Moving from scattered spreadsheets to governed analytics
Governance does not have to mean bureaucracy. A few well-placed controls give people freedom to explore data without creating confusion.
5 min read
Spreadsheets are where many good analytical ideas begin. Problems arise when important figures live in files that are copied, edited and emailed without control, and nobody can say which version is correct.
What governed analytics means
Governed analytics brings key data into a managed platform with agreed definitions, clear ownership and appropriate access. Business users still explore and analyse, but they start from certified data rather than from someone else’s extract.
A staged approach
- Identify the spreadsheets that feed important decisions.
- Agree definitions and owners for the measures they contain.
- Move the underlying data into a governed model with automated refresh.
- Provide self-service access and training on the certified datasets.
- Retire the old files once the new reports are trusted.
The aim is not to remove spreadsheets entirely. It is to make sure that the numbers people rely on come from a source everyone trusts.