VI. Key principles

Principle

Statement

Rationale

Implications

1. Information is managed as an asset throughout its lifecycle

• Information includes both the data and the metadata describing that data;
• Information includes all objects that describe the context, content, controls and structure of data and metadata;
• Information is an organisational asset that all employees have a responsibility to manage;
• Information must be actively managed throughout its lifecycle from creation to disposal;
• The ownership, status, quality and security classification of information should be known at all times.

• The statistical organisation has a responsibility to manage the data and metadata it acquires in accordance with relevant legalisation;
• Managing the information is necessary to guarantee constant quality of statistical products;
• Information needs to be managed to ensure its context and integrity is maintained over time;
• As information is increasingly shared across business processes it is important to understand the dependencies of its use.

• The statistical organisation will take an enterprise approach to managing information as an asset;
• Organisational policies and guidelines will be put in place to ensure data will be managed in accordance with this principle;
• All data assets will have an owner responsible for their management;
• Staff will be trained to understand the value of data and their individual responsibilities;
• Data quality and sensitivity will be documented where required for business processes;
• Data will be protected against loss;
• Data and metadata must not be kept longer than necessary in order to protect privacy; it should be deleted at the end of its lifecycle.

2. Information is accessible

• Information is discoverable and usable;
• Information is available to all unless there is good reason for withholding it;
• Data and metadata is accessible to humans as well as machines.

• Ready access to information leads to informed decision-making and enables timely response to information needs;
• Users (internal and external) can easily find information when they need it, saving time and avoiding repetition.

• The organisation will foster a culture of information sharing;
• Information will be open by default;
• The way information is discovered and displayed will be designed with users in mind;
• Systems will be designed to ensure that the minimum amount contextual information required to understand information is captured;
• Staff will create and store information in approved repositories;

3. Data is described to enable reuse

• Data must have sufficient metadata so it can be understood outside its original context;
• Connections between data objects must be documented;
• Restrictions to data usage must be documented.

• Data can be easily understood and used with confidence without requiring further information;
• Data and its related metadata can be easily reused by other business processes reducing the need to transform or recreate information;
• The dependencies and relationships between data objects can be easily known.

• Staff will document data with reuse in mind;
• Staff will consider reuse when designing systems for capturing information.

4. Information is captured and recorded at the point of creation/receipt

• Information should be captured and recorded at the earliest point in the business process to ensure it can be used by subsequent processes;
• Subsequent changes to information should be documented at the time of action.

• Information is captured and recorded at the time of creation/action so it is not lost;
• The amount of information reuse is maximised by capturing it as early as possible.

• Systems will be designed to automatically capture information resulting from business processes;
• Staff will need to prioritise and be given time to capture information when it is fresh in their minds.

5. Use an authoritative source

• Within a business process, there should be an authoritative source from which information should be sourced and updated;
• Where practical, existing information should be reused instead of recreated or duplicated.

• Maintaining fewer sources of information is more cost effective;
• Having one source of information supports discovery, reuse and a 'single version of truth'.

• There will be authoritative repositories for different types of information;
• Information needs will be satisfied using existing sources where possible.

6. Use agreed models and standards

• Key information should be described using common, business-oriented, models and standards, agreed by the organisation.

• Having agreed models and standards will enable greater information sharing and reuse across the business process;
• Having agreed models and standards will enable staff to communicate using a common language.

• There will be responsibility assigned for creating and maintaining agreed models and standards;
• Staff will be made aware of what the approved models and standards are and how to use them;
• Agreed models and standards will enable external collaboration but also be fit for business purposes;
• Agreed models and standards will form the basis of system and process design, deviations from the standards and models will be by agreed exception only.