Data Management

Question 1

How long do you need to keep data for?

Answer 1

6 years if contract is underhand
12 years if executed as a deed
RICS recommends up to 15 years as this is the limitation period for most claims

Question 2

What are some sources of pricing data available?

Answer 2

• BCIS
• Pricing books such as spon’s
• Benchmarking
• In-house records and databases

Question 3

What is BCIS

Answer 3

• Building Cost Information Service
• Provides cost data for the UK construciton industry
• Part of RICS

Question 4

What is the Data Protection Act?

Answer 4

• It controld how personal information is used and stored by businesses and the government
• Is essentially the implementation of the General Data Protection Regulations (GDPR)

Question 5

What is GDPR?

Answer 5

• EU regulation on data protection and privacy, including the transfer and storage of personal data.
• Created to provide consistent regulation between european companies on how data is handled and greater protection of personal data rights of individuals
• In resonse to social trends and call for reform. Fines and reputation penalties for non-conformance.

Question 6

Who are the key persons identified within GDPR?

Answer 6

• Data Controller: Decides what information to collect and how that will be sued
• Data Collector: The person resonsible for collecting and processing data on behalf of the controller and according to their instructions
• Data Subject: Individual whom the data is about
• Data Protection Office: Perosn appointed to guarantee compliance for the organisation without replacing the function of the supervisory/regulatory authority.

Question 7

Who enforces GDPR?

Answer 7

In the first instance the Data Protection Officer should enforce GDPR within an organisation.
Externally GDPR is enforced by the Information Commissioner’s Office

Question 8

What is the Freedom of Information Act?

Answer 8

Provides public access to information held by public authorities, either by:
- Requiring public authorities to publish certain infromation
- Allowing members of the public to request information

Question 9

What is an information barrier?

Answer 9

A physical or electronic seperation of individuals within the same firm with the aim to protect confidential information

Question 10

What measures could be taken to protect commercially sensitive infomprmation?

Answer 10

• Non disclosure agreements
• Information barriers
• Physical securing of infomration, locked filing cabinets, rooms, encrypted or password protected electronic files