Capabilities for information management professionals

Information governance

Foundation

Is aware of relevant organisational policies, frameworks and procedures.
Understands that information and data need to be managed within a framework that supports business goals.

Practitioner / skilled operational

Understands the role of information governance and is able to apply appropriate frameworks, strategies and policies in the organisation.
Is able to conduct compliance monitoring and reporting activities for systems and practices.

Management / specialist

Is able to establish links between information, data and IT governance.
Is able to develop and implement information governance frameworks, strategies and policies.
Is able to plan and manage compliance monitoring and reporting activities.

Executive / lead

Is able to endorse strategies to ensure information governance is integrated with data and IT governance, and aligns with corporate governance.
Is able to advocate for information governance to ensure reduced risk and improved information sharing and reuse.
Is able to advocate for, or chair, an information governance committee (or equivalent) and ensure key stakeholders are engaged.

Legislation and policy

Foundation

Understands legislation and policies relevant to information and data and is able to follow information and data management procedures to meet legislative requirements.

Practitioner / skilled operational

Is able to translate legislation and policies into sound information and data management practices to meet legislative requirements.

Management / specialist

Is able to interpret legislation and policies relevant to information and data management and provides advice on their implications.

Executive / lead

Understands the impact of legislation and policies on information and data and their management, and ensures these are addressed in information governance initiatives.
Is able to influence the direction of information and data related legislation and policies.

Standards and best practice

Foundation

Is aware of relevant standards that aim to improve information and data management practices.

Practitioner / skilled operational

Understands endorsed standards and is able to implement relevant procedures to improve information and data management.
Is able to assist with the development of business processes that reflect improved information and data management practices.

Management / specialist

Is able to implement standards and best practice during the development of relevant information and data management policies and procedures.

Executive / lead

Is able to support continuous improvement by strategically implementing standards and best practice in information and data management.

Information and data leadership

Foundation

Understands the value of information and data and assists others to follow appropriate information and data management behaviours.

Practitioner / skilled operational

Is able to develop and deliver advice and training on information and data management responsibilities, principles and processes.

Management / specialist

Is able to advocate for, and explain, information and data management responsibilities, principles and processes
Is able to work on strategies to build an organisational culture that values information and data.

Executive / lead

Is able to champion and promote an organisational culture that values information and data.
Is able to resource information and data management training and continuing professional development.

Value of data and information

Foundation

Is aware that information and data are corporate assets and that good business outcomes rely on maintaining authenticity, reliability, discoverability, accessibility and usability as long as needed.

Practitioner / skilled operational

Understands that information and data are corporate assets and that good business outcomes rely on maintaining its authenticity, reliability, discoverability, accessibility and usability as long as needed.
Understands that the value of information and data may change over its life, so they should be managed accordingly, and in line with legislative requirements.

Management / specialist

Understands the value of information and data as corporate assets that need to be managed throughout their entire lifecycle.
Understands that information and data may have value beyond the life of the systems in which they are created or stored, and beyond their original purpose.
Is able to estimate the value of specific datasets and information assets and associated costs.

Executive / lead

Understands the value of information and data as corporate assets that need to be managed according to their value, supporting with appropriate investment and resources.
Understands the need to communicate and promote the value of data and information assets.

Risk management

Foundation

Is aware of risks to information and data throughout its lifecycle and follows procedures to manage risk.

Practitioner / skilled operational

Understands and assesses risks to information and data throughout its lifecycle, to protect it from malicious or inadvertent destruction, alteration or unauthorised release.
Understands the role of information and data management to mitigate risk and ensure business continuity.
Is able to implement risk management policies and procedures identified in information, data and IT governance artefacts.

Management / specialist

Is able to embed risk management into information, data and IT governance artefacts and translate them into strategies to reduce risk.
Is able to manage staff who are implementing risk management strategies and activities for information and data.

Executive / lead

Understands the implications of new technologies and industry changes and demonstrates clear leadership to ensure information and data is managed throughout its lifecycle to ensure its continuing availability.
Is able to allocate adequate resources to implement risk management and delegate authority for detailed planning and execution of risk management activities.

Information security

Foundation

Is aware of information security needs.
Is able to manage users, passwords, group memberships, access views, permissions and classify information confidentiality.

Practitioner / skilled operational

Understands information security needs, regulatory requirements and frameworks.
Is able to implement relevant controls and procedures, and conduct information security risk assessments and audits.

Management / specialist

Is able to interpret regulatory requirements and information security policy to ensure information management policies and procedures are aligned to meet regulatory requirements and frameworks.
Is able to manage information security risk assessments and audits, and communicate outcomes and issues to business managers and others.

Executive / lead

Understands information security needs and how they relate to information management processes and ensures appropriate resources are allocated to mitigate information security threats.

Value identification, retention and destruction

Foundation

Is aware that all information and data in all locations and formats are subject to legislation to make disposal decisions.
Is able to implement processes to sentence information and data.

Practitioner / skilled operational

Understands the impact of legislation on managing all information and data in all locations such as business systems.
Is able to manage sentencing projects and transfers.
Is able to contribute to disposal authority development projects.

Management / specialist

Is able to assess the impact of legislation on managing all information and data in all locations such as business systems.
Understands how disposal authorities identify an organisation's valuable information and data.
Is able to manage a disposal authority development project and manage an ongoing program to reduce information holdings in accordance with legislation.

Executive / lead

Understands the application of legislation on managing all information and data and its role in identifying valuable information and data and ensuring accountability and integrity.
Understands the risks and costs of holding information and data longer than required and is aware of the benefits of disposal.
Is able to support and resource disposal processes.

Digital preservation and continuity

Foundation

Is aware that information and data need to be maintained to continue to be complete, available and usable over time.
Is able to use preservation tools and follow relevant procedures.
Is aware of digital preservation standards.

Practitioner / skilled operational

Understands how to achieve digital continuity and is able to apply appropriate tools so information and data continue to be complete, available and usable over time.
Is able to apply digital preservation standards.

Management / specialist

Is able to assess and implement digital preservation strategies and technologies to achieve digital continuity, mitigate obsolescence and maintain access.
Is able to develop digital preservation policies and procedures based on best practice, and manage associated projects.

Executive / lead

Is able to support strategies for digital preservation to achieve digital continuity and mitigate obsolescence.

Business process improvement

Foundation

Is aware of business process analysis and mapping to help identify inefficiencies and improve processes.

Practitioner / skilled operational

Understands business process analysis and can analyse and map business processes to identify inefficiencies and improve processes.
Understands the need for business process change and when to employ appropriate solutions.

Management / specialist

Is able to lead a team to analyse and map business processes to identify inefficiencies and implement solutions for improved end-to-end business processes.
Is able to articulate reasons for business process change.

Executive / lead

Understands the need for enterprise wide analysis and review of technology, systems and processes to achieve strategic priorities.
Is able to articulate the reasons, and provide support for business process change.

Information review

Foundation

Is aware of the information review process to identify information and data assets.
Is able to gather data for information reviews and input relevant data into information registers and data catalogues.

Practitioner / skilled operational

Understands the process and purpose of information reviews to create a shared understanding of information assets.
Is able to coordinate information review activities including the input of data into information registers and data catalogues.
Is able to gather, analyse and report information review findings.

Management / specialist

Is able to manage information reviews and analyse gathered data to identify strategic and operational opportunities and risks.
Is able to reuse information review data to assist in other information governance activities such as developing an information architecture.

Executive / lead

Understands the strategic value of information reviews and supports the implementation of recommendations.

User experience

Foundation

Is aware of user needs and how they interact with processes and systems when creating and using information and data.

Practitioner / skilled operational

Understands usability principles and processes and is able to apply a user-centred approach in designing and building new processes and systems.
Is able to conduct basic usability testing for new business systems and practices.

Management / specialist

Understands usability principles and processes and is able to apply them to new processes and systems.
Understands that success of any information management change depends on meeting the needs of the users as well the business and ensures projects are managed accordingly.
Is able to manage basic usability testing for new information systems and practices.
Is able to establish and lead a multidisciplinary team to design, build, operate and iterate a service.

Executive / lead

Understands user experience is central to the successful implementation of information technologies and processes.
Is able to support a multidisciplinary team, led by an experienced product manager, to design, build, operate and iterate a service.

Information architecture

Foundation

Is aware of information architecture conventions and practices.
Understands organisation specific information categorisation tools and how they enable access to information.
Is able to use and maintain information architecture artefacts including enterprise taxonomies, vocabularies, classification schemes, namespaces and ontologies.

Practitioner / skilled operational

Understands information architecture conventions and practices and how they relate to other enterprise architectural domains.
Understands organisation specific information and data categorisation tools and is able to advise others on their implementation.
Is able to design and model information architecture artefacts including enterprise taxonomies, vocabularies, classification schemes, namespaces and ontologies.

Management / specialist

Is able to lead information architecture initiatives, and understands how they relate to other enterprise architectural domains.
Is able to provide guidance on the development and maintenance of information architecture artefacts.

Executive / lead

Understands and supports information architecture initiatives and how they relate to other enterprise architectural domains.
Is able to drive a culture that values information and data sharing and advocates good information architecture practices to enable seamless sharing and reuse of information.

Metadata

Foundation

Is aware of the role and benefits of metadata to ensure information and data are discoverable.
Understands that metadata in business systems, such as audit trails, demonstrates authenticity and integrity.

Practitioner / skilled operational

Understands the fundamental role of metadata in information and data management and what metadata requirements apply to the organisation.
Is able to develop metadata schemas to analyse, design, build, use and interpret data.
Is able to distribute, deliver, query, report and analyse metadata.

Management / specialist

Is able to explain the role of metadata to ensure the integrity and availability of information and data.
Is able to manage the appropriate capture of metadata through developing and maintaining policies, procedures, standards and metadata schemas, and advise on metadata standards relevant to the organisation's specific business.
Understands how metadata enables interoperability.

Executive / lead

Understands the benefits of having adequate metadata.
Is able to strategically support a managed metadata environment that enables interoperability.

Tools and technologies

Foundation

Is able to use tools and technologies to ensure information and data are created, organised, stored, retrieved, shared and accountably destroyed.
Is able to support others in the organisation to do the same.

Practitioner / skilled operational

Is able to participate in the selection, development and configuration of tools and technologies to ensure information and data are created, organised, stored, retrieved, shared and accountably destroyed.
Is able to investigate ways to improve information and data management using existing or new tools.
Is able to contribute to information technology management including administering usage and issues.

Management / specialist

Is able to provide specialist advice on tools and technologies that support information and data management across the organisation, and is able to advise on improvements or new technologies to achieve the organisation's outcomes.
Is able to manage the selection, implementation and use of new or improved technologies.
Is able to support information technology management including, administering usage and issues, installing and maintaining technology licences.

Executive / lead

Understands enterprise requirements for appropriate technologies, and is able to drive the development of improved information and data management capability across the organisation.

Information management functionality in systems

Foundation

Is aware of the need for information management functionality in business systems.

Practitioner / skilled operational

Understands the need for information management functionality in business systems.
Is able to assess information management functionality in business systems against relevant standards, and implement solutions to address identified gaps.

Management / specialist

Is able to assess information management functionality in existing business systems against relevant standards and provide advice on solutions and compliance of current systems.
Is able to advocate for information management functionality when acquiring new technologies.

Executive / lead

Understands the need for information management functionality, and supports solutions to address gaps in existing business systems.
Understands the impacts of new and emerging technologies and ensures information management functionality is considered when acquiring new technologies.

Interoperability

Foundation

Is aware of semantic, technical, legal and business interoperability components.
Is aware of the benefits when information and data can be found, managed, shared and reused easily and efficiently.

Practitioner / skilled operational

Is able to contribute to organisational wide initiatives to develop semantic, technical, legal and business interoperability.
Is able to map between system structures that enable interoperability, such as information architectures, data models and metadata schemas.
Is aware of data integration and data exchange methods and protocols, such as APIs.

Management / specialist

Is able to implement improvements across semantic, technical, legal and business interoperability.
Is able to assess interoperability needs based on internal/external demands for enterprise information.
Is able to plan for the resources required to implement interoperability.
Understands data integration and data exchange methods and protocols, such as APIs.

Executive / lead

Understands the need for interoperability based on evidence of internal/external demands for information and data exchange.
Is able to drive interoperability using information and data governance mechanisms.
Is able to support and resource interoperability projects.

Cloud computing

Foundation

Is aware of the use of cloud infrastructure as a service (IaaS), platform as a service (PaaS) and software as a service (SaaS) and how they can be deployed.

Practitioner / skilled operational

Understands the use of cloud infrastructure as a service (IaaS), platform as a service (PaaS) and software as a service (SaaS) and how they can be deployed.
Is able to implement strategies that mitigate risks to information and data in cloud environments.

Management / specialist

Is able to contribute to the selection of cloud infrastructure as a service (IaaS), platform as a service (PaaS) and software as a service (SaaS).
Is able to advise on relevant information and data legislation and policies, and implement strategies to ensure information and data integrity, reliability and security.

Executive / lead

Understands the use of cloud infrastructure as a service (IaaS), platform as a service (PaaS) and software as a service (SaaS).
Is able to provide input into cloud strategies to ensure information and data integrity, reliability and security.

Data capabilities for information management professionals

Data governance

Foundation

Is aware of the need for data governance to protect the privacy, accuracy and the ethical use of data, including protecting data against harm, re-identification, inaccuracy and unauthorised access.
Is able to follow procedures to resolve data related issues.

Practitioner / skilled operational

Understands the privacy and ethical implications of sourcing, managing and controlling data, including protecting data against harm, re-identification, inaccuracy and unauthorised access.
Is able to implement policies and procedures to resolve data related issues.
Is able to monitor compliance with data policies, standards and architecture.

Management / specialist

Is able to develop policies and procedures to protect privacy, accuracy and the ethical use of data.
Understands the links between data governance, information governance and other aspects of corporate governance.
Is able to develop, monitor compliance and enforce data policies, standards, frameworks and architecture.
Is able to plan and oversee data management projects, services and coordinate data governance activities.

Executive / lead

Understands strategic enterprise data needs and data governance strategy and is able to support data governance initiatives.
Understands that data governance is fundamental to information governance.
Is able to identify and resource professional data roles, including data stewards.

Data literacy

Foundation

Understands that good business decisions rely on identifying, locating, interpreting and evaluating a range of information and data sources.

Practitioner / skilled operational

Is able to identify, locate, interpret and evaluate a range of information and data types in an ethical manner, and then use that information to respond to specific questions or issues.

Management / specialist

Is able to provide direction on authoritative sources of information and data for research and analysis activities.
Is able to ensure privacy and ethical considerations have been met prior to sharing or publishing information and data.

Executive / lead

Is able to champion data literacy by supporting and resourcing appropriate tools and continual professional development for research and analysis.
Understands privacy and ethical implications for sharing information and ensures that safeguards are in place to protect it.

Data analysis

Foundation

Is able to identify different data sources, types, formats and structures.
Understands data analysis and data modelling techniques to establish, modify or maintain a data structure and its associated components.

Practitioner / skilled operational

Is able to apply data analysis, data modelling and quality assurance techniques based upon a detailed understanding of business processes to establish, modify or maintain data structures and associated components.
Is able to provide advice to database designers and application developers on the details of data structures and associated components.

Management / specialist

Is able to investigate corporate data requirements, and apply data analysis, data modelling and quality assurance techniques to establish, modify or maintain data structures and their associated components.

Executive / lead

Is able to set standards for data analysis tools and techniques and ensures compliance.
Understands the link between corporate data requirements and the need to establish, modify or maintain data structures and their associated components.

Data quality management

Foundation

Understands data quality issues, requirements and the need to audit data.

Practitioner / skilled operational

Is able to develop and promote data quality awareness, requirements, analysis, metrics and business rules.
Is able to assess, clean and correct data quality defects using relevant tools and programming languages.

Management / specialist

Is able to set, test, measure, evaluate and validate data quality requirements, issues and service levels.
Is able to design, implement and monitor operational DQM procedures and performance.
Understands data audit approaches using relevant tools and programming languages.

Executive / lead

Is able to promote data quality awareness.
Understands data audit techniques and approaches.
Oversees data audits in complex settings.

Data architecture

Foundation

Is aware of enterprise information needs and contributes to the maintenance of the enterprise data model.

Practitioner / skilled operational

Understands enterprise information needs, and is able to maintain the enterprise data model by analysing and aligning with other business models.
Is able to maintain data delivery architecture, including data integration, data warehousing, business intelligence, enterprise taxonomies and metadata architecture.

Management / specialist

Is able to determine enterprise information needs, develop and manage the enterprise data model by analysing and aligning with other business models.
Is able to develop, manage and provide advice on data delivery architecture, including data integration, data warehousing, business intelligence, enterprise taxonomies and metadata architecture.

Executive / lead

Understands enterprise information needs and the importance of adequately resourcing their development and management.
Understands and supports the development and maintenance of the enterprise data model.

Database design and data modelling

Foundation

Is aware of database concepts and data modelling principles.
Is able to assist in database management system support activities for operational database systems.

Practitioner / skilled operational

Is able to analyse data requirements to establish, modify or maintain data models.
Is able to implement database design principles and data modelling techniques based on policies and standards.

Management / specialist

Is able to provide advice on database concepts, data modelling techniques and design principles.
Is able to manage and provide advice on database architectures, software and facilities.
Is able to manage and guide data requirements gathering exercises to establish, modify or maintain a data model.

Executive / lead

Is able to develop strategies for database technology.
Is able to support the development, use or operation of database management system tools and facilities.
Understands how database design and data modelling assist the organisation to support business outcomes.

Reference and master data management

Foundation

Is aware of reference and master data integration needs.

Practitioner / skilled operational

Is able identify reference and master data sources and integration needs, and implement appropriate solutions.
Is able to define and maintain hierarchies and affiliations to enable interoperability.

Management / specialist

Is able to collaborate on master data management solutions and data integration architecture that enable improved interoperability.

Executive / lead

Is able to support the development, use and maintenance of reference and master data.
Understands quality reference and master data enables efficient exchange across systems and improves interoperability.

Data tools and programming

Foundation

Is aware of mainstream programming languages, data science and analytical tools.
Understands programming languages and is able to use basic programming skills in current demand.

Practitioner / skilled operational

Understands a wide range of contemporary data science and analytical tools and is competent in at least one.
Understands programming languages and is able to use basic to intermediate programming skills in current demand.
Is able to implement and support data technology management including defining requirements, evaluating, installing and administering usage and issues.

Management / specialist

Understands a wide range of contemporary data science and analytical tools and has high level expertise using at least one.
Understands programming languages and is able to use advanced programming skills in current demand.
Is able to support data technology management including defining requirements, evaluating, installing and maintaining data technology licences.

Executive / lead

Understands a wide range of contemporary data science and analytical tools.
Is able to manage staff that use advanced technical skills and critical analysis to determine issues and solve complex problems in data technology management.

Capabilities for information management professionals

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Capabilities for information management professionals

Data capabilities for information management professionals