Challenges and Enablers for GDPR Compliance: Systematic Literature Review and Future Research Directions

Compliance with the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) or related laws by organizations could require organizational and technological changes. This topic has gained significant attention from management and scholars alike. Although the literature presents some reviews and research articles discussing challenges and enablers for GDPR compliance, they are often scattered and fragmented. One particular challenge is the implementation roadmap gap that arises when using ISO-based standards for compliance in isolation. On the other hand, as enablers for compliance, it raises the potential use of information governance (IG) and enterprise architecture management (EAM) disciplines. This research aims to provide a systematic literature review of the challenges and enablers for GDPR compliance and address this gap. The findings include a categorized list of challenges and enablers, a strategy for bridging the roadmap gap using IG and EAM, and the development of five propositions based on some challenges and enablers around this gap. Moreover, the study proposes a research agenda that includes conceptual work to build an IG-EAM framework, empirical research to verify those propositions, and developing new hypotheses stemming from the review’s challenges and enablers. These contributions enhance the body of knowledge providing practical insights for organizations striving for GDPR compliance.