Microsoft Purview · Unified Catalog Governance

Data Steward

Create, update, and read artifacts and policies within governance domain. Read artifacts from other domains.

Scope: Full curation access within assigned domain, read access across domains

Permissions

  • Create and manage glossary terms within domain
  • Create and update critical data elements (CDEs)
  • Define business objectives and key results (OKRs)
  • Manage data products and their metadata
  • Configure access policies within domain
  • Read and reference artifacts from other governance domains
  • Curate business metadata and documentation

Common use cases

  • Business glossary curator maintaining terminology standards
  • Data governance analyst defining critical data elements
  • Domain SME documenting business concepts and definitions
  • Metadata specialist enriching data product documentation
  • Business analyst creating domain-specific glossaries
  • Data steward coordinating definitions across business units

Best practices

  • Establish glossary term standards and naming conventions
  • Link glossary terms to data products and assets
  • Coordinate with stewards in other domains on shared concepts
  • Regular review and update of business definitions
  • Involve business stakeholders in glossary development
  • Document term lineage and relationships
  • Create critical data elements for regulatory compliance
  • Use OKRs to align data governance with business goals

Security considerations

  • Broader permissions than Data Product Owner
  • Can create policies affecting domain access
  • Should coordinate with domain owner on major changes
  • Cross-domain read access enables better coordination
  • Assign to trusted domain experts with business judgment

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