Enhancing Data Governance and Streamlining Information Management for a Global Healthcare Organization

The Client & Industry

Global healthcare – biopharmaceutical solutions

Highlights

• 600 TB: Initial file share environment assessed
• 500 TB: General business-related data identified
• 245 TB: Unnecessary data successfully disposed of
• 116 Million Files: Redundant or irrelevant files eliminated
• 50 TB: Orphaned server data cleaned up
• 1 Information Governance Council: Established with cross-functional leadership

The Challenge

The client faced a growing information challenge due to acquisitions of multiple companies, which led to a fragmented data landscape. This created inefficiencies in managing, retaining, and governing critical data across their environments.

They found themselves with a significant amount of data across different repositories, often residing in silos with no clear understanding of what data was where and whether it was relevant. This data included a variety of file types, from documents, spreadsheets, to executables and media files, many of which were outdated, redundant, or irrelevant. The challenge was compounded by a lack of clarity around retention requirements and how to ensure that data complied with legal and regulatory obligations across different regions.

The immediate issue was a lack of visibility and tracking into where their data resided, who owned it, and what should be retained or disposed of. Without this clarity, managing and securing data effectively while complying with retention regulations was becoming increasingly difficult.

Solutions

The project yielded significant improvements in data management and governance:

• Data Cleanup: The client successfully disposed of approximately 245 terabytes of unnecessary data, including over 116 million files. Another 50 terabytes of orphaned server data was also cleaned up.
• Increased Data Accessibility: By migrating data to SharePoint, the client was able to improve access to critical information, enabling the use of AI-driven tools to derive value from their operational data.
• Regulatory Compliance: The organization now adheres to proper retention schedules and regulatory requirements, ensuring that clinical data and sensitive information are securely stored and disposed of in compliance with laws.
• Operational Efficiency: The organization has a clearer understanding of its data, enabling better decision-making and more streamlined workflows across departments.
• Improved Collaboration: The migration to SharePoint improved collaboration across the organization, breaking down silos that had existed due to disparate data storage solutions.
  

Conclusion

The project has been an ongoing success, with the organization continuously refining its data governance processes. By partnering with Thrivence, the client has significantly improved its ability to manage, retain, and protect data in a manner that is compliant with regulatory requirements and optimized for future growth. The result is an agile, scalable data management framework that supports better decision-making, enables the use of advanced AI tools, and improves overall operational efficiency.