technical
terms. Strategic sourcing of IT services can help in that regard,
for instance by outsourcing certain services and combining that
with the infrastructure on site. The problem lies elsewhere. Not
for nothing do we call it a data-driven organization. Becoming
data driven demands different processes and working methods,
different IT, and different skills and competencies. In short, a
different way of thinking. At all levels of the organization. Without
that revolution data will never become an asset: it will be a ball
and chain. It is up to management to guide and supervise this
process of culture change.

How to gain control of data,

and keep on top of it
The question is how an organization can gain control of the
mushrooming quantity of data and the increasing number of
data streams. Who is responsible for what, who does what and
who is allowed to do what? What tasks can and are being differ-
entiated and, more to the point, is there coherence and how can
coherence be safeguarded? The Data Management Body of
Knowledge (DMBoK) was developed by the DAMA International
community. DAMA thus offers data professionals the world over
a supplier-independent best-practice resource that covers all
disciplines within the domain of data management. DMBoK is
well on track to become the standard in the digital age.

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 What is DMBoK?
The data management body of knowledge is consid-
erable and is continually growing. To face up to this
challenge, DAMA International has published the DAMA
Guide to the Data Management Body of Knowledge
(DAMA DMBoK) as the ‘definitive introduction’ to data
management. DAMA DMBoK defines a standard view
of data management functions, terminology and best
practices, without detailing specific methods and tech-
niques. Because DAMA DMBoK is not an authority on
any single topic, it refers readers to acknowledged and
widely accepted publications, articles and websites. The
first edition of DAMA DMBoK is available in print and
PDF versions from Technics Publications or the website of
DAMA International (www.dama.org).

Data
Architecture
Management
Data
Quality Data
Management Development

Data
Meta-data Operations
Management Management

Data
Governance
Data
Document & Security
Content Management
Management

Data Warehousing Reference &

& Business Master Data
Intelligence Management
Management Reference &
Master Data
Management

Copyright © by DAMA International

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 Data management with
DMBoK in practice
DMBoK offers an independent and complete foundation for
setting up all aspects of data management. On that basis, it
is possible, in practice, to accurately map out three import-
ant factors:
1. The current maturity level of the organization
2. The desired/required level
3. The roadmap tracing the route from the current
situation to the new one

1. Assessment
An assessment measures each individual aspect of data
governance. An average score can be derived from this,
which is a snapshot of a company’s maturity level. The as-
sessment also shows which elements need extra attention;
these can be focused on to reach the next maturity level.

2. To-be situation
Using the strategy, vision and mission of the organization re-
garding becoming data driven, it is possible to determine the
maturity level required to achieve the objectives. That too is
done using the various individual levels of the DMBoK model.

3. Roadmap
The output of the assessment and the desired situation can be
converted into a practical roadmap that shows how processes,
people and systems need to work to form a combined,
data-driven organization. The assignment of responsibilities in
this respect is crucial, as is the ability to think in terms of infor-
mation chains, and viewing and treating data as a company
asset.

Practical examples: Vitens

and Stedin, see appendix
Reference case 1: Vitens
As a supplier of drinking water Vitens has a great number
of business processes, each of which demands a large
amount of data that is growing by the day. Far-reaching
automation and the use of sensor technology have made
data an essential component of Vitens’s operations, with
quality and availability being of singular importance, for
instance, for predictive maintenance. What Vitens really
wanted to do, was to manage data as an asset and to set
up its data management professionally.

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 Reference case 2: Stedin Meetbedrijf
With modern metering technologies and smart appli-
cations, Stedin Meetbedrijf provides companies with
insight, an overview and a variety of ways to make
energy savings. Stedin Meetbedrijf asked Quint to
carry out an assessment to ascertain the maturity
level of its data management. Among other things,
this study would help the further development of
business services based on data. It thus marks the
starting point of the road to a new, data-driven enter-
prise.

Conclusion: How DMBoK

helps organizations
become data driven
Decisions are made on the basis of facts, rather than
‘gut feeling’. These facts must be based on reliable infor-
mation and data. And that requires good data manage-
ment. DMBoK is the ultimate data management model
for this purpose, a model that can reveal the maturity
level of the organization and trace the roadmap to be-
coming data driven. DMBoK covers the most important
aspects and processes to structure data management
properly and implement it throughout the company,
because data is not something that only concerns the IT
department. To achieve a structured set-up, Quint has
devised a maturity model which allows organizations
to create a roadmap highlighting the foundations for a
data-driven organization. Robustly structured data man-
agement does not make an organization rigid, but agile:
if something has to change, it can be changed relatively
quickly.
Towards robust, agile data management in three steps:
1. Assessment: determination of the current maturity
level of the organization.
2. To-be situation: the maturity level required to be able
to achieve the business objectives.
3. Roadmap: the actions and measures to be taken in
order to trace out the route from the current situation
to the new one.

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 Reference Case 1 – Vitens
sets up data governance
using DMBoK
Vitens is a Dutch water supply company that was created in
2002 following the merger of three water supply companies:
Nuon Water, Waterbedrijf Gelderland and Waterleiding
Maatschappij Overijssel. Hydron Flevoland and Hydron Mid-
den-Nederland also became part of the company in 2006. The
company employs over 1,400 people.
Vitens supplies 5.5 million customers with drinking water via a
distribution network of 50,000 kilometers of pipes, 250 pump-
ing stations and 96 production sites. In total, it supplies almost
330 million cubic meters of water to customers in the provinc-
es of Flevoland, Friesland, Gelderland, Utrecht and Overijssel.
At its laboratory in Leeuwarden, Vitens conducts microbio-
logical and chemical research into groundwater quality. Each
day, the lab processes hundreds of water samples in a largely
automated process.
As well as being a production business that pumps water to
the surface, filters it and tests it in its own laboratory, Vitens
is also a distributor, transporting water via its own network
to consumers and charging them by means of water meters.
Each of the required business processes uses large quantities
of data which grow by the day. This, combined with far-reach-
ing automation and the use of sensor technology, has made
data an essential part of business operations. Management’s
vision is that data is an asset, and therefore has to be man-
aged.
A large number of different types of IT converge within Vitens.
As well as traditional IT, with back-office systems such as SAP
and GIS, water production is also largely automated, and the
network is now managed based on sensor data. The more
processes that can be steered by data, the higher the quality of
that data needs to be. An urgent need has therefore emerged

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 at Vitens to gain full control of the data. “Data is one of our
primary assets,” says Popke Graansma, Head of IT. “As such, it
has been incorporated by senior management in the reformu-
lated Vitens strategy.” To organize sound data management
and ensure proper governance, he called in the assistance of
Edwin Eichelsheim, consultant at Quint Wellington Redwood.

DMBoK
Together with Eichelsheim, Graansma embarked on a
process to give shape to data governance and data man-
agement policies at Vitens. In a workshop, Eichelsheim
introduced the DMBoK model (see box) developed by
the DAMA International community. The maturity of the
organization was assessed using the DMBoK model, and
this position was used to shape the approach to be used
to set up management and governance. The initiative for
the data project therefore lies with the IT department. But,
Graansma continues, “Because IT lies at the core and given
my experience with data, it was the business that asked me
to write a plan. But it is certainly a ‘co-production’ between
business and IT, and this is also reflected on the work floor.”
The current plan sets out the primary lines of his vision of
data management and was well received by the board and
first-line management. “They fully appreciate that data is
an asset and as such it must be managed and organized.
Although no hard business case has been prepared, overall
there is a good enough case that justifies investments in
people, time, resources and attention.”

Asset Management
Vitens’s Asset Management department is responsible
for managing all assets, such as the pipeline network, the
pumping stations and a host of filtering technologies, water
softeners, etc. Furthermore, Vitens has a number of water
production sites which are subject to specific legislation and
regulations. This too is an important aspect for Asset Man-
agement. The board has followed up on the belief that data
is an asset by assigning responsibility for data management
to the Asset Management department. For the team, this is
an entirely new discipline, and a number of data stewards
have therefore been added. Despite the fact that data man-
agement is outside the IT organization, the IT department
has provisioned the required infrastructure and application
management processes expeditiously.
The data analysis method is also based on DMBoK. The
SAP BO BI tool was rolled out by IT to make it easier
to access and combine certain data from a data ware-
house. In relation to Geographic Information Systems,
access has been improved to the extent that users can
now present information at map level.

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 Working with Quint
Most of the new people, including a program manager, will
make a start on data governance early in 2016. Graansma’s
assessment is that in the initial period, the focus will mainly
be on writing the work plan. “Things such as the governance
structure, working arrangements and protocols all need to
be set down in detail on paper. But there also needs to be
a gradual transition from thought to action, with a concrete
data improvement process. All this still needs to be decided.
The first results must be visible by the end of 2016. From
then on, it will be an ongoing activity.” He looks back pos-
itively on the cooperation with Quint: “Their expertise and
practical experience with data and DMBoK provides a solid
foundation for an efficient and effective approach to data
management and data governance at Vitens.”

Reference Case 2 –
DMBoK helps Stedin
Meetbedrijf move closer to
data-driven services
Stedin Meetbedrijf is part of the Eneco Group and a subsidiary
of Stedin Netbeheer. Stedin Meetbedrijf has been an indepen-
dent metering service provider in the energy sector since the
liberalization of the energy market. As one of the big three
metering firms in the Netherlands, it provides metering ser-
vices in the B2B segment. With modern metering technologies
and smart applications, Stedin Meetbedrijf provides compa-
nies with insight, an overview and a variety of ways to make
energy savings. Information manager Ashwand Prahladsingh

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 asked a third party, Quint, to assess the maturity of data
management within Stedin Meetbedrijf. This study would help
the further development of business services based on data. It
thus marks the starting point of the road to a new, data-driven
enterprise: Stedin Meetbedrijf B2B.
Edwin Eichelsheim of Quint Wellington Redwood was asked
to perform the assessment in the second quarter by Ashwand
Prahladsingh and the then director of Stedin Meetbedrijf.
He investigated the maturity of data management in the
organization. This is important because a high level of data
management maturity is needed to execute the envisaged
strategy, and to make Stedin Meetbedrijf a data-driven orga-
nization. Based on the Data Management Body of Knowledge
(DMBoK), Eichelsheim observed that for most DMBoK focus
areas, the company had a maturity level of 1. One of the
things that this tells us is that the data vision has not been
properly formulated as a business case, something that would
help the company as a whole to adopt a data-driven ap-
proach, and that data management is therefore in its infancy.
In terms of compliance, security and privacy, in contrast, the
company was performing particularly well. Based on DMBoK,
Quint also provided a roadmap for data management for
newly introduced services and products. The assessment
gives Stedin Meetbedrijf a solid foundation for making further
progress, and there is still much work to be done.

Data-driven organization
In accordance with its mission statement, Stedin Meetbedrijf
has the ambition to become a data-driven organization. The
initial applications of data analyses were primarily aimed at
improving internal processes. Workflow analyses, marketing,
data validation, portfolio analyses and organizing the billing
process have already led to many improvements and savings.
The next steps encompass developing products and services
based on data. Although – unlike in the consumer market
– regulation is not an issue, the confidentiality, security and
quality of the data is obviously the top priority.
A specific example of a newly developed business service:
with the customer’s permission, the consumption history –
sometimes going back as many as eight years – is examined
to assess whether the capacity contracted with the network
operator differs from average consumption. Adjusting the
contracted capacity could lead to big cost savings for the cus-
tomer. A simple example, but the idea is to apply advanced
analytics to all available data to identify divergent consump-
tion patterns for customers. Have circumstances changed, or
have things remained the same? Have there been any cases
of fraud or abuse? Business customers benefit from this.

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 Data warehousing as a
driver of adoption
In order to introduce the board and Operations to the oppor-
tunities afforded by data analysis, back in 2014 , innovation
manager Tjerk Poot started up his own data warehouse
within the metering company’s Corporate Clients division. In
actual fact, the initiative came from employee David van der
Velden, who had specific ideas about the opportunities it had
to offer, and a deep understanding of the business side of the
company. With the help of a few third parties, it was possible
to create such a data warehouse which brought together four
sources. Together, these sources account for several terabytes
and around 80% of the available data. The source systems
on their own are not suitable for analysis, commercial use or
combinations of data.
The data warehouse initiative lies emphatically with the
business rather than IT. “That might seem a strange way
of doing things,” says Tjerk Poot, who is actually responsible
for developing new services and products. “But at the
time I could see that ideas would be increasingly based
on data. So the driving force behind the data warehouse
was primarily new business development, not IT.”
No matter how conventional, the data warehouse plays
an important role in the adoption of a data-driven ap-
proach, says Poot. “You have to keep it small and simple
to begin with: by means of conventional reports and
dashboards you can furnish management with familiar
information, the sort they like to see, which they can use
to make decisions. In that way, data shows that it has
added value. Moreover, the available dashboard provides
much more information than was previously available,
attracting the attention of many managers as well as
people on the work floor. And the transparency offers
many new insights into work processes, exposing not just
difficulties but also giving pointers to solutions. The well-
thought-out approach of providing the organization with
analyses in small, incremental steps thus ensures that the
use of data in day-to-day operations is embraced by the
organization.”

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 Assessment as a foundation
The process which will transform Stedin Meetbedrijf B2B
into a data-driven enterprise is in full swing. There is
plenty of data, but a data-driven company needs other
processes, makes new demands on IT, and requires other
skills and knowledge from the people who work there.
In brief, it requires a change in culture, a new mindset
across all parts of the enterprise.
The way data management – including data governance
– is organized still depends to a large extent on the situ-
ation. This means that an issue is dealt with as it occurs,
and then a management decision is needed. “In terms
of data management, Stedin Meetbedrijf B2B is at an
early stage of development, and is still very reactive. They
recognize this: they are real go-getters and they like to
get stuck in,” says Prahladsingh. “Nevertheless, big steps
have already been taken on the path towards becoming
a more data-driven organization, and the structure is
improving. Quint’s assessment provides a good founda-
tion and serves as guide.”

Authors:
Edwin Eichelsheim
e.eichelsheim@quintgroup.com
Jan Heuthorst
j.heuthorst@quintgroup.com

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 ABOUT QUINT WELLINGTON REDWOOD
Quint focuses on two major changes taking place in the world: digital
transformation and the increasing need for sustainability. Technology is
one of the driving forces of change. Many organizations have difficulty in
keeping pace with today’s rapid successive developments and applying
them successfully. They wonder if they are flexible enough to implement
change and whether they will still be a relevant player in a few years’ time.
We see that organizations have to make fundamental choices about
business models, management and technology under pressure from
these trends.

In our vision, technology is not the only deciding factor: the knowledge,
leadership and culture that are must-haves for organizations to recognize
relevant technology and apply it to provide value to their organization
and environment are even more important.

Quint supports organizations in designing and implementing their

digital strategy. Together with our clients, we build roadmaps that facilitate
fast and effective change, anticipating or responding to opportunities and
threats. We bring technology - and its application - to life.

Digital Strategy & Lean IT, Agile Data Management Transformational

Transformation & DevOps & Governance Leadership

Sourcing Strategy, IT Governance, Risk Service Integration, Training & Coaching

Contracting & & Compliance Automation &
Transitioning Management

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