Research Data Management is the care and maintenance of the data that is produced during the course of a research cycle. It is an integral part of the research process and helps to ensure that your data is properly organized, described, preserved, and shared.
Funding agencies (especially the federal government) are increasingly requiring data to be made publicly available and requiring the creation and execution of a Data Management Plan (DMP), which is a formal document that states what you will do with the data during and after your research project.