Importance of Data Archiving
From OrgChart.net
Contents |
Overview
The pace at which data has been growing within organizations is unprecedented. With volume comes the quandary of storage. Data needs to be stored effectively and inexpensively. Decongesting the system and removing inactive data is absolutely essential if efficiency of processes and performance levels are to be maintained. The massive data footprint will begin to register its cumbersome presence if left unmanaged in the form of delays, increasing costs and unwieldy processes.
Need for Archiving Data
This inactive data stored separately allows the systems databases to regain efficiency and avoid process delays. The data cannot be purged altogether, no matter how obsolete or unwanted it may be. The data may not be really necessary, but it must be stored for future reference or for meeting compliance requirements. Organizations archive data for several other purposes –
Security: Data archiving may be immensely helpful in the identification and investigation of security breaches, if any.
Trend Analysis: The long term vision for success of the organization may call for determining patterns to strategize, and old data is vital for carrying out comparisons and establishing patterns.
Profiling: Organizations are interested in profiling their customers and keeping a record of their transactions with the firm.
Decision Making: Keeping records definitely helps the organization’s management make better decisions when insightful information is derived from data. However, for this to occur data must be archived properly and be easily accessible when required.
Government Requirements: Some important legislation has been enforced that requires organizations to store data for a certain period of time. Compliance requirements of legislation like the Sarbanes-Oxley, the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) of 1996 and Payment Card Industry (PCI) data security concerns require data to be maintained. Companies who are out of compliance with the regulations face the risk of serious penalties and fine.
Archive to Survive
The government has very specific requirements laid out for organizations, where records are concerned. For instance, it requires that records:
- Must be stored in their original form without risk of alteration or deletion
- Must be accurate and complete from the time they are created
- Should be easily retrievable
- Disaster recovery plans should be in place, such as storing duplicate records off site
Meeting specific requirements and not finding oneself on the wrong side of the law requires every possible measure to ensure compliance and transparency.
There is a strong correlation between the performance of an organization and the quality and availability of its data. Organizations have volumes of data and metrics present today. The differentiating factor for the successful ones is the ability to determine what is vital to garner valuable insights and what needs to be put away. The realm of data management is fast growing as firms who understand that data is an information asset are increasingly seeking fast, efficient and cost effective solutions. Also, there is no possibility of the abatement in the growth of data. The performance and manageability in organizations are becoming better as centralized, integrated data archiving mechanisms are put in place, assuring risk free operations.
