DG Data Governance Committee

Data Governance Committee Charter

Effective Date: December 14, 2021
Revised Date: April 14, 2023
Responsible Institute Officer: Data Governance Officer
Responsible Coordinating Department: Data Governance & Discovery

Purpose and Goals

The Georgia Institute of Technology Strategic Plan, set by the President in 2020, includes a charge to be a leader in the tools and processes that promote data-informed decision-making and to be an example in the protection, management, and governance of data.

The mission of the Data Governance Committee (“Committee” or “DGC”) is to ensure the Institute’s administrative data assets are managed and utilized to their fullest extent.

The Committee will champion the creation and implementation of policies, procedures, and leading practices surrounding data management and data utilization in an effort to:

• maximize the value and trust in our institutional data assets
• increase data literacy across the organization
• create a culture of shared accountability surrounding data assets
• ensure our data assets are protected in both security and privacy perspectives

This charter defines the goals, scope, responsibilities, membership, and operation of the Committee and roles and responsibilities for the DGC and its subcommittees.

Much of the detailed work of the Committee is carried out by additional subcommittees and workgroups that bring together various Institute data stakeholders to examine issues in depth and recommend solutions.

The Committee is an element of the Institute’s overall data governance structure and one component of the Data Governance Program.

Scope

The Committee will focus on institutional administrative data. Data about the administration of research activities is within scope. Data generated through research and scholarly activity is out of scope for the Committee at this time. Appropriate data stewardship and adherence to Institute and University System of Georgia policies and procedures applies to all organizational data, regardless of this Committee’s scope.

The Data Governance Committee is authorized to operate in the capacity defined within this charter by the President and Data Trustees, the Georgia Tech Data Governance and Management Policy, and University System of Georgia requirements.

Responsibilities

The Committee is a collaborative body with the authority to:

1. Advise on the prioritization of strategic data initiatives.
2. Draft and recommend policies to the Policy Steering Committee.
3. Create data strategies, guiding principles, standards, and procedures.
4. Define roles and responsibilities of those who create, use, or share Institute data.
5. Direct and support the inventorying of business applications and their data assets.
6. Direct and promote data quality and data integrity including consistent data definitions and their use throughout connected business applications and across data domains.
7. Direct and support training and workforce development as it relates to data.
8. Monitor compliance of the data lifecycle (retention, archival, and disposal).
9. Define data categorizations, access requirements, and role-based access standards, as well as managing exceptions to those rules or standards.
10. Ensure cybersecurity controls and privacy considerations are aligned with data strategies, policies, and procedures.
11. Recommend appropriate resources to ensure proper planning, implementation, and support of data needs of the Institute.
12. Determine the appropriate resolution for data-related issues or obstacles.
13. Support Data Domain and Technology Subcommittees.
14. Establish subcommittees and workgroups to a named group of individuals with delegated responsibility on a particular topic or issue that requires more discussion, work, or research for recommended solutions. Both subcommittees and workgroups may include individuals who are not members of the DGC.
15. Designate resources from Committee members’ respective teams to support the production and implementation of the processes, procedures, and leading practices that are recommended by the Committee.
16. Assess and evaluate effectiveness of data governance programs and activities at the Institute.

Data governance is not a one-time effort; it requires a program that evolves with an ever changing data landscape. The Data Governance Committee meets the need for ongoing management, prioritization, and oversight of the Data Governance Program and helps foster a shared understanding of data governance at the Institute.

Membership

The Committee’s membership is role based, and positions are approved by the President and Data Trustees. These appointments represent primary data domains of the Institute, as well as roles from additional areas that have a vested interest in the Data Governance Program.

Members include the following or, with approval of the Chair(s), their designated representative.

* Membership rotation allowed with a 12-month term

The Committee has the option to create a Co-Chair and a Secretary role, each served by a Committee member with a 12-month term.

Members are expected to contribute expertise and wisdom from their functional/technical areas of practice, and to work beyond divisional interests in service of larger institutional goals for the use and management of data. Members will actively share information about the Committee’s work including decisions made, questions considered, emerging issues, and opportunities for engagement and feedback with divisions, departments, and colleges in a manner that ensures transparency and broad awareness.

Members will attend Committee meetings on a regular basis and, periodically, take on work assignments and participate in Committee activities that extend beyond formal meeting times.

Operation

1. The Committee will meet at least monthly. The Committee Chair(s), or their designated representatives, may call additional meetings when time-sensitive agenda items arise or cancel meetings when there are no matters for discussion.
2. The Committee Chair(s) or Secretary will distribute meeting agendas and corresponding documents in advance of each meeting.
3. The Committee will strongly favor a consensus-driven decision-making process to ensure everyone in the community is involved. However, in the event a formal vote needs to be conducted, members will cast one vote per person. Votes will typically take place at meetings, in which case those casting votes must be participants in the meeting at the time the vote takes place. In the event a vote is warranted outside of a meeting, voting may be conducted electronically. A vote is successful if the total number of votes cast equals or exceeds one half of the total membership of the Committee and more than half of the votes answer the question in the affirmative; otherwise, the vote fails.
4. The Committee Chair(s) or Secretary will take minutes at each meeting and distribute for review.

Partnerships

The Committee will rely upon other governing bodies and Institute functions to support the work of the Data Governance Program. Technology Governance is responsible for technical guidance to support the work of the Committee and for decision making about the feasibility of and methods for carrying out decisions of the Committee. Enterprise Risk Management will be called to determine acceptable risk on data matters where risk and reward are too close for the Committee to decide.

References

University System of Georgia Business Procedures Manual

University System of Georgia IT Handbook

Georgia Institute of Technology Data Governance and Management Policy

Georgia Institute of Technology Data Governance Program website

Georgia Institute of Technology Strategic Plan – Lead by Example

Contacts

Data Governance general inquiries: datagovernance@gatech.edu