Data Life Cycle

A life cycle consists of phases, and each phase has its own characteristics. The following are seven phases of the data life
cycle.

1. Data capture is the act of creating information that does not

yet exist within the organization. The primary ways in which data
can be captured include

■ Utilizing data. The organization obtains already existing

data outside the organization, for example, it may buy
or otherwise acquire data from an outside entity.

■ Data entry. New data values can be created within the

organization.

■ Signal reception. The organization acquires data that

has already been created by control systems within the
organization.

2. Data maintenance supplies captured data to the points at

which data synthesis and data usage occur. Data
maintenance involves processing the data without deriving
any value from it for the enterprise. It often involves
cleansing and enrichment of the data.

3. Data synthesis and analytics is the creation of data values

by using inductive logic. It typically involves using other
data as inputs.

■ Analytics uses modeling, such as risk modeling, actuarial

modeling, and modeling for investment decisions.

4. Data usage is the application of data to tasks the enterprise needs to run and manage itself. This typically
includes activities outside the regular data life cycle.
■ Data usage may have data governance challenges. For example, is it legal to use the data in the ways
management wants to use it? There may be regulatory or contractual constraints on how data may be used. The role
of data governance is to ensure that legalities are observed.

5. Data publication refers to the sending of data to a location outside the organization, for example, in monthly statements
to customers.

6. Data archival involves copying data that are no longer useful to a storage location in case the data are ever needed
again.

■ Obsolete data are removed from active environments and stored in an archive, a location where data receive no
regular maintenance and little usage.

7. Data purging involves removing every copy of a data item from the enterprise at the end of the data life cycle. This is
typically done from the archive. This phase may pose a data governance challenge because disposing of all copies of
data and proving that a full purge has actually occurred are often difficult.