Five Essential Documents to Effectively Manage Your Donor Data

Data is a resource that has the power to change an organization.

Your data deserves strategic oversight and management to effectively contribute to your fundraising success.

Without documented accountability and well-defined expectations, your data fails to live up to its full potential.

The result: revenue loss.

To expect more from your data, these are five essential documents you need to effectively manage your donor data:

1. Data Strategy
2. Data Collection Process
3. Data Classification System
4. Data Integrity Checklist
5. Data Retention Policy

Develop a Data Strategy

A job description articulates the duties and responsibilities of a role. A data strategy is essentially that – a job description for the data you use.

Without a data strategy, there isn’t understanding of how you will use the data and what role it plays in your overall strategy.

Establish a Data Collection Process

When recruiting a candidate for a role, you may find a great person internally or you may have to post the role externally. Sometimes you might even need the assistance of a recruitment agency.

The same can be said of acquiring data. Internal data sources may already exist that would offer strategic insights. Maybe, you need to source data externally to support strategy.

A documented data collection process will help acquire data in an organized and systematic fashion.

Define your Data Through Data Classification

Data cannot perform at its full potential if there isn’t consensus on how it is defined.

Documenting definitions for various data points, identifying what fields will store specific data points and classifying each data point will ensure clarity of understanding of your data.

Consistently Conduct Data Integrity Checks

How exactly is or isn’t your data meeting expectations? A standard review, conducted on a consistent basis will help identify specifically where are the inconsistencies, inaccuracies and incomplete data.

A data integrity checklist and schedule will support better performance of your data.

Know When to Let go of Data

Data is dynamic in nature. Specific data points may become irrelevant. Government legislation or cultural shifts may make it unethical or illegal to continue collecting and storing certain data points.

It’s important to determine how to say goodbye to the data in a way that acknowledges the contributions it has made to the mission of the organization while safely removing it. A data retention policy will help you to know when and how to let go of data.

Intentional management of data is what it will take to build trust in your data. Otherwise, you are simply tolerating poor performance.