OMIT: an Instrument to Aid Implementation of a Data Ownership Model in Data Governance

Abstract: We present a ‘work in progress’ paper, based on a master’s thesis, focusing on data ownership models within data governance. The literature shows that there is a lack of practically useful aides or instruments for establishing a good, made-to-measure data ownership model for enterprises, as part of a more general data governance strategy and framework. Based on a literature review and semi-structured interviews with experienced experts in the field of data governance, we determined key concepts and factors relevant to the design of a data ownership model. Next, we designed an initial tool in the shape of a questionnaire, called ‘Ownership Model Implementation Tool’ (OMIT). Through additional expert interviews, we evaluated and finalized the instrument as well as guidelines for using it. Our main contribution is the OMIT itself, but its underlying concepts should also be useful to the data governance community. As the OMIT has not yet been tested within organizations, the obvious step for future research would be to evaluate and further refine the tool in practice.