Have you ever stopped to marvel at the speed of sound? It's one of those everyday phenomena that we don't think about, but it's nothing short of amazing. In air, sound travels at 761 miles per hour — fast enough to bounce your voice back to you as an echo in a canyon. But in water, sound accelerates to a massive 3,355 mph, and in a diamond, the hardest material on Earth, it reaches a massive 40,000 mph.
Why is this possible? It's a question of medium. Sound is a vibration, and the more dense the material, the more particles the vibrations have to bump into and the quicker, more effectively sound can travel. This efficiency of the proper medium is more than a marvel of physics; it's a perfect metaphor for lean data governance.
In the world of data, the speed and efficiency of insights depend on the medium through which they travel. That medium is defined by three critical pillars: structure, processes, and tools. Or, as we’ll call them here, Frame, Claim, and Aim; three rhyming keywords that encapsulate the essence of effective data governance. Let’s explore how these pillars work together to create a harmonious framework that eliminates friction, accelerates insights, and drives organizational success.
Prior to exploring the solution, let's address the challenge. Gartner claims that 80% of businesses attempting to scale digital business through 2025 will fail because they don't approach data governance in a modern way. And the root cause? Unordered data systems, indefinite processes, and legacy tools that produce bottlenecks as well as inefficiencies.
Data without a solid frame is like sound trapped in an unorganized medium; slow, distorted, and unable to reach its full potential. Organizations need to overcome this by following a data governance model that prioritizes Frame, Claim, and Aim.
Just as a dense medium is needed for sound to travel effectively, data needs a firm framework to travel effectively. Good governance "frames" the data landscape by organizing it into an overarching framework. It includes defining roles, responsibilities, and relationships between data owners, stewards, and users.
Coca-Cola faced a significant hurdle: fractured data systems were slowing decision-making and innovation. The company responded by developing a centralized data governance model, creating clear accountability for every data asset. Organizing its data into a single structure enabled Coca-Cola to improve accessibility, reduce redundancies, and accelerate insights. As a result of this realignment, the company innovated through new products and marketing efforts, illustrating the power of a well-crafted structure.
For example, Coca-Cola's migration to Amazon Web Services (AWS) in 2013 reduced operating costs by 40% and cut IT ticket volume by 80%, while an AWS data lake increased analytics productivity by 80%. Additionally, the brand's "Share a Coke" campaign, launched in Australia in 2011, replaced the iconic Coca-Cola logo with fashionable names, leading to a 7% increase in young adult consumption in its initial market. The campaign was then rolled out in over 80 countries, creating over 550 million personalized Coca-Cola cans and 340,000 Instagram posts with the hashtag #shareacoke. All these activities show how a well-designed data governance strategy can drive both operational efficiency and creative marketing success
According to McKinsey, companies with a strong data governance framework are 40% more likely to achieve their business goals compared to those without one. The key takeaway seen here is that a structured framework contains the chaos of unconnected data and transforms it into a well-organized system. This is the foundation upon which all other data governance efforts are built.
Structure provides the foundation, but without processes, even the best framework can falter. Processes are the workflows that guide how data is collected, validated, shared, and analyzed. They ensure consistency, accuracy, and compliance with governance policies.
Think of processes as the “claim” to your data’s value. Just as sound vibrations need a clear path to travel efficiently, your data needs standardized workflows to avoid bottlenecks and errors.
Netflix is a master when it comes to using data to drive innovation. The company's data governance practices ensure that vast volumes of users' data (everything from viewing patterns to search queries) are collected and analyzed in a consistent manner. Automating these processes has enabled Netflix to predict viewer interests, recommend shows, and even decide what new shows to produce. For example, the blockbuster series House of Cards was greenlit in 2013 based on inferences from their data, which showed a strong interest in political dramas starring Kevin Spacey. Netflix committed a massive $100 million to the show without a pilot; a gamble that paid off as the series continued to be hugely successful, earning nine Emmy nominations in its first season.
Apart from content creation, Netflix's recommendation engine powers 80% of the content consumed on the website, significantly boosting viewer engagement and satisfaction. This data-driven approach has also resulted in a 90% customer retention rate, saving the company approximately $1 billion in customer retention costs annually.
Processes also play a critical role in ensuring ongoing compliance with data privacy regulations like GDPR and CCPA. These laws require organizations to handle data subject access requests (DSARs), ensure data is up to date, and ensure transparency in data usage. Without defined processes, compliance is near impossible, and the organization risks being fined significantly, along with reputational damage. For instance, Meta was fined €1.2 billion in 2025 for unlawful data transfers under GDPR.
Key Takeaway: Standardized workflows produce standardized claims to data value. With the appropriate workflows, your data is able to flow unimpeded through your organization, providing value at each stage.
Finally, even with the perfect structure and processes in place, you need the right tools to execute them effectively. Tools are the technologies that enable your team to “aim” for efficiency, automating tasks, monitoring data quality, and creating actionable insights faster than ever before.
The right tools amplify your governance efforts, in the same manner that water or diamonds amplify the speed of sound. They provide you with the power and scale to manage increasing volumes of data without sacrificing accuracy or efficiency.
GE Aviation transformed its operations by embracing advanced data governance tools. They implemented a Self-Service Data (SSD) program, creating a centralized data repository easily accessible to all users throughout the organization. It accelerated decision-making and provided employees with a feeling of data ownership, leading to safety and operational efficiency gains. The SSD project facilitated over 1,800 active self-service developers and the creation of over 2,000 data products since March 2017 when it was implemented.
Furthermore, the program contributed to $800 million in cost savings in the LEAP engine program and a 10% improvement in cash flow. GE Aviation also integrated IoT technologies to collect and analyze data from its engines to facilitate predictive maintenance and real-time monitoring, reducing downtime and improving fuel efficiency. These uses, coupled with a strong governance framework, have enabled GE Aviation to achieve widespread adoption of data-driven processes and measurable operational improvements.
Emerging technologies like AI-driven data cataloging and data observability platforms are revolutionizing governance. Tools like Alation and Acceldata automate metadata management, monitor data health, and provide real-time pipeline performance visibility. For example, Acceldata saved a tech company $1.5 million by anticipating and resolving a high-severity data pipeline issue.
Similarly, PiLog Group offers Lean Data Governance, which is a subscription-based digital platform for managing critical data sets like materials, vendors, services, customers, and assets. The platform specializes in data governance and quality via simple-to-use processes that enable companies to unify data management, ensure compliance, and gain greater visibility and control of their critical business information.
Key Takeaway: Tools concentrate your governance efforts on maximum impact. With the right technology, you can scale your framework, automate processes, and unlock the full potential of your data.
Let's go back to the analogy of the sound wave. Sound travels as a vibration, and its speed is based on the density of the medium. In air, sound moves relatively slowly because the particles are so far apart. In water, the particles are closer together, and sound is able to move faster. And in a diamond, the particles are so tightly packed that sound reaches its full potential.
Data governance is no exception. A poorly designed framework is like sound through air: slow and inefficient. But with the right structure, processes, and tools (or the right frame, claim, and aim), your data governance framework is a diamond through which insights flow at lightning speed.
In nature, sound travels at its fastest and most efficient when traveling through the right medium. Similarly in business, information achieves its optimum value under proper governance. Just as an orchestra requires a conductor to harmonize its instruments, businesses must rely on a properly structured data governance system to harmonize their operations, analytics, and strategies. Timeless insight from Peter Drucker instructs us, "Efficiency is doing things right; effectiveness is doing the right things." It is this dual focus on correctness and intention that is the foundation of harmonic governance, where information flows with ease to drive innovation and success.
There are three essential elements for a successful data governance model: Frame, Claim, and Aim. The Frame establishes the structural foundation, as seen in Coca-Cola's centralized data governance model, which reduced operational costs by 40% and boosted analytics productivity by 80%. The Claim aligns processes with strategic goals, as seen in Netflix's standardized data governance processes, which powered its recommendation engine that drove 80% of the content consumed on its site. Finally, the Aim is all about driving measurable impact and innovation, as exemplified by GE Aviation's Self-Service Data program, which empowered employees to create over 2,000 data products. Together, these elements compose a symphony of efficiency, innovation, and impact that takes data governance from a compliance exercise to a strategic differentiator. When organizations align their "Frame," "Claim," and "Aim," they compose a symphony of efficiency, innovation, and impact.
Just as an orchestra reaches its highest resonance when all instruments are playing in harmony, organizations reach their highest success when their data governance initiatives are aligned and optimized. As Drucker's wisdom reminds us, "There is nothing so useless as doing efficiently that which should not be done at all." When they focus on the right goals and doing them with precision, organizations can eliminate friction, accelerate insights, and drive measurable outcomes.
As we look ahead, the challenge is clear: Will your organization take the conductor's baton and lead with purpose? When you frame your governance model, claim your strategic goals, and aim for excellence, you can transform your data into a precisely tuned instrument of success. The symphony of harmonious data governance awaits; will you be ready to craft your masterpiece?
Dr. Joe Perez is a powerhouse in the IT and higher education worlds, with 40-plus years’ experience and a wealth of credentials to his name, having been featured on multiple Times Square billboards. As a former Business Intelligence Specialist at NC State University and currently a Senior Systems Specialist/Team Leader at the NC Department of Health & Human Services (and Chief Technology Officer at CogniMind), Perez has consistently stayed at the forefront of innovation and process improvement. With more than 18,000 LinkedIn followers and a worldwide reputation as an award-winning keynote speaker, data viz/analytics expert, talk show co-host, and Amazon best-selling author, Perez is a highly sought-after resource in his field. He speaks at dozens of conferences each year, reaching audiences in over 20 countries and has been inducted into several prestigious Thought Leader communities. When he’s not working, Dr. Joe shares his musical talents and gives back to his community through his involvement in his church’s Spanish and military ministries.
