About Us

Data Governance Australia (DGA) is a not-for-profit industry association established to promote the responsible collection, storage, management and use of data to enable Australian organisations innovate, improve productivity and gain a competitive edge while reducing data-related risk.  DGA assists organisations with building trust amongst consumers that their data can deliver improved products and services while respecting their privacy and dignity.

DGA appeals to all organisations that hold and use data – and, in particular, Chief Data Officers, Chief Privacy Officers, Chief Risk Officers, General Counsel, Compliance Officers, Cybersecurity leaders and the like.  However, it is equally important that Non-Executive Directors, CEOs and other C-suite executives are across data issues as these increasingly impact every facet of business.

Raison d’être

In his recent book, The Fourth Industrial Revolution, Professor Klaus Schwab, Founder and Executive Chairman of the World Economic Forum notes that ‘previous industrial revolutions liberated humankind from animal power, made mass production possible and brought digital capabilities to billions of people. This Fourth Industrial Revolution is, however, fundamentally different. It is characterized by a range of new technologies that are fusing the physical, digital and biological worlds, impacting all disciplines, economies and industries, and even challenging ideas about what it means to be human.

The resulting shifts and disruptions mean that we live in a time of great promise and great peril.   The world has the potential to connect billions more people to digital networks, dramatically improve the efficiency of organizations and even manage assets in ways that can help regenerate the natural environment, potentially undoing the damage of previous industrial revolutions.

However, Schwab also has grave concerns: that organizations might be unable to adapt; governments could fail to employ and regulate new technologies to capture their benefits; shifting power will create important new security concerns; inequality may grow; and societies fragment.  In particular, Schwab calls for leaders and citizens to “together shape a future that works for all by putting people first, empowering them and constantly reminding ourselves that all of these new technologies are first and foremost tools made by people for people.”’ (https://www.weforum.org/about/the-fourth-industrial-revolution-by-klaus-schwab)

At the centre of this Fourth Industrial Revolution is DATA – how to collect, manage and use it and, in particular, how to ensure privacy and protection.

Our Commitment

Together with industry experts, we have developed Leading Practice Data Principles as part of our on-going effort to promulgate leading industry standards, promote a culture of best practice, and to drive innovation by increasing consumer confidence and trust in the data practices of organisations.

DGA’s Leading Practice Data Principles are dynamic as they continually need to be responsive to evolving consumer sentiments, new regulatory environments, and technological developments.  They are provided to our members and the wider community as thought provokers to be adopted, adapted or neither so as to suit each business as appropriate.

The 8 core Leading Practice Data Principles are:

  • No-harm rule
  • Honesty & transparency
  • Fairness
  • Choice
  • Accuracy and access
  • Accountability
  • Stewardship
  • Security

The complete Leading Practice Data Principles will be made available shortly.

Advocacy

Data Governance Australia is the leading not-for-profit industry association established to promote the responsible collection, storage, management and use of data to enable Australian organisations gain a competitive edge while reducing data-related risk, AND to build trust amongst consumers that their data can deliver improved products and services while respecting their privacy and dignity.

We provide advocacy on relevant data-related issues to government and regulators on behalf of our members and the community at large.  Advocacy takes the form of attending consultations, making submissions, and engaging in thought leadership on the issues.  Following is a sample of current advocacy projects – please let us know if you would like to participate or have other ideas:  Contact@DataGovernanceAus.com.au

DGA assists organisations drive innovation, enhance productivity, increase competitiveness, manage risk and comply with regulatory requirements in the rapidly evolving data-driven revolution.

See Membership for further detail.