Data Governance Software

Data Governance Software Selection
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Are you planning a Request for Information (RFI), Request for Proposal (RFP), or Request for Quote (RFQ) for Data Governance software? Here are some tips to help you build questions, set requirements, and evaluate software. First, start with the basics. For Data Governance tools - just like for any other type of application - start with standard tool selection criteria and considerations:

vendor information
pricing
maintenance costs and other costs
ROI
functionality and features
suites versus stand-alone tools
best-of-breed considerations
customer service
implementation assistance
training
availability of consultants and the depth of consulting experience available
vendor stability
merger and acquisition considerations.

Next, you’ll want to consider the information you collect in the context of your organization’s culture and environment:

the organizational structures and silos that will be using these tools
people and roles
accountability and controls
processes and workflow
policies and standards that apply to these tools
architectural considerations
timeline considerations
cross-project interdependencies
the expertise of your workforce.

Then, you'll want to include specific requirements for accomplishing your Data Governance goals. These will vary according to the types of software solutions that match your needs.

You’ll also want to determine whether you need to collect requirements or approvals from business stakeholders. This may be necessary if the tools

fall subject to compliance or legal requirements
are considered part of key control sets
are included in approved business processes or workflows that are subject to approval by your internal or external auditors
are part of processes or procedures subject to formal change control
fall subject to approval by your IT Portfolio Management group, or
the tools could influence your ability to fulfill Service Level Agreements (SLAs) or other contractual requirements.

And finally, you need to determine whether your organization's Project Management Office (PMO) and/or an Application Portfolio Management group will be involved in the selection of software applications. These groups may very well have their own set of requirements you need to include in your software selection process. Here are some keywords often found in RFP requirements.

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