# Data governance programs: roles, stewardship and controls

*Platform Data Architect Study Guide · Data Governance · Last updated October 26, 2026 · https://www.certifyforce.com/study-guide/platform-data-architect/data-governance/data-governance-programs-roles-stewardship-and-controls*

How governance differs from stewardship, who the steward, custodian, data owner and governance group are, what a data management strategy must answer, how classification tiers and Data 360 tags drive controls, and which Shield product meets which governance requirement under the shared responsibility model.

- Certification: Salesforce Platform Data Architect
- Exam section: Data Governance
- Study guide: https://www.certifyforce.com/study-guide/platform-data-architect

**Official exam objective:**

> Compare and contrast various approaches and considerations for designing and implementing an enterprise data governance program.

## What the exam expects

- Contrast data governance (rules and policies) with data stewardship (roles and activities that enforce them).
- Assign steward, custodian, data owner and governance group responsibilities, and recommend a submission, review and approval process for data changes.
- Name the questions a data management strategy must answer: volume and growth, duplicates, ownership, access, encryption, archive.
- Map classification tiers to concrete controls, and plan Data 360 tagging: priorities, tag hierarchy, Suggest Tags and propagation.
- Pick the Shield product for a governance requirement and explain the shared responsibility model.

Key terms: **data governance** (rules and policies for reliable, compliant data); **data stewardship** (tactical roles that ensure adherence); **data custodian** (IT partner who knows how data is stored and accessed); **taxonomy** (complete hierarchy of tags); **shared responsibility model** (Salesforce secures the platform, you secure what you build on it).

## Key facts

| Fact | Detail | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Data steward | Owns data quality within governance processes | [Effective Data Management](https://trailhead.salesforce.com/content/learn/modules/scalability-with-salesforce/manage-data-at-scale-with-salesforce) |
| Data custodian | IT partner: storage, structure, access | [Effective Data Management](https://trailhead.salesforce.com/content/learn/modules/scalability-with-salesforce/manage-data-at-scale-with-salesforce) |
| Governance group | Regular meetings, submission, review and approval | [Effective Data Management](https://trailhead.salesforce.com/content/learn/modules/scalability-with-salesforce/manage-data-at-scale-with-salesforce) |
| Field Usage | Doesn't hide or expose the field; BusinessStatus in FieldDefinition | [Data Classification](https://help.salesforce.com/s/articleView?id=platform.data_classification_metadata_fields.htm&language=en_US&type=5) |
| Child tag | Automatically applies its parent tag | [Data Governance Strategy](https://trailhead.salesforce.com/content/learn/modules/data-cloud-data-governance-strategies/design-your-governance-strategy) |
| Suggest Tags | Reads metadata only; admin approves | [Data Governance Strategy](https://trailhead.salesforce.com/content/learn/modules/data-cloud-data-governance-strategies/design-your-governance-strategy) |
| Field Audit Trail | Up to 200 fields per object, kept until deleted | [Field Audit Trail](https://help.salesforce.com/s/articleView?id=xcloud.field_audit_trail.htm&language=en_US&type=5) |
| Event Monitoring | Who is accessing data and how | [Shield](https://help.salesforce.com/s/articleView?id=sf.salesforce_shield.htm&language=en_US&type=5) |
| Classic Encryption | Custom text fields only | [Trust](https://architect.salesforce.com/docs/architect/well-architected/guide/trust.html) |

## Check yourself

- Why does a governance program need stewardship as well as policies?
- When is manual Data 360 tagging the right choice?
- Which Field Usage value flags a field planned for retirement without changing what users see?
- Why isn't a Restricted label alone enough protection?

## Sources

- [Effective Data Management Strategies](https://trailhead.salesforce.com/content/learn/modules/scalability-with-salesforce/manage-data-at-scale-with-salesforce)
- [Develop a Comprehensive Strategy for Data Governance](https://trailhead.salesforce.com/content/learn/modules/data-cloud-data-governance-strategies/design-your-governance-strategy)
- [Trust (Well-Architected)](https://architect.salesforce.com/docs/architect/well-architected/guide/trust.html)
- [Salesforce Shield](https://help.salesforce.com/s/articleView?id=sf.salesforce_shield.htm&language=en_US&type=5)
- [Data Classification Metadata Fields](https://help.salesforce.com/s/articleView?id=platform.data_classification_metadata_fields.htm&language=en_US&type=5)
- [Field Audit Trail](https://help.salesforce.com/s/articleView?id=xcloud.field_audit_trail.htm&language=en_US&type=5)
- [Shield Platform Encryption Best Practices](https://help.salesforce.com/s/articleView?id=sf.security_pe_best_practices.htm&language=en_US&type=5)
- [Data Detect](https://help.salesforce.com/s/articleView?language=en_US&id=sf.einstein_data_detect.htm&type=5)

## About the full unit

The "Core concepts", "Exam traps" and "Worked scenario" sections of this unit, its 13 linked practice questions, and unlimited timed mock exams are included with the Platform Data Architect pack (USD $19): https://www.certifyforce.com/practice-exams