I’ve been researching how to manage projects where the goal is to make large amounts of data open, accessible, and useful.
All in Governance
10 Basic Suggestions for Planning and Managing Data Intensive Projects
It is also impossible for the project manager to ignore how data management and data governance are handled in the organization as a whole.
Managing Data-Intensive Programs and Projects: Selected Articles
I’ve created this special compendium of posts that are relevant to planning and managing data related programs and projects. There are four groups:
I heard David Lebryk of the U.S. Department of Treasury speak on Data Act implementation this morning at the Johns Hopkins/REI Systems Government Analytics Breakfast Forum in Washington DC.
Data Program Governance and the Success of Shared Digital Services
If the tip of the data management “spear” is analyzing data in new and interesting ways to help solve important problems, someone still has to manufacture the spear, carry it, and train throwers to hit the target.
Who Gets Credit for Open Data?
The lack of easily accessible source and context information might eventually become a problem. Public programs ultimately have to depend on public funding. If the public doesn’t know the data they rely on are coming from public sources – which they pay for with their taxes — how can they be expected to make intelligent decisions about which programs to fund?
Managing Open Transportation Data at the U.S. Department of Transportation
Such challenges are not unique to the Federal Government. All large organizations desiring to take a more strategic position in how data — the lifeblood of organization processes — are managed and released will have to address such governance issues.
Dashboarding Open Data Program Governance
A key feature of the Project Open Data effort being managed by OMB and OSTP is that so much of it is being conducted in the open using accessible resources such as shared documentation, a defined metadata schema, and use of GitHub for capturing comments and issues. Agencies that want to involve private sector vendors in their open date efforts should consider the use and management of such tools as a required part of program governance and oversight (as long as sufficient staff and resources are provided to manage such efforts, of course).
Pushing for standardization of such regulatory information will greatly enhance public access and transparency — as long as effective governance and sufficient resources are made available to support the process and the systems that provide public access.
Risk, Uncertainty, and Managing Big Data Projects
Anyone who practices project management for a living will recognize this list. It’s certainly not unique to big data analytics project. It is however reasonable to ask whether “big data” projects are unique in some way that exacerbates the probability of failure.
USAID’s “Frequently Asked Questions” and the Management of Open Data Programs
By itself, just documenting a process is never enough. Also needed is a sufficiently-resourced governance structure that supports program management in how systems and processes are changed and in how they operate.
Will NOAA’s “Big Data Partnership” be a Model for Other Government Agencies?
One thing that’s different with the NOAA data partnership program is not just its focus on making data available for access and exploitation via the cloud but the changing market environment in which it will be operating.
Observations and Questions about Open Data Program Governance
After this week’s call with Socrata’s Health Data Publishers Roundtable about working with data owners I put together a few thoughts to share with the group. Here are some observations along with a list of questions that I think deserve further discussion.
CityGram NYC: A Model for Open Data Efforts
At last night’s Open Data Enthusiasts meeting in Washington DC, Chris Whong of Socrata talked about the CityGram NYC system.
Getting Real About “Open Data” Part II
When it comes to the “open” data associated with the program, some users will want raw data to do their own thing, some will be satisfied with self-service tools that allow them to interact with the data in various structured or defined ways, and others will be more comfortable relying on the services of intermediaries that understand the data, the tools, and are qualified to interpret the information requirements of those they serve.
Making Open Data Accessible Inside the Firewall
Balance between control and autonomy will be critical and will vary by program size, complexity, structure, and maturity. Also critical will be how external and internal users of related data resources are supported when important distinctions related to privacy and security need to be maintained.
How To Make Datathons and Hackathons Sustainable
What’s a “datathon”? Here’s one suggested definition from NYU’s Institute for Public Knowledge:
When Federal Government Project Management Collides with the "New Normal"
Welcome to the New Normal world of the federal project manager. Shutdowns. Furloughs. Sequesters. Red tape. Delays, Retirements, Meetings.It’s not an easy task managing Federal IT projects these days.Not that it ever was. But now the problems are severe.
A Project Manager's Perspective on the GAO’s Federal Data Transparency Report
While improving data transparency for both financial and non-financial data is an important goal, any effort requiring an enterprise level shift in data formats or associated business processes can also require a substantial early peak in required resources. If in fact we need to delay implementing data transparency programs, perhaps we can use our time wisely by doing a more detailed job of research and planning.
Understanding How Open Data Reaches the Public
In the long run, traditional top-down efforts at management control may be insufficient to ensure that both agency goals and the potential benefits of open data access — including unanticipated cponsequences — are realized in an efficient and cost effective manner. While leadership by the Federal government’s IT infrastructure will be necessary, it will also be necessary to ensure that ongoing efforts to advance open data access are managed efficiently both across agencies and in accordance with individual agency and program priorities; IT staff cannot do this on their own and will have to work closely with agency management.