The evolving role of the chief data officer in financial services

Over the past few years, financial institutions (FIs) have increasingly come to recognise that their data assets represent highly strategic sources of insight and leverage for a wide array of business functions, including risk management, regulatory compliance, sales and marketing, product development, and operational performance, among others. To realise this embedded value, however, organisations need to proactively and effectively manage their information assets at the enterprise level. In response, they have been appointing chief data officers (CDOs) to provide required strategic guidance and execution support, and also to assure access to and the quality of critical data. In addition, CDOs will undoubtedly play a strategic role in helping FIs adapt and transform their data ecosystems in response to rapid technology innovation in digital, mobile payments, Big Data management, advanced analytics, blockchain, robotics, cognitive learning, and automation. This report explores the evolving role of CDOs in the global financial services industry–from senior data marshal and steward to strategic business-enablement leader and innovator.