Show Me the Money - Funding Data Governance - A Canadian Government Case Study Using a Practical Strategy to Costing the Work of Data

The Government of Canada mandated departments and agencies in 2018 to implement data strategies and encouraged the creation of Chief Data Officers (CDOs) to manage data as a corporate function similar to human resources or financial management. The goal of the CDO would be to ensure data are at the heart of decision-making and are strategically managed and leveraged to improve programs and services. With this newly developed responsibility, organizations are seeking ways to secure needed funding. The Department of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) developed and implemented the use of a “Data-Works” Costing Framework to identify and justify in a systematic fashion funding requirements using a flexible data assessment plan and human resource capacity model. IRCC can now provide a clear costing estimation for all its data-work based on a type of activity-based model that now supports Government of Canada initiatives, projects, programs, and policy changes. The result is that costing data is no longer a piecemeal exercise, but something that can be automatic and predictable – and most importantly an effective tool for funding data governance efforts.

Key points:

• Funding a Chief Data Officer team needs to reflect an enterprise approach as a dollar of governance can equate to thousands of dollars in cost avoidance in later issue resolution;
• How IRCC applied the Data-Works Costing Framework as part of a more fulsome funding strategy;
• Elements IRCC considered to identify the business issue and determine the areas of data engagement for the application of the Data-Works Costing Framework;
• What is a “data-work” at IRCC and the creation and use of an evergreen list of data-work types to fulfill the responsibility of the CDO;
• Strategies to engage finance professionals to help them understand the cost and value associated with effective management of data; and
• How IRCC prioritized data-work, applied an activity-based lens, and embedded a measure of human resource capacity through the Data-Works Costing Framework.

Speakers: Peter Pryce and Sébastien Fleurant

Peter Pryce

Peter has over 10 years experience working in the Government of Canada coordinating and reviewing projects and programs for integrated business plans and agency performance reports. An aspect of the work included coordinating an activity type coding review to improve operational performance. Peter leveraged his experience in his role as an advisor with the Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada after spending several years learning the department's operational data. As part of a newly formed Chief Data Officer (CDO) Branch within the Department, Peter is leading the CDO funding strategies through the costing of data-works for initiatives, projects, programs, and policy changes. Peter has an Honours Baccalaurate of Social Sciences with a Specialization in Public Administration and a Minor in Business Administration. He also holds a Master of Arts in Public Ethics where his major research paper was focused on an applied ethic to data governance in Canada.

Sébastien Fleurant

Sébastien Fleurant is the Director of Data Foundations and Modernization within the Chief Data Officer Branch at Immigration, Refugee, and Citizenship Canada (IRCC). He is championing data governance, data quality, and enterprise data architecture to ensure a strong data foundation on which data analysis can flourish in anticipation of a major platform modernization for the organization. Sébastien has been with IRCC for over 15 years. He has a background in Privacy, service delivery, and user experience.