Hi, Bret. How are you making out with this? I work on the GIS team in our IT department, and we support business units throughout the organization (municipal government), which has been in this process for over 5 years now, and we still don't have it all figured out. However, we have arrived at a few conclusions which might be useful to you:
Defining Core Principles:
- Data is a Corporate Asset
- Data is Accessible
- Data is Accurate
- Data is Secure
Defining Roles:
This was a key to "selling" data governance in general, and a centralized Asset Registry in particular, to senior management. Every dataset or group of datasets has three roles assigned to it: a Strategic Data Steward (SDS), Operational Data Steward (ODS) and Data Custodian (DC). The SDS is a senior manager within the relevant department, such as Parks & Recreation or Public Works, and is responsible for data governance outcomes - accountable for the quality and integrity of the data.. The ODS is a data analyst with the IT group who works with the SDS to carry out data governance operations for that department such as database design and analysis, as well as providing oversight and expertise, and performing QC/QA tasks on the data. The DC is the hands-on data editor who is responsible for updating and maintaining the data itself, and works for the relevant department. We are building spatial data expertise throughout the organization with this approach, rather than having one centralized group manage all spatial information. This also ensures that the person(s) managing the data possess the first-hand knowledge needed for it.
Managing a Corporate Asset Inventory:
A decision was made to store all asset information in our corporate GIS (SDE, now ArcGIS Enterprise). This required an organization-wide view of the data: introducing the idea that the GIS is managing data for the entire organization, not just for one specific use or group. We are working towards making the GIS the authoritative source of truth for all asset information. This transition is still in progress for us, but it is a significant corporate culture change which takes time.
Defining Corporate Best Practices:
Beyond what I've mentioned previously, it was essential to:
- create clear asset definitions for each asset type (e.g., Guide Rail - A barrier system designed to keep people or vehicles from straying into dangerous areas.)
- limit the number of data editors for each asset type, to improve data consistency and build expertise
- define data standards and practices that meet business requirements (spatial accuracy, critical data attributes, etc.)
- audit data quality
Note that the actual activity of adding, changing or removing records is a separate process and not part of the data governance plan as such. Data governance would determine who would perform these tasks.
I hope this is of some assistance to you. Cheers.
