Dark Data

If you missed the Dark Data Webcast or just want a refresh on the insights that were given, head over to our YouTube channel and watch the webcast!

Alternatively, you can stick around here and take a look at the insights we discovered.

Our presenters: Paul Hudson (Principal Solutions Strategist), Richard Kleiser (risual Consultant) and Michelle Heard (External Account Manager) take us into the detail of dark data and the haunting horrors it hides.

risual is an expert in transformation, offering an agile and unique service to our clients. risual offers consulting, services, skills and solutions to help organisations realise their full potential.

risual is a business genuinely passionate about transforming organisations with the embedded values of honesty, openness and trust. We take pride in delivering innovative Microsoft technology to our clients.

What is dark data and why is it growing?

  • Information organisations “collect, process and store this data during regular business activities, but generally fail to use for other purposes”.
  • An increase in legacy data repositories is the natural result of rapid technological change.
  • Organisations are storing data in low-structure distributed systems, open-source databases, and unmanaged devices.

What are the risks with Dark Data?

  • Legacy data harbors risk within, as data has been collated in the past under different rules and processes.
  • Without a strong understanding of the data itself, relevant security cannot be applied.
  • What regulation the data is subject to cannot be known without understanding the context in which the data is created and used.
  • Where data ownership is unknown there is no clear accountability or responsibility.

What do you need to control your Dark Data?

  • A data-driven business depends on accurate and reliable data – without complete data governance, this cannot be assured.
  • 80% of data is dark and unstructured i.e. photos, audio, video, text, social media, satellite imagery, presentations, PDFs.
  • There is unfulfilled value to be mined from dark data – give it meaning and purpose that will transform your business.

Why should cloud migration be on the agenda?

  • Consolidate multiple files stores into one location and rationalise content.
  • Get value for money from existing Microsoft licenses.
  • Simplify IT infrastructure.
  • Make use of cloud tools such as:
    • Teams
    • SharePoint
    • OneDrive for business
    • Office 365 Classification labels
    • eDiscovery and audit
    • Power Platform

How do we ‘shine a light’ on our valuable information?

  • Use metadata and classification labels to organise content.
  • Surface content in SharePoint and Teams
    • Publish content through intranet-style sites
    • Access content easily from Teams Channels
    • Use document management features
  • Use Office 365 Search and Delve

How can we make our data useful?

  • Delegate content ownership to the people responsible for it.
  • Remote working across multiple devices.
  • Co-Authoring.
  • Securely share content with third parties.
  • Reporting through Power BI.

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