Data governance isn't a technology problem — it's a cultural one. Yet CDOs and governance professionals continue to struggle translating it into business language that resonates in the boardroom.

This session unpacks a real-world case study on dynamic data governance. Based on an example where data governance failure became a public scandal and triggered rapid, top-down action after years of limited progress. It reveals a critical lesson: governance becomes a priority when it’s understood as a business risk.

So what can data leaders learn from this? Professor Samuel Spencer explains and demonstrates how to:

• Assign data ownership in a consistent and enforceable way
• Build a data inventory that business users actually engage with
• Report on governance to senior executives in ways that drive buy-in
• Align inventory practices to improve trust, value, and security of organizational data

Walk away with a practical framework you can apply immediately to accelerate adoption — before governance becomes your organization's headline.

Speaker: Samuel Spencer, Chief Executive Officer, Aristotle Metadata

Sam Spencer is CEO and co-founder of Aristotle Metadata and a leader in government data management and data governance. Through the development of Aristotle Metadata, Sam has worked on a range of data initiatives across the government and enterprise, providing input ranging from broader data policy to the development of local metadata teams within departments. Sam is a recognized leader in data management, having presented research on data standards and solutions at conferences in Australia and internationally. His personal goal is to demystify data management and aims to make metadata more accessible to everybody.