Amazon Web Services, Google, IBM, Microsoft and other major tech giants have joined forces with the EDM Council -- a cross-industry trade association for data management and analytics -- to create the Cloud Data Management Capabilities (CDMC) framework.

More than 100 companies worked on the project, which involved developing a comprehensive set of cloud data management capabilities, standards and best practices for cloud, multi-cloud and hybrid-cloud implementations while also incorporating automated key controls for protecting sensitive data.

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"The EDM Council is honored to have facilitated the development of the CDMC framework to provide an auditable and certified cloud data management best practice available as a free license for all industries," said John Bottega, the president of the EDM Council. 

The CDMC was initially developed with the financial sector in mind but was expanded to include every industry. 

Evren Eryurek, the director of product management for data analytics at Google Cloud, said cloud acceleration has skyrocketed as companies of all sizes and industries become more reliant on data to drive transformation, forcing businesses to adapt quickly. 

"The speed at which businesses are able to respond to change is the difference between those that successfully navigate the future and those that get left behind," Eryurek said. "The CDMC framework is going to be a tremendous resource for companies as they continue to accelerate their digital transformation and reimagine their business through effectively leveraging the power of real-time data." 

The EDM Council noted that this is one of the few times when the four largest CSPs decided to work together on an initiative and added that their CDMC Workgroup spent about 18 months working on the project. Morgan Stanley and LSEG chaired the effort. 

The framework is split into six components, 14 capabilities and 37 sub-capabilities that help organizations manage their cloud deployments. 

Among the six components are data governance and accountability, cataloguing and classification, data accessibility and usage, data protection and privacy, data lifecycle and technical architecture.

Scott Mullins, Managing Director, Head of Worldwide Financial Services Business Development at Amazon Web Services, said the CDMC framework will be a valuable resource for accessing comprehensive and up-to-date best practices for data management.

The CDMC framework is available as a free license to EDM Council members and non-members alike. 

"A critical next hurdle for the global financial services industry is the adoption of a standard set of best practices regarding the management of data in multi-cloud environments, particularly controls to protect data privacy and to comply with regulations," said Rajiv Chodhari, IBM's CTO of financial services data & AI.

"The dramatic rise of cybercrime combined with increased scrutiny from regulators on financial institutions, as stewards of their clients' most sensitive data, makes a compelling case for significant investment and coordination in this space. The EDM Council has taken an important first step in aligning the financial services industry and its partners on these issues." 

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