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Asset management — Guidance on the management of data assets

"Guidance on the management of data assets" is an international guidance standard, which provides guidance to organizations on factors to consider in increasing and sustaining the usefulness of data assets to meet asset management objectives, and by extension, organizational objectives.

The guidance standard broadly focuses on:

1. Definition of factors and the range of factors that can be generally applied to data across many types of assets in varied business contexts.
2. Definition of usefulness and guidance on how data assets become useful to an organization in relation to its objectives and in aligning asset management objectives with stated or unstated organizational objectives.
3. Definition of the types of value that data assets could hold and the types of stakeholders relevant to each type of value.
4. Alignment with other bodies of knowledge in relation to definition of key terms such as data asset, asset data, , data quality, data governance, etc.

This international standard applies to data assets supporting asset management objectives of organizations. It can be used for the management of data assets.

Enhancing the Application of Data in Asset Management, through ISO 55013

1. Introduction

Effective asset management helps organizations deliver value, improve efficiency, reduce costs, optimize resource utilization, and ensure sustainable business development. To assist organizations in achieving excellent asset management practices, ISO 55001 Asset management – Management systems - Requirements, developed by ISO/TC251, has played a crucial role.

Effective asset management is reliant on the effective use of data to support decision making. However, in the actual application process, fully leveraging and effectively managing data to further enhance the potential and value of the ISO 55001 standard is an important challenge that organizations face. To address this issue, ISO/TC 251 has developed ISO 55013 Asset management – Guidance on the management of data assets, aiming to provide more specific and detailed guidance to support and enhance the application and effectiveness of the ISO 55001 standard.

This article provides a comprehensive overview of the ISO 55013 standard and explains its importance in supporting the application of ISO 55001. We will first provide a general introduction to ISO 55013, explaining its background and purpose. Next, we will elaborate on understanding the support of ISO 55013 for the application of ISO 55001 and its significance for asset management practices. Furthermore, we will highlight how ISO 55013 supports and enhances the effective implementation of ISO 55001. Finally, we will look ahead and explore the prospects of ISO 55013 in supporting the application of ISO 55001 in asset management in the future.

2. Overview of ISO 55013

When it comes to asset management, the management of data becomes crucial. ISO 55013 is an international standard about data for asset management that provides guidance to organizations on effectively managing data to support the implementation and operation of asset management. It is mainly reflected in the following aspects:

1) ISO 55013 emphasizes the critical role of data in asset management decisions.

In modern organizations, decisions often rely on accurate and reliable data. Therefore, organizations need to ensure that they understand the quality of their data, can use and analyze this data effectively to make informed decisions, and understand where to improve the quality of data. ISO 55013 provides guidance to help organizations identify and assess the applicability of data and ensure its accuracy and reliability.

2) ISO 55013 emphasizes the importance of treating data as an asset.

Data is not just a resource that supports management activities; it has its own value and potential. By treating data as an asset and applying asset management principles and methods to manage data assets, organizations can sustainably improve the effectiveness of asset management.

While most of us will be familiar with the idea of data being used in operations and for decision-making, the concept of data assets may seem novel. However, if you have ever commissioned e.g. a marketing survey or a trends analysis report, you will know that the results of those activities have a value in their own right, and could have potential sales value to a 3rd party (or worse, to a competitor), in the same manner that a physical asset does, i.e. they are data assets. Today, through the Internet of Things (IoT) or Big Data, there is a rapid increase in the rate of collection and volume of data being collected. Such data has real marketplace value so needs to be managed via asset management processes, as a data asset.

As with physical assets, the value of a data asset may deteriorate with age. The rate of deterioration for a data asset is likely to be much higher than for a physical asset, due to it becoming outdated. Also, the ease by which a data asset can be changed, copied or transported means that significant consideration needs to be given to the protection and security of data assets. ISO 55013 provides guidance on these issues.

3) ISO 55013 guides organizations on how to manage data in asset management effectively.

It covers the life cycle management of data, including aspects such as data collection, storage, updates, and reviews as well as data extraction and analysis for decision-making. By effectively managing data, organizations can ensure its availability, consistency, and integrity, providing reliable support for asset management activities.

4) ISO 55013 also emphasizes the integration of data management with other management systems.

Organizations often need to apply multiple management systems simultaneously, such as quality management, environmental management, and information security management. ISO 55013 provides guidance to help organizations integrate data management with other management systems, achieving synergistic effects in overall management.

Overall, ISO 55013 provides specific guidance on data management to support the implementation and operation of asset management for organizations. It highlights the critical role of data in asset management decisions and provides principles, methods, and best practices for managing data. By following the guidance of ISO 55013, organizations can better manage data and improve the effectiveness of asset management.

3. Understanding the Support of ISO 55013 for the Application of ISO 55001

There is a close connection between ISO 55013 and ISO 55001 - ISO 55013 serves as an important supplement to ISO 55001, by providing guidance for asset data and the management of data assets. ISO 55001 is concerned with the establishment, implementation, maintenance, and improvement of asset management systems, including aspects such as the organization's asset management policy, objective setting, risk management, and performance evaluation.

ISO 55013, as a guidance standard, emphasizes the importance of data in asset management and provides good practices and principles for data management. Data is a critical component of asset management and is vital for effective decision-making and performance evaluation in asset management. ISO 55013 provides guidance to help organizations understand and manage data, ensuring data quality, consistency, and reliability to support the achievement of asset management objectives.

The scope of ISO 55013 includes the provision of guidance on the management of data assets, such as asset registers, asset histories, market data, customer data, and more. It also covers topics such as data quality management, methods for data improvement, data storage and protection, technological tools for data utilization, processes for data acquisition, data utilization, data preservation, data archiving, and data deletion. These topics complement the requirements of data, information, and processes in asset management addressed in ISO 55001.

In conclusion, there is a close connection between ISO 55013 and ISO 55001. This close connection ensures the comprehensiveness and effectiveness of the asset management system, providing reliable support for an organization's asset management activities.

4. Optimizing Asset Management - Enhancing ISO 55001 with the Application of ISO 55013

ISO 55013 plays a crucial role in supporting the application of ISO 55001, and its significance can be seen in the following aspects:

1) Managing Asset Data

ISO 55013 provides guidance to help organizations manage data related to asset management, including asset data and associated documented information, to ensure the effectiveness and availability of data. This is critical for the application of ISO 55001, as it requires organizations to establish and implement asset management systems. Reliable data support is crucial for effective asset management decisions and performance evaluations. ISO 55013 provides good practices and principles for managing asset data, ensuring proper data management within the asset management system.

2) Role of Data in Decision-Making

ISO 55013 emphasizes the importance of asset data in the decision-making process to support an organization in achieving its asset management objectives. This closely aligns with ISO 55001, as it requires organizations to establish decision-making processes and ensure that decisions are based on reliable information and data. ISO 55013 provides guidance on data management and data quality, ensuring the correct application of data in the decision-making process and enhancing the implementation effectiveness of ISO 55001.

3) Management of Data Assets

ISO 55013 offers guiding principles and methods to help organizations identify, manage, and protect collections of data that should be treated as data assets. This is crucial for the application of ISO 55001 as data assets are an integral part of the asset management system. ISO 55013 emphasizes the assessment of data assets, the application of asset management principles to data assets, and ensuring the interoperability and digital preservation of data assets. By following the guidance of ISO 55013, organizations can better manage data assets, ensuring that data assets are fully managed and effectively utilized alongside other assets, thus supporting the implementation of ISO 55001.

4) Relationship with ISO 55001 Requirements

There is a close connection and mutual support between ISO 55013 and ISO 55001. ISO 55001 requires organizations to establish and implement asset management systems, and for asset data ISO 55013 provides guidance about how to ensure asset data effectively supports asset management objectives. This means that the implementation of ISO 55013 is an integral part of the application of ISO 55001. By combining ISO 55001 and ISO 55013, organizations can establish a comprehensive asset management framework, ensuring that asset management activities and decisions are based on reliable data and information to achieve asset management performance objectives.

Therefore, ISO 55013 plays a vital role in supporting the application of ISO 55001 by providing guidance on asset data and data asset management, helping organizations better implement asset management systems.

5. Potential impact of ISO 55013 on implementation and future market of ISO 55001

ISO 55013 has significant potential in supporting the future application of ISO 55001, as evident in the following key aspects:

1) Data-Driven Decision-Making

ISO 55013 emphasizes the importance of asset data in the decision-making process. In the future, with the continuous development of technology, the capabilities of data acquisition and analysis will further improve, enabling organizations to better utilize data to support asset management decisions. ISO 55013 will continue to provide guidance to help organizations understand and manage data, ensuring data quality, consistency, and reliability to support organizations in achieving their asset management objectives.

2) Improvement in Data Asset Management

In the future, as data assets are expected to grow and evolve, organizations will need to manage data assets more effectively. ISO 55013 will continue to provide guidance to help organizations identify, manage, and protect data assets, ensuring the assessment of data assets, application of asset management principles, and ensuring interoperability and digital preservation of data assets.

3) Possible expansion of ISO 55001 market

ISO 55013 also focuses on the management of data assets, including aspects such as asset registration, asset history, market data, and customer data. Recognizing these data as data assets may also provide an opportunity to discover that what the data is about can be an asset as well to the organization. For example, in an e-commerce platform business, the trust relationships between suppliers, customers and the platform organization may be subject to asset management. This could lead to an expansion of the asset category and, by extension, the ISO 55001 market.

4) Data management certification based on ISO 55001

With the increasing emphasis and demand for data management, data management certification based on ISO 55001 will become one of the future trends. ISO 55013, as a guiding standard for data management, combined with ISO 55001, can provide organizations with a framework and approach for data management certification. In the future, organizations will be able to demonstrate compliance and advantages in data management for asset management through the combination of ISO 55001 and ISO 55013, further enhancing their competitiveness and credibility.

5) Impact of Technological Innovations

The principles in ISO 55013 are independent of technology. Still, with continuous technological innovations such as the Internet of Things (IoT), big data analytics, and artificial intelligence, the importance of data management in asset management will be further highlighted. ISO/TC 251 will continue to monitor the impact of technological innovations on data management and will update the guidance in ISO 55013 in a timely way, to adapt to the application requirements of emerging technologies, enabling organizations to better apply ISO 55001.

6. Conclusion

The application of ISO 55013 in asset management is of significant importance in enhancing the effectiveness and value of ISO 55001. Through the guidance provided by ISO 55013, organizations can better manage data related to asset management, ensuring the validity and availability of data, thereby supporting the decision-making process and achieving asset management objectives.

Furthermore, ISO 55013 also emphasizes the management of data assets, including the assessment, application of asset management principles, and ensuring interoperability and digital preservation of data assets. Through the application of ISO 55013, organizations can better understand and manage data, treating data as a valuable asset, and effectively utilize data to support decision-making, improve performance, and add value. In the future, data management certification based on ISO 55001 will become an important way for organizations to demonstrate compliance and advantages, and is expected to expand and deepen the existing ISO 55001 certification and assessment processes. Therefore, the application of ISO 55013 not only enhances the efficiency of asset management but also brings more development opportunities and competitive advantages to organizations.

By gaining a deep understanding of the ISO 55013 standard and its key role in the application of ISO 55001, we aim to provide valuable guidance and insights to organizations and professionals, helping them better apply the ISO 55001 standard, achieve excellent asset management practices, improve business performance, and achieve sustainable success. Let us together explore the essence of ISO 55013 and embark on the journey of optimizing asset management!

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See ISO 55013:2024.