Data Literacy Could Be an Essential Skill for the Federal Workforce
A new report released last week by the Data Foundation looks at ten innovations in data literacy that federal agencies can use to effectively navigate the ever-changing data landscape. Published in partnership with Deloitte and the Data Lodge, Data Literacy for the Public Sector: Lessons from Early Pioneers in the U.S. explores the value of data literacy for the federal government and identifies key success indicators.
The Data Foundation defines data literacy as having the skills to read, write, and communicate data in context, though various interpretations exist and can ultimately affect implementation. To develop a data literate workforce, one able to engage with data in the context of their roles, is key to ensuring agencies can effectively engage with a dynamic data landscape.
The public sector requires effective operational relationships between data experts and other members of the organization with varying responsibilities. Therefore, the report asserts that even employees without technical expertise should become data literate to sustain a work environment that promotes data use and applies such insights into daily operations and policymaking.
“Global events demonstrate that, now more than ever, the department’s workforce needs timely, data-informed insights to make key mission and management decisions,” stated Matthew Graviss, Chief Data Officer (CDO) at the State Department, “Our approach is mission-oriented, which allows us to bolster data and analytics efforts toward the department’s top priority issues.”
As federal agencies design data literacy programs, the report highlights some key lessons to consider:
Data literacy and data use in organizations are set by executive leaders, so ensuring the leadership is clear about the roles and responsibilities of each person will lead to better sponsorship and implementation of the data literacy program;
An effective approach for building data literacy programs involves using data to assess skills, competencies, personas, and capacities across the workforce, and then identifying strategic areas for investment and improvement based on organizational priorities;
Data skills and expertise can be applied to lasting impact within an organization if they are discussed in a common and relatable way;
Data literacy programs cannot foster a data-informed culture if data access is restricted or not easily used in practice;
Data literacy must be adapted along with maturing data governance policies and practices, such as a data catalog, glossary, and data dictionary, become critical to a successful data literacy initiative; and,
When organizations develop data literacy programs and advance data governance processes, senior leaders will increasingly be in a position to emphasize the explicit role that data plays in decision-making at all levels of the organization.
Early adopters in initiating data literacy programs in the federal government include the U.S. Air Force; State Department; Treasury Department; Department of Education; Census Bureau, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC); and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC).
“We started small and took an agile approach where we consistently brought out more capability every two to three weeks and people could see it maturing in front of their eyes and they could see value in it and that helped create more change champions for us," stated Eileen Vidrine, CDO for the Secretary of the Air Force, “It’s really about leaders investing and encouraging their teams to really invest in themselves to really accelerate the innovation.”
The Data Foundation recommends federal agencies develop a plan for data innovation immediately and define data literacy within their scope of work. And further, clarify any issues or priorities data should address from the outset to avoid unrealistic expectations.
