As the leading source of financing for U.S. mortgage lenders, the Federal National Mortgage Association, or Fannie Mae, generates and uses a significant amount of data. Yet, the government-sponsored enterprise found itself in a position several years ago with an organizational view of data as merely a byproduct of its financial business. The challenge was how to turn data into an asset.

The shift in thinking was motivated by the need for the right data at the right time that met key governance requirements.

“You have to change your way of thinking from, ‘I’m going to limit the number of business intelligence tools that my users can take advantage of’ to supporting them to use whatever tools they want,” said Kevin Bates (pictured), vice president of enterprise data strategy execution at Fannie Mae. “It’s very challenging; there’s a lot of new tools and technologies involved.”

Bates spoke with Jeff Frick (@JeffFrick), host of theCUBE, SiliconANGLE Media’s mobile livestreaming studio, during the Corinium Chief Analytics Officer event in San Francisco. They discussed how Fannie Mae is working to improve data accessibility for its key analytics staff and improving the customer experience while meeting compliance standards.

New tools for high-level analysts

To create a new information management approach, Fannie Mae built an enterprise data warehouse for the first time and created a centralized data group. This was an important change for Fannie Mae as it focused on meeting the data needs for its high-level analysts.

“We still have all the Ph.D.s, and they still really call the shots,” Bates said. “The big change we’re trying to make now is to present the data in a common platform where they really can take it and run with it.”

In addition to its internal analytics needs, Fannie Mae needed to improve the usability of its customer interface to deliver necessary data while meeting strict financial compliance requirements.

“If we can have ‘implied governance’ in the platform, and then allow the customers to self-serve off of that platform, governance becomes that universal good, that thing that allows you to be confident that you can take the data and innovate,” Bates concluded.

Watch the complete video interview below, and be sure to check out more of SiliconANGLE’s and theCUBE’s coverage of the Corinium Chief Analytics Officer event.

Photo: SiliconANGLE