Imagine you are lost in the forest and your team members have different talents. By sharing resources and knowledge you’ll be able survive and even thrive in the wild. The same holds true for businesses. Data-driven collaboration can help companies of all sizes gain new insights, unlock potential and donor-advised funds make great strides.

Data sharing has become a key business practice in almost every industry. It can spur innovation, improve service to customers, and also create or enhance competitive advantages. However it’s not without risks and pitfalls.

Businesses must also be aware of potential legal issues to consider when creating their data-sharing procedures and policies. These issues could impact compliance, reputation and profit–and require careful attention and monitoring.

The first step in establishing data-sharing contracts and agreements that are clear and binding with all stakeholders and partners is to draft them. Then, organizations need to communicate and collaborate closely with them to ensure that everyone is on the same page with regards to the data that will be shared and how, and to solve any issues or concerns.

To protect sensitive data It is important to put in place solid security and data governance measures. These include encryption, authorization, and authentication techniques to protect against the unauthorized disclosure or access; strategies for pseudonymization and data anonymization to reduce the sensitivity of data and identifiability; and data analytics and governance to monitor and control access and use.