Master data management (MDM) is critical to achieving effective information governance, according to a report from IT research firm Gartner, which noted failure to manage information accurately has been the root cause of several incidents, including the leak of sensitive information to WikiLeaks, and can be fatal to the success of MDM programs. Gartner estimates worldwide MDM software revenue will reach $1.9 billion in 2012, a 21 percent increase from 2011.

MDM is a technology-enabled business discipline in which businesses and IT organizations work together to ensure the uniformity, accuracy, stewardship, semantic consistency and accountability of the organization's official, shared master data assets. It is increasingly identified by organizations with the launch of a formal enterprise information management (EIM) strategy and the foundation of an information governance program that supports EIM.

"The recent global financial crisis has put information governance in the spotlight," said Ted Friedman, vice president and distinguished analyst at Gartner. "Information governance is a priority of IT and business leaders as a result of various pressures, including regulatory compliance mandates and the urgent need for improved decision-making."

MDM is one of the most notable information governance programs, and the MDM market continues to grow because it focuses on specific business drivers and business-led initiatives. Gartner predicts by 2016, 20 percent of CIOs in regulated industries will lose their jobs for failing to implement the discipline of information governance successfully.

"We've seen rapidly growing interest in information governance-related topics, and this trend shows no sign of abating," said Debra Logan, vice president and distinguished analyst at Gartner. "Information governance is the only way to comply with regulations, both current and future, and responsibility for it lies with the CIO and the chief legal officer. When organizations suffer high-profile data losses, especially involving violations of the privacy of citizens or consumers, they suffer serious reputational damage and often incur fines or other sanctions. IT leaders will have to take at least part of the blame for these incidents."

The report recommends that highly regulated businesses that do not already have information-archiving technology should invest in it to bring email and files under control, and noted the governance-related technology of information archiving has reached early majority and is a key component of an evolving information governance technology strategy. Through 2016, spending on governing information must increase to five times the current level to be successful, the report predicted.

"Regardless of the structure, information governance responsibilities will become part of the roles of more people, and the time and funding allocated to these roles will need to increase dramatically in the typical organization," Friedman said. "Organizations will have to increase their investment in related tools and technologies, both to facilitate the development and refinement of policy, and to distill policies into executable rules that tools can apply to information."

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