It’s a familiar scenario in many boardrooms. A dashboard shows an unexpected anomaly in the figures. All eyes turn to the IT manager with the question: “Can you fix this?” The implicit assumption is that poor data is a technical problem, a glitch in the IT systems.

In an effort to address this issue, many organizations have created the role of “data owner.” On paper, it seems like the perfect solution: a department manager is formally made responsible for “his” or “her” data.

In practice, this is often just a paper tiger. The title is given, but the role isn’t actually fulfilled. It’s seen as an extra task on top of daily work, with no clear consequences. No one loses any sleep over it if the data quality isn’t up to par. And so the reflex remains: if the data is wrong, it’s IT’s problem.

The financial impact of an “IT problem”

Let’s illustrate this abstract problem with a real-world example. A new construction project has been completed. The homes are physically ready to be rented out. However, the data has not yet been entered into the system completely or correctly.

The result? The properties cannot be offered to prospective tenants. They stand vacant for weeks, and sometimes even months—not because there is no demand, but because the data is not in order. This directly results in thousands of euros in lost rental income.

The crucial question is: whose problem is this? The instinctive reaction is to call it an IT problem. But the financial pain is felt throughout the entire organization. The data error is not a technical glitch; it is an operational error with a direct impact on the bottom line.

The solution: make ownership tangible

The only way to break this cycle is to make data ownership more than just a title. Ownership must be reflected in the performance and responsibilities of the business itself.

You assign data ownership to the business by making them formally responsible for definitions, quality, and decision-making regarding their data, while allowing IT to retain ownership only of the platform and technical implementation. Formal ownership only arises when the business is given both the responsibility and the authority—and this is reflected in decisions, processes, KPIs, and governance. The director should not open the conversation by asking IT, “Can you fix the data?”, but rather by asking the Real Estate manager:

“Why isn’t your department’s data in order? You are responsible for ensuring that our property data is complete and accurate, and we are now seeing that this is causing us to lose rental income.”

This approach changes everything. It makes data quality the direct responsibility of the department that creates and manages the data. It is at the heart of a robust data strategy for housing authorities: embedding responsibility where the data is generated.

The most effective way to demonstrate the value of IT is to shift the conversation. Change the question from “What’s in it for us?” to “What is the cost of the alternative?” Make the value tangible by highlighting the pain of not having it.

From data watchdog to business partner

When the pain caused by poor data is felt in the right places, the role of the IT department shifts. IT is no longer the “data police” tasked with fixing mistakes after the fact. Instead, IT becomes a strategic partner that helps business owners meet their data quality KPIs.

The request from the business side to IT then shifts from “Fix my data” to “Give me the right tools to manage my data effectively.”

Ownership isn't just a title on an organizational chart. It's the tangible consequence of good or bad data. Only when that responsibility lies in the right place within the organization will data quality improve in a sustainable way.