How to infuse automation with data governance to thrive in a regulated world
Without regulations, would you and your assets always be safe and protected? In my opinion, in the same way that laws are there to protect, regulations help safeguard the individual, groups, organizations and even society as a whole.
But safeguards do not come without a cost. Looking at just the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), potential administrative fines can reach EUR20 million or up to four percent of total worldwide annual sales revenue for the preceding financial year, whichever is higher. Despite penalties, 59 percent of executives surveyed by IBM see GDPR as an occasion for transformation or a spark for new data-led business models.
The ever-evolving regulatory landscape
For many, the emergence of multiple regulations can represent a huge compliance burden on their business. From one regulation to another, a company needs experts who understand the context, policy, rules and consequences for their business. This represents a challenge to businesses, and does not necessarily contribute to its bottom line.
Furthermore, things can change quickly. The pace of change in society – and particularly the impact of technology on almost every aspect of our daily lives – means what was legislated even five years ago may not keep pace with new risks that arise today. As a result, regulatory bodies are constantly updating the requirements that guide business practice.
Regulations can be protection mechanisms that may ensure economic viability, serving as a cap on allowable risk, promoting an acceptable quality of service, and ensuring reasonable pricing—thus ensuring overall economic stability. To comply with changing regulations, data governance is a key starting point for an organization. Having their “house in order” allows companies to find the right data when required by regulation. Without the ability to understand the whereabouts of information, its semantic overlap and value, as well as its accuracy, no business could reasonably hope to be able to provide proof of compliance.
Accelerating regulatory preparedness through AI
In many instances, companies must provide accurate reporting of their business results, and how those reports have been calculated. For these regulatory needs, businesses require a clear understanding and evaluation of their data landscape.
To help solve the time-consuming and potentially error prone manual processes when companies try to understand, react, and plan for new regulations, IBM recently announced the availability of IBM InfoSphere Regulatory Accelerator (IIRA).
IIRA is an AI-powered regulatory on-ramp which helps businesses comply with a variety of regulations, and is available as an add-on to IBM Cloud Pak for Data (ICP for Data, formerly IBM Cloud Private for Data).
IIRA on ICP for Data can help a business explore the requirements of a regulation. It can help bring the regulation into an organization’s sphere of operation and understanding. Adapting to continuous change of regulations, IIRA on ICP for Data can provide a level of automation with oversight.
Regulations can be a complex mechanism to safeguard the interests of people, governments and organizations, helping provide a platform for the greater benefit of all stakeholders. IBM is committed towards ethical and responsible advancement of AI technologies as illustrated in our AI principles and in our broader data responsibility platform. By harnessing the power of AI, businesses can keep up with the changing regulatory scope and impact to the operations. And by demonstrating their respect for the rights that regulations serve to uphold, companies can help build brand value and loyalty across their customer base.