Data Governance Roles and Responsibilities

Overview of Data Governance Council Roles & Responsibilities

Executive Sponsor - President's Council (Executive Director of Strategic Analysis)

Responsibilities

  • Work with the President's Cabinet, the direct reports to the President, and accept responsibility for the program and ongoing data-governance processes.
  • Get funding, support and political backing.
    • Connect with a broad network of relationships
    • Help identify and overcome obstacles and resistance within the institution
    • Note: funding may mean additional budget monies, or it may mean "release time" foremployees to do governance work
  • Support DGC project team(s) with communication and visibility
  • Help to determine and report out measurable success indicators
  • Make key decisions when consensus within the group cannot be reached
  • Qualities
  • Passion for the program
    • Ability and willingness to champion data governance
    • Ability to motivate and inspire teams and members
  • Strong communication skills
  • Big-picture vision, but also able to sufficiently understand specific challenges and data-governance vocabulary
  • Accountability (as public face of high-profile effort)
  • Risk Management Skills/Training
  • Some abilities in use of certain related software?

Commitment

  • Should the designated Executive Sponsor have an end or renewal date (e.g., 18 months) (Term limit?)
  • How much time will be required? Estimate: 3-4 hours per week for the first few months, then more like 3-4 hours per month.
  • Many tasks can be delegated.

Chair -Director of Enterprise Data and Systems (ITS)

Responsibilities

  • Chair the Data Governance Council
  • Focus the work with guidance from the Executive Sponsor and input from DCG members
  • Make sure the project is a priority for both individual offices and the University
  • Manage the resources on the project team(s)
  • Negotiate the tasks of the team members in conjunction with their managers.
  • Facilitate team interactions
  • Monitor team participation and create reports to update the University on progress
  • Monitor project progress and provide feedback on project performance
  • Provide project updates to the Council and Executive Sponsor on a regular basis

Qualities

  • Project management skills
    • Communication
    • Organization
    • Willingness to delegate
    • Ability to negotiate
  • Professional skills/traits
    • Collaborative work style
    • Facilitates productive conversations
    • Wields influence effectively
    • Plays fair, is respected, and respects others

Commitment

  • Estimate: Will vary with project, but probably safe to assume 4-6 hours per week for the first month or two.
  • Duration will also be specific to particular project.
  • Exception: Some ongoing projects (such as data quality) don't officially end, although the commitment should be much less in those cases.

Data Governance Council Members

Membership

  • University Registrar
  • Assistant Provost of Accreditation and Institutional Research
  • Director of Financial Aid
  • Senior Associate Dean of Admissions
  • Associate Treasurer & Controller
  • Executive Director of Strategic Analysis
  • Executive Director of Human Resources
  • Associate Dean of Students
  • Executive Director of Advancement Operations
  • Director of Enterprise Data and Systems
  • Deputy Chief Information Officer
  • Assistant Dean of Finance and Administration
  • Chief Information Officer

Responsibilities

  • Create data standards and business rules
    • Determine what new data will be captured and/or standardized
    • Specify which date must be shared organizationally or otherwise
    • Oversee key standard reports and dashboards
    • Assure that legal and other compliance standards are followed
    • Ensure data documentation is written and maintained
  • Set goals for future state of data-management capabilities
  • Advocate for governance and improved data management
  • Identify and prioritize data-governance projects (e.g., data quality, data security, etc.)
  • Resolve issues escalated by data stewards
  • Track data quality by profiling/reviewing data and monitoring metrics on data quality

Qualities & Characteristics

  • Commitment to Data Governance
  • Willing to commit to team decisions/willing to compromise for the institution as a whole
  • Varied resources on the team should include:
    • Some with functional background - for example, faculty member who needs data for grants data.
    • Some with IT background - resources that know the data systems and processes
    • Institutional Research - major user of the data, span multiple domains

Commitment

  • What is their commitment?
    • Estimate: 4 hours initially per week.
    • Factors:
      • How often should they meet?
      • Follow up assignments delegated to each member

Data Stewards

Membership

At W&L, there will likely be blending between the DG Council and Data Steward memberships. DG Council may designate a steward to serve in their place where needed.

Stewards:

  • Associate University Registrar (Student)
  • Assistant University Registrar (3) (Student)
  • Director of Law Records (Student)
  • HR Systems Administrator (HR/Employee)
  • Director of Compensation (HR/Employee)
  • Associate Director of Financial Aid (Financial Aid)
  • Director of Admissions Operations (Admissions/Recruiting)
  • Director of Student Financial Accounts (Finance)
  • Assistant Controller, Reporting and Compliance (Finance)
  • Institutional Research Analyst (2) (Institutional Research)
  • Advancement Record and Data Integrity Specialist (Development/Advancement)
  • Advancement Operations Systems Manager (Development/Advancement)
  • Associate Director of International Education and Study Abroad Advisor (International Education)
  • Assistant Dean of Law Admissions (Law Student)
  • Manager of Provost Operations (Provost)
  • Student Affairs Operations and First-Year Coordinator (Student Affairs)
  • Assistant Director of Assessment Strategy (Institutional Research)
  • Dean of Career and Professional Development (Alumni and Career Engagement)
  • Associate Director of Career and Professional Development (Alumni and Career Engagement)

Other data types require stewardship but will not necessarily imply regular membership as part of the formal group. These types include (but are not limited to):

  • Auxiliary Services (Copy Center, Dining Services, Mailroom, University Store)
  • Library / Libraries
  • Public Affairs and Communications
  • Public Safety
  • University Facilities
  • Institutional History

Responsibilities

  • Individual "gatekeepers" for the area(s) they represent
    • Should be subject-matter experts
    • Some technical skill or background desirable
  • Assure validity and consistency of data
  • Contribute to and help manage metadata
  • Assist with data quality and enrichment efforts
  • Contribute to enterprise business glossary
  • Escalate issues they cannot resolve to the Data Governance Council
  • Implement changes to business process or other data management practice decided on by DGC

Characteristics

  • More knowledgeable/details about an area and their business rules
  • Focused on their team/department
  • Ability to document/write business processes and data definitions

Commitment

  • Estimate: 2-4 hours per week on a project

OPTIONAL - Functional Representatives

Responsibilities

  • Serve as "face" of reporting for their area
  • Work together to prioritize data requests
  • Escalate data and reporting issues to Data Governance Council

Characteristics

  • Interest in working with data
  • Ability to form partnerships within and outside of department