What to consider when outsourcing data management

Data is growing at a phenomenal rate and due to the wide variety, volume and velocity of data, organisations may be unaware of how scattered their data is. Companies will have data spread across multiple media channels ranging from social media to internal data storage. Some of the biggest challenges organisations are facing are around being unsure of where their data is stored and collating that data in order to gain useful insights from it.

If your company works with big data and you are looking to outsource your data management, whether you lack the expertise and infrastructure in house, are dealing with high management costs or need around the clock support, here are the key factors you should consider when outsourcing data management.

Data management expertise

One of the key reasons organisations will look to outsource is because they do not have the resources in-house and it can be incredibly time-consuming and costly to hire a team of data engineers. When looking to outsource you need to ensure that your data management service provider has the right talent with the right skillset and expertise to effectively manage your data. At Ardent, our engineers have skills in various leading data technologies and have a proven track record of successful data projects, from moving different data sets from databases to the cloud to building robust data pipelines.

Data platform technologies

One of the greatest benefits of outsourcing data management will be the access you will have to experienced data engineers that have worked with a variety of data platform technologies. Therefore, the key consideration points should be whether the data management provider has worked with and has access to major data platform technologies such as AWS Redshift or Microsoft Azure. If you are data is stored on AWS, then you will require platform-specific skill sets. At Ardent, we use technologies best suited to the client, their business and data and ensure that our clients are not limited to just one technology.

Data Storage

Where your data is stored will impact your decision on the type of data management provider you work with. Whether your data is stored on-premise, on the cloud, in a hybrid environment, or in a multi-cloud environment, you will have to find the right type of provider with data engineers that have the experience to manage your data effectively. For example, at Ardent our data engineers have managed data on behalf of clients that is stored on various storage solutions, from hybrid private and public cloud solutions to those stored in a multi-cloud environment.

Data security

Data security is key when handling any type of data. You will need to find a data management partner that takes data security seriously. What measures do they have in place to deal with data risks? Have they invested in acquiring any data security certifications? For example, Ardent is an ISO 27001 certified company and follows industry best practices when handling data whether that is in house or client data.

Benefits of outsourcing data management

There are a great number of benefits of outsourcing data management, and they include:

• Industry knowledge – if a company has a significant amount of experience working with similar scale and types of data, they can make recommendations and provide industry knowledge to help you improve and streamline your data further.
• Cost-effective – organisations will save both time and resources in recruitment when outsourcing data management.
• Visibility and accessibility – a good data management company will ensure that the end-user has visibility and accessibility to data quickly and efficiently. For example, Ardent has worked with a client to optimise data queries with Amazon Athena on large sets of data and has reduced the search time by a considerable amount. 
• Scalability – Ensure that you work with a company that can manage your data with scalability in mind. With data continuously growing, scalability needs to be the top priority. At Ardent, we work with leading data technologies that enable scalability for our clients. 
• Organised data – The majority of data you deal with will be unstructured, making it complex and unhelpful. A good data management partner can ensure that your data is structured and organised for ease of access and to gain useful insights.

Mitigating risks of outsourcing data management 

There are some risks to take into consideration when it comes to outsourcing:

• Loss of control – this is the biggest factor to consider. Some organisations may be hesitant to give up the control they have over their data. However, the key solution to this is to find a credible, trusted and reliable partner. For example, at Ardent we pride ourselves on being the partner that clients can rely on and have trust in. This is through experience in the industry, providing client testimonials, acquiring industry accreditations and much more.
• Data security risks – There can be huge repercussions for organisations that do not do their utmost to ensure data safety. Therefore, when it comes to outsourcing your data management partner will need to have robust data security measures in place to mitigate the risks.

Ardent data management services

Ardent’s highly skilled and experienced data engineers have worked with a wide variety of clients to deliver secure, scalable and streamlined data services. We invest in our people and world-leading data technologies to deliver excellence. If you are looking to outsource your data management, then get in touch to find out how we can help.