Data Quality Program Proposal and Agreement

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Purpose of this document

This work-tool gives you a template, guidelines and text example for creating a DQ program agreement, once Data Quality Initiation Phase completion report is reviewed and signed off by the stakeholders, and we have a clarity on the scope of DQ program, which is going to be funded.

Help Guide

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

• Back-Ground:  This part provides a high level of view of :
  • What triggered work on this data quality program?
  • What have been the agreed proposals after DQ program initiation completion phase?
• DQ Program Objectives:  This part states the objectives of the DQ program. As you know, a DQ program is a combination of multiple small initiatives, which are logically grouped. This part provides the ‘combined’ objectives of a data quality program. From an executive sponsor perspective, she may not be interested in the objective of each initiative under the program. Typically sponsorship comes at a program level, and not at individual initiatives.
• Program Scope: State high level scope of agreed Data Quality Program, in terms of gaps to be addressed and Data Quality related proactive steps to be taken.
• Program Deliverables: State the key deliverables in terms of program completion
• Program Timelines: State on the resource and funding requirements with this proposal
• Program Funding and Resources: State the agreed program funding and Resources
• Business Benefits and Measures: State the business benefit and measures once the data quality program is accomplished.
• Program Assumptions: This will state high level 4-5 key assumptions behind the funding requirements, resources, timelines and deliverables.

BACK-GROUND

Unlike a typical business process or systems initiative, Data Quality Program, mostly does not have ‘Business-Critical’ or ‘revenue-cost linked’ need. There are many reasons on why data quality program can be initiated. The trigger for Data Quality Program could involve data warehouse initiatives, major data Quality issue(s), Data Migration initiative, Business Process Re-engineering initiative or a need to audit comment or a regulatory compliance issue. The back-ground section will involve the details on

• What triggered data Quality Initiation?
• High-level of what was done and achieved in during data quality program initiation phase (refer Data Quality Initiation Proposal Work-tool?
• What were the new insights gained and any change in the assumptions?

Scope of Data Quality Program

This will take the feed from Data Quality program initiation phase completion report and DQ Gaps Approach, Planning and Tracking tool. This section provides the scope of the Data Quality Program, as agreed with the sponsors. This part will give the overall scope of the program, as well as the scope of individual initiatives within the program.The scope will also provide the entities involved in the program like:

• Functions
• Systems
• Locations
• Processes etc..

Resource and Funding Estimation

This section will provide the details on the resource and funding requirement for the overall data quality program and individual initiatives within the DQ program. You need to pick relevant columns out of DQ Gaps Approach, Planning and Tracking sheet.

Timelines and Responsibilities

This section will provide the initiative level and program level detail on key milestones Refer Data Quality Program Work-break-down structure. One needs to be careful in ensuring that one gets high quality resources for the data quality program. A data quality program is a high collaborative effort and deals with the issues, which might have been ignored and missed out at the time of implementation of a system or business process. Therefore one needs sharp eyes to identify and address these missed-out areas.

TIP- Even for a large organization, if the DQ program initiation phase is more than 60 days, one needs to question it. This may point to following reasons:

• The DQ initiation phase is going into a level of detail, which ideally should be done after the complete program has been sponsored.
• The DQ program linked to the DQ initiation phase has too large a scope. Please remember that, it is risky to have an enterprise wide one-single DQ program to address all DQ issues. Typically DQ programs are split into logical chunks, so that you can have quick-hits.

DQ program initiation phase organization

Following are the entities and roles, which will have a play in the DQ Program:

• Data Management (including Data Quality) Council.
• DQ program Steering Committee.
• DQ program Office
• DQ Program Business Owner
• DQ Program IT Owner
• DQ Program Project Manager (recommended to be from a Business)
• DQ program IT manager.
• DQ Program core team
• DQ program Stakeholders

Each DQ program can have a varied structure and therefore one need not be hard and fast. For example one may not need a steering committee and Data Management council can fulfill the same role.

Communication Framework

Again, keep it simple and don’t keep it too rigid. One can have various ways for communication framework, like:

• Periodic status reports sent by mail.
• A common reference site, where people can go a get all the material related to that project.
• Periodic conference call or status review meetings.

• Loss of interest by the executive.
• Low-Quality resources deployed.
• Withdrawal of funding.
• Linked initiatives getting delayed.
• Unplanned changes in the systems linked to the DQ program.

Assumptions

This part will give the assumptions, which are driving your estimates around the initiation phase and all the content within this proposal. Some examples of assumptions are:

• System documentation is available and up-to date.
• Vendor resources are available.
• No changes are planned in the given set of systems and processes over next X months.
• The linked projects (if some of the initiatives under the DQ program will be done as part of other initiatives)

Risks and Mitigation

List of risks, which could impact effort, monies, time and scope estimates, and the mitigation strategies. examples are:

• System documentation not up-to date and knowledge experts have left the organization:
  • Use Data Mapping and Assessment methods to do reverse-engineering.
  • Implement solutions outside of the system

• Vendor staff originally associated with the system, has been deployed on some other initiative
  • Agree for on need-basis questioning support with the Vendor.

Next Steps

This section provides the list of next steps and help items. Following are the examples of the next steps:

• Stakeholder Sign-off and sponsorship for the initiation proposal..
• Formation of DQ program core team

APPENDIX

You can have following items in the appendix

• List of the people Interviewed before the initiation phase.
• Reference Documentation.
• List of systems under scope of initiation phase.
• List of interfaces with in scope of initiation phase.
• List of processes under scope of initiation phase.