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Virginia LDS Data Governance

25th MIS Conference 2/16/12

Center for Innovative Technology

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SLDS Project Awarded in 2010 One key objective is to create a

portal and secure access to data merged across agencies

SLDS grant proposal was itself a multi-agency “project,” under direction from the Governor’s office

“Data Governance” is unique outcome within the proposal

CIT was contracted to project manage the Data Governance

Background

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Driven by Virginia’s Privacy Act◦ Consolidated Data Warehouse not Possible◦ Received Attorney General Approval

Respects agencies’ need to maintain their own data

No party can match the linked records back to identifiable data

Federated Model

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Data Partners

The VLDS is designed to be extensible and grow with the addition of new data partners

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State Council on Higher Education for Virginia – The coordinating body for higher education which serves the 39 Virginia public colleges and universities.

Virginia Employment Commission – Provides employer and job seeker services, unemployment benefits, and labor market information.

Virginia Department of Education – Serves 132 school divisions and over 1.2 million students in the K-12 system.

Current Data Partners

Virginia Community College System – System of 23 Virginia community colleges. Workforce Development Services provides workforce development courses, training, and programs.

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1 mo 2 mo 3 mo 4 mo 5 mo 6 mo 7 mo 8 mo 9 mo 10 mo

Data Governance Plan

DesignBuild

Run

Phase 1: Design – Conduct six workshops to define the exact scope of DG for the VLDS and outline how it will be executed.

Phase 2: Build – Once the DG scope and the priorities have been identified, it will take a six-month period to complete the build-out of VLDS Data Governance implementation.

Phase 3: Run – Upon completion of the DG processes and procedures build-out, there will be ongoing operation and execution required.

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CIT held six, half-day Data Governance workshops for the stakeholders to establish a shared understanding

Workshops were conducted weekly ◦ Workshop 1: February 16◦ Workshop 2: March 3◦ Workshop 3: March 10◦ Workshop 4: March 17◦ Workshop 5: March 24◦ Workshop 6: March 31

DG Workshops

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Workshop Topics

Workshop # 1: Data Governance Overview

• Agreed on Data Governance Definition • Started Data Governance Council Constitution• Identified Top Priorities of Data Governance for

VLDS

Workshop # 2: Deep Dive on Stakeholders and Roles

• Began Defining a Data Flow Diagram• Continue Refining Data Governance Council Constitution• Defined Key Categories of Stakeholders and Roles• Defined Key Components of a Data Stewardship

Program

Workshop # 3: Deep Dive on Risks and Challenges• Continue Work with Data Flow Diagram.• Draft Agreement for De-identifying First Level Data Elements.• Continue Identifying Potential Security Risks When Combining

Data Sets.• Define Policies And Procedures for Scaling Integration Efforts to

Mitigate Security/Risk Concerns.

Workshop # 4: Deep Dive on Policies and Procedures

• Definition and Establishment of Policies and Procedures• Level of Detail and Level of Effort Required

• VLDS Challenge – Lexicon

Workshop # 5: Standards, Documentation and Communication

• Communications and Publishing Methodology• Components of Document Management and Content

Management • VLDS Challenge – Reporting

Workshop # 6: Scope of VLDS Tailored Data Governance Plan

Taking the Outputs of All Previous Workshops and Fashion Them Into an Agreed Scope / Set of Requirements for the Development and Implementation of a Customized VLDS Data Governance Plan

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Introduction 15 mins

Overview of Data Quality Framework 20 mins

Lexicon Discussion 20 mins

<Break>

Requirements Definition◦ Data Usage Agreement 30 mins◦ Review list of data governance policies and procedures 45

minsto identify which are relevant, in place ,and needed for LDS

project

Next Steps 30 mins

Workshop Sample Agenda

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Strengths◦ It was essential to provide everyone with a

baseline knowledge of and distinctions between DG, systems governance, and policy governance

◦ Quickly discovered what components of traditional DG would and would not work for our unique, federated model

◦ Got to know each other better which facilitated team-building and to forge ahead as a team with common goals and shared game plan

Workshop Lessons Learned

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Limitations/Challenges◦ Weekly, 4-hour workshops were difficult to

maintain momentum◦ Process raised some critical issues that needed to

be resolved in the policy and system design◦ Gave agency staff a clearer understanding of the

time commitment required to complete the work and yet we still underestimated this commitment

Workshop Lessons Learned

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Identified Top Priority Items Establishing a Data Governance Council Drafting a Data Governance Constitution Listing of Top Research Questions

Developed Project Plan and Timeline Data Governance policies and procedures Systems Governance policies and

procedures Data sharing agreements

Workshop Outcomes and Deliverables

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Initially held Data Governance Council bi-weekly (3 months)

Moved to monthly meetings (4 months)

Starting 2012, Council is experimenting with bi-monthly meetings

DG Council Meetings

June

2018

YEAR2011

YEAR2012

July

Aug

Sept

Oct

Nov

Dec

Jan

Feb

Mar

Monthly

Bi-monthly

Bi-Weekly

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Established to supplement DG Council meetings, DG Council established topic-specific working committees

Tasked to complete work on action items outside of DG Council meetings

Subcommittees meet on as needed basis but typically hold monthly meetings

Subcommittees

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Role: Reviews topics/issues from the development

teams (CRM, Portal, Lexicon, Shaker, etc.)

Outcome: Agrees upon a recommended proposal to

address topics that will be presented to the DG Council for voting

Systems Governance

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Role: To research data standards that may be

relevant to the success of the VLDS

Outcome: Identify and recommend data standards and

policies to the DG Council Implementation of CEDS and other data

standards to increase the functionality and interoperability of the VLDS system

Data Standards

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Role: Develop a cross-agency supported proposal that

codifies the VLDS and defines the system mission and governance structure

Help identify ongoing sources of funding in order to sustain the VLDS after the end of the grant

Outcome: Full proposal that can be used to prepare draft

legislation that has full support of agency heads moving forward

Draft sustainability plan

Legislation and Sustainability

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Bi-weekly status reports DG Council meeting agendas and meeting

minutes Cross-agency data-sharing policies,

practices, and standards Development of a Data Governance model Ongoing “Book of Data Governance”

Deliverables Overview

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When: Members find common ground and politics through a shared

vision/goal or develop one as a first priority Members make significant time commitments to the Governance

process The DG documentation process is defined and leveraged to

maintain order and minimize rework Tasks are delegated (e.g., to subcommittees) in order to remain

efficient There is ongoing communication and participation of the

development teams DG processes are institutionalized but allow for adaptation and

evolution

“Data governance is as much about people as it is policies”

When is DG Working?

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Developing a cross-agency plan for shared governance and fiscal sustainability.

Preparing system governance documentation and integrating key components with policy governance work.

Creating communications and outreach materials (e.g., videos) to expand stakeholder support and “market” the VLDS in support of long-term sustainability.

Ongoing and Future Work

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Paul McGowanCenter for Innovative Technology

703.689.3070Paul.McGowan@cit.org

Deborah JonasVirginia Department of Education

804.225.2067Deborah.Jonas@doe.Virginia.gov

Contact