Navigating the Labyrinth of Business Messaging Regulations
In the modern business landscape, effective data management has become crucial, particularly in the face of growing digital communication. According to Martin Bonney, senior director of International Consulting Services, and Deborah Blaxell from Epiq Systems, a proactive, continual approach to information governance is essential for success.
The rise of mobile and social media in the workplace has led to a significant increase in corporate data volumes, with an annual growth rate of 40%. E-mails, texts, Twitter postings, and other similar forms of communication often serve as the most revealing and reliable evidence in litigation and regulatory investigations.
Companies must take proactive action to ensure they can properly store and extract data from evolving data sources. Leading businesses are partnering with experts to adopt a proactive, continual approach to information governance.
In litigation or regulatory investigations, companies must search all data sources, including enterprise social networking sites, for potentially relevant documents and data. A UK judge criticized a large corporation for failing to have an efficient information management system in place, leading to penalties. In a US case, a company was found negligent for not producing emails and email attachments, resulting in a $1.5 billion damages award that was later overturned.
The growing popularity of enterprise social networks like Jive, SharePoint, and Yammer is a significant concern for IT and eDisclosure professionals. Companies risk serious consequences, including financial penalties and damage to reputation, if they do not maintain an accurate and up-to-date data map that includes data from workplace social media platforms like Yammer and Chatter.
Best practices for creating and maintaining a comprehensive data map that includes electronically stored information (ESI) from enterprise social networking sites and mobile media focus on accuracy, governance, documentation, stakeholder involvement, and compliance monitoring.
Key best practices include validating mapping accuracy, enforcing robust data governance, documenting thoroughly, engaging stakeholders early and continuously, centralizing storage and management, incorporating automated compliance validation, planning for data diversity and transformation, and regularly reviewing and updating data maps and management policies.
Neglecting a continual data management strategy can lead to costly consequences. A data map should be developed and maintained to record all existing data types, technical infrastructure, and storage solutions. By adhering to these best practices, companies can ensure comprehensive, accurate, and compliant data mapping that includes complex, varied ESI from social networking and mobile media within their corporate data management frameworks.
- Recognizing the surge in corporate data with social media usage, companies must expand their finance strategies to include investments in information governance and data management technologies for efficient storage and extraction of relevant information.
- As social media platforms like Yammer and Chatter become more prevalent in the workplace, technology-driven solutions are essential to maintain an up-to-date data map, ensuring compliance and avoiding financial penalties, thus upholding the company's reputation.
