Who Actually Owns Your Team's Data?

Who really owns that data

Every assessment, every climate survey, every piece of physical performance data generates information about a specific person. Few organisations have stopped to ask who actually owns that data, and what they can or cannot do with it over time.

• Talent data isn't just an organisational asset, it's also information about real people.
• Collecting data without explaining what it will be used for erodes trust even when the intention is good.
• Who owns the data matters as much as who analyses it: it defines what can be done with it, and who decides.

Hoarding information without governance

In the rush to digitise people management, many organisations have started collecting more data than they know how to interpret, and often more than the people being assessed realise they're sharing. A personality test taken three years ago is still sitting in a dashboard nobody has revisited with the person it belongs to.

In sport the issue is even more visible: wristbands, sensors and apps log physiological and performance data for every player, yet a clear policy on who can access it, how long it's kept, or what happens to it when a player moves clubs, rarely exists.

• Assessment data kept for years without the person even knowing it's still there.
• Physiological and performance information shared across departments with no clear access criteria.
• People who have never seen their own full report, even though the organisation uses it to make decisions about them.

Ownership, access and trust travel together

Our position is clear: data belongs, first and foremost, to the person who generates it. The organisation has the right to use it to make better decisions, but that right comes with obligations: transparency about what is collected, why, and for how long.

This isn't only an ethical matter, it's a practical one too. Organisations that are transparent about their talent data gain something no tool can buy: people who trust the process and engage with it honestly, instead of trying to give the answer they think is expected of them.

How to clarify data owners and uses

Bringing order to talent data ownership doesn't require a legal revolution, it requires a handful of clear decisions.

1. Explain what data will be used for before collecting it
   • No one should complete a test or survey without knowing what will happen with their answers.
   • The explanation should be in plain language, not in the small print.
2. Give each person access to their own information
   • Whoever generates the data has the right to see it, understand it and, where relevant, question it.
   • This also reduces the feeling of being assessed behind closed doors.
3. Set a retention period and stick to it
   • Decide how long it makes sense to keep an assessment or a performance record before it loses validity.
   • Delete or refresh the information once that period passes, rather than letting it pile up indefinitely.
4. Limit internal access based on real need
   • Not everyone in the organisation needs to see everyone's data.
   • Define who can access what, and why, before opening the dashboard to the whole leadership team.

Governance questions before the next dashboard

Before you keep collecting data about your talent, it's worth asking:

• Does every person in your organisation know exactly what data you hold on them and what it's used for?
• Could someone access their own assessment report today, if they asked for it?
• Do you have a clear rule for how long to keep a piece of data before it loses relevance?
• Who inside the organisation has access to which data, and is that access justified?
• What would happen to your team's trust if your data policy became public tomorrow?

Let's map your people data together

This isn't about collecting less information, it's about collecting it with clear rules and treating it with the same respect owed to the people who generate it.

If you'd like to review how you currently manage your talent data, let's talk. It's a conversation that usually brings more clarity than expected.