Experts in government data use policy recommend that the use of information systems should be geared more toward the needs of frontline workers instead of the people at headquarters.
Real-time granular data and integrated data systems that deliver information in readily interpretable visualizations would greatly help frontline government employees make better decisions and deliver better services to citizens.
John Kamensky in Government Executive reports:
“Data is a new strategic asset for organizations, like oil. But like oil, it isn’t useful until it is refined. That means turning it into information and insight. “We are data rich and information poor,” says Shelley Metzenbaum, a former associate director for performance and personnel management at the Office of Management and Budget. If that is the case, the challenge for public leaders is to figure out how to lead their organizations into the future with data.
[…]
“The Administration has designated “leveraging data as a strategic asset” as one of its cross-agency priority goals. Its first step is to create a government-wide data strategy and a governance framework to act on that strategy. This includes steps towards data integration between agencies, greater standardization, improved data quality, and greater data integrity. It may also include the designation of agency-level chief data officers to lead these efforts.”
