achieving transparency in the 24 hour news cycle ron berry august 14, 2011

Achieving Transparency in the 24 Hour News Cycle

Ron Berry

August 14, 2011

Achieving transparency in the era of the 24 hour news cycle

In the current climate of the 24 hour news-cycle, a small mistake in reporting erodes public trust and casts doubt upon transparency.

Information needed to support transparency is typically decentralized and stored in an array of systems managed by various business units – thus accurate reporting relies upon effective integration of data.

Achieving Transparency in the 24 Hour News Cycle—2—August 14, 2011

The Federal Funding Accountability and Transparency Act of 2006 (S. 2590), enacted in 2006 requires the full disclosure to the public of all entities receiving federal funds.

The website USAspending.gov created in December 2007 as a result of this act, is maintained by the Office Of Management and Budget.

Transparency by Legislation


The ability to look at performance across agencies in greater detail is key to building public trust and supporting transparency.

Transparency through the Net

• Number of payments by state

• Number of contracts by Zip code

• Number of constituents served by Congressional District


Veterans Affairs – Case Study

• 300,000 person cabinet level department

• Three semi-autonomous administrations • Aging mainframe based centralized

General Leger Accounting system• Decentralized accounting transactional

accounting sub-systems • Early stages of Data Governance• Limited Master Data Management • Data Warehouses, though mature

focused on programmatic reporting and analytics



VBA's mission is to provide benefits and services to veterans and their families in a responsive, timely and compassionate manner in recognition of their service to the Nation. 57+ billion in annual benefit payments


Department of Veterans Affairs

Veterans Health Administration

National Cemetery

Administration

Veterans Benefits Administration

• Compensation & pension• Loan guaranty• Vocational rehabilitation &

employment• Education• Insurance


• Ability to consistently report benefits payment information • Ability to identify and count distinct beneficiaries• Ability to address data quality in an environment going

through major system transformations • Ability to integrate data managed through the cloud • Ability to understand common data (I.e., Common

Terminology)

Reporting Challenges


The data warehouse to the rescue

• Developed monthly detailed benefit level extracts

• Integrated data with state, zip-code and other demographic information

Solution did not address consistency of reporting Achieving Transparency in the 24 Hour News Cycle—8—August 14, 2011

Data Governance, the missing link

VA has expedited the implementation of a department-wide Data Governance program and Master Data Management initiative intended to: • Establish organizational bodies to address enterprise information • Formalize business rules and decision rights (how we "decide how to

decide")• Make individuals accountable for shared data that may be used

externally• Provide monitoring, controls, and other enforcement methods• Foster meta-data development to improve the shared understanding of data• Formalize and measure data quality• Consistently identify constituents through an Identify resolution solution


How it is being implemented

TRIGGER EXAMPLES

• Business Process Improvement Project

• Modernization Blueprint Project

• Info Exchange Project

• E-Gov Project

Implement adopted data standards

KEY Points• Standardizing/

adopting data that is shared or exchanged.

• Not always a single implementation of a standard

Review business references and artifacts with Principal Data Stewards(s)

• Collect, Identify, Design, and Document data requirements.

• Perform business and technical stewardship coordination

• Develop, and Submit Data Submission Package with concurrence of Principal Data Steward

• Resolve comments with Principal Data Steward(s)

• Resolution period: 2 weeks

• Formally conduct cross-functionalreview, and

• Adopt proposed data standards• Formal Review period: 3 weeks

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Lessons Learned

Without data governance and MDM, there is high risk that data may be inadvertently released

No two governance and stewardship programs are the same – each is unique

Adopt as many of the best practices as possible

The best approaches to governance and MDM maintains the enterprise focus while implementing iteratively


MasterData

Management

Relevance to NASA

Similarly challenged financial reporting processes

Data warehouse programs currently programmatically focused

The complexity of this organization creates risks for inadvertent mistakes in external reporting

Opportunity to target data governance initiative towards external regulatory compliance


About Me

Currently employed with Grant Thornton, LLP, Global Public Sector (GPS) serving as a director managing large data warehouse projects. Twenty eight years of expertise in information technology, providing programming, enterprise architecture, project management, and product support to large financial services organizations, Government Sponsored Entities (GSE), telecommunications companies, and public sector clients.

Prior to joining Grant Thornton, served as a Director at Oracle. Prior to Oracle, managed Enterprise Architecture Planning for Fannie Mae.

Currently supporting a large data warehouse at the Department Of Veterans Affairs participating in the implementation of an agency-wide Data Governance program.


Questions

THANK YOU

Ron Berry, DirectorGrant Thornton, LLP, Global Public Sector

333 John Carlyle Street Alexandria, VA 22304Tel: (703) 637-3012

E-mail: [email protected]

achieving transparency in the 24 hour news cycle ron berry august 14, 2011

Documents

shared data

common data

data development

adopting data

hour newscycle

principal data stewardss

shared understanding

measure data quality