7.4.3. Integrating Net-Centric Information Sharing into the Acquisition Life Cycle
7.4.3.1. Data, Information, and IT Services Planning Activities
7.4.3.2. Data, Information, and IT Services Planning
7.4.3.3. Manage Data Infrastructure [Determine Infrastructure Requirements]
7.4.3.4. Provide Enterprise Data Assets
7.4.3.5. Govern Data Activities
7.4.3. Integrating Net-Centric Information Sharing into the Acquisition Life Cycle
A description of the program's approach for ensuring that information assets will be made visible, accessible, and understandable to any potential user as early as possible ( DoD Directive 8320.02 , "Sharing Data, Information, and Information Technology (IT) services in the Department of Defense,” March, 2013"). Recommended scope of data, information and IT services activities follow:
7.4.3.1. Data, Information, and IT Services Planning Activities
Define Net-Centric Data, Information, and IT Services Sharing Plan
This activity relates to the development of a comprehensive net-centric plan to share data assets within your program/organization and to the Enterprise. This includes metadata catalog plans, registry plans, interoperability plans, etc. In essence, this Net-Centric Data Sharing Plan should be the program's/organization's plan to accomplish the goals of the DoD Net-Centric Data Strategy. This is a key product and will drive most data activities and architectures.
Responsibilities: Sponsor/Domain Owners should develop these plans at a broad, strategic level to ensure that architectures for programs and sub-organizations associated with the Domain include net-centric data components. Depending on the scale of the program or system, Program Managers (PMs) should develop a more detailed plan that outlines how their information architecture(s) make their assets and processes discoverable, accessible, and understandable to both known and unanticipated users. These program sharing plans should ensure that they align with and make use of enterprise net-centric data, information and IT services sharing capabilities such as those envisioned/planned under core enterprise services.
Define Data Guidance
Evaluate information from sources such as compliance reports, incentive plan reports, policy, and user needs to create net-centric data, information and IT services guidance documents. This guidance is the policy, specifications, standards, etc., used to drive activities within the program/organization. It differs from a net-centric data or services plan in that the plan is more strategic in nature. Data guidance may be a subset of an overall net-centric data sharing plan.
Responsibilities: Sponsor/Domain Owners should develop appropriate issuance and standards to ensure that incentives, metrics, and direction are in place to drive the transition to net-centricity. Sponsor/Domain Owners should establish policy and governance to ensure that the Domain's Programs and sub-organizations have a voice in the development of standards, specifications, and processes (e.g., empowering a Program to insert its metadata requirements into an overall Domain metadata model).
Define Data, Information, and IT Services Sharing Data Architectures
Build upon existing and revised architectures and plans to describe the architecture to support data sharing objectives. The architecture should depict components that emphasize the use of discovery, services-based approach to systems engineering, use of metadata to support mediated information exchange, web-based access to data assets, etc.
Responsibilities: Both Sponsor/Domain Owners and PMs should include net-centric concepts, activities, and processes into their architectures. Sponsor/Domain Owners should ensure that their Domain-level architectures are developed in a manner that is appropriate for governing under a capabilities-based portfolio management process. PMs should ensure that net-centric components are integrated into their program architecture products.
7.4.3.2. Data, Information, and IT Services Planning
Identify Data Assets
Determine what data assets (documents, images, metadata, services, etc.) are produced or controlled within a program or organization. This is primarily an inventory of data assets, which should include both structured and unstructured data sources as well as IT services.
Responsibilities: Sponsor/Domain Owners should identify major data assets created or managed within their Domain. This asset listing will assist in the development of visibility, accessibility, and understandability strategic plans (i.e., based on the composition of the major data assets within the Domain, the planning products can reflect the most appropriate approach in supporting net-centric information sharing data strategy goals). Likewise, Program Managers (PMs) should inventory the data assets created or managed by the program and use this asset listing to plan their strategy and implementation approach for making these assets net-centric.
Prioritize Data Assets
Assess the data asset inventory to identify key data products that are of greatest value to known users and are likely to be of value to unanticipated users. This list should be used to determine data assets a program/organization should make initial efforts at exposing as enterprise data assets.
Responsibilities: Both Sponsor/Domain Owners and PMs should analyze and prioritize which data assets are most valuable, initially, to be exposed as enterprise data assets.
Define Communities of Interest (COIs)
Identify appropriate groups of people who should come together to support common mission objectives. COIs are an appropriate construct for defining information exchange formats and metadata definitions as well as vocabularies used to communicate within the COI. This activity does not include the “establishment” of actual COIs. This is simply the process of identifying COIs that exist or should exist.
Responsibilities: Sponsors/Domain Owners should define major COIs that could benefit missions within the Domain (and across Domains). PMs should identify other COIs that serve the goals of the program and its associated functional areas.
7.4.3.3. Manage Data Infrastructure [Determine Infrastructure Requirements]
Manage Discovery Metadata Catalog(s)
Identifying/establishing and maintaining searchable catalogs used to locate data assets within the program, organization, or enterprise. Metadata stored within these catalogs facilitates discovery and includes descriptive information about each shared data asset.
Responsibilities: Sponsor/Domain Owners should establish Domain-level metadata catalogs that allow for the search of data assets across the Domain. Distributed, federated approaches should be used in developing this capability. Program Managers (PMs) should ensure that their data is tagged and posted to metadata catalogs that are tied into the Domain metadata catalog.
Manage Metadata Registry(s)
Identifying and/or establishing metadata registries that can be used to maintain, manage, and/or search for metadata artifacts such as schema and data definitions. Metadata stored in metadata registries are typically for developers, business analysts, and architects. Metadata registries are a type of metadata catalog specifically designed to support developers/business analysts.
Responsibilities: Sponsor/Domain Owners should ensure that metadata products within their Domain (including associated programs and sub-organizations) are registered into the DoD Metadata Registry. Domain Communities of Interest (COIs) are likely to be structured around the functional areas for which metadata is registered. PMs should ensure that program metadata is registered in the DSE and is maintained.
Manage Service Directory(s)
Identifying and/or establishing service directory(s) that can be used to maintain, manage, and/or search for callable, reusable services from which net-centric capabilities are built. Metadata stored in service directories gives information as to the services available, how to call them, and possibly, expected service levels. Service directories include Universal Description, Discovery, and Integration Directories used to maintain Web Services information. This is a key component of establishing a services-based architecture that supports net-centric data tenets.
Responsibilities: Sponsor/Domain Owners should ensure that services created or managed within their Domain (including associated programs and sub-organizations) are registered into the DoD Data Services Environment (DSE) maintained by the Defense Information Systems Agency. PMs should ensure that program services are registered in the DSE.
Manage Interoperability Components
Development of metadata artifacts used to enable the interchange of data and information including document vocabularies, taxonomies, common data models, schema, formats, mediation components, and interface specifications.
Responsibilities: Sponsor/Domain Owners should establish Domain-level metadata models to facilitate the loosely-coupled exchange of information between systems. PMs should develop metadata models (e.g., data structures, schema, etc) pertinent to their program. This includes tagging models, service schema, and mapping models to the Domain metadata model.
Develop/Acquire Data Access Mechanism(s)
Post data assets to an information sharing application (e.g., end-user web site, a file system, a document repository) or through the use of web services to provide system-to-system access, etc.
Responsibilities: Sponsor/Domain Owners should establish shared space, as necessary, to support Program's within its scope. PMs should ensure that web-enabled services provide access to valuable systems data and processes.
Manage COIs
This activity encompasses establishing Mission Area sponsored COI(s), registering COI(s) in the Enterprise COI Directory, and COI participation. The outcomes of this activity will ensure that COI(s) can be located and managed throughout the enterprise.
Responsibilities: Both Sponsor/Domain Owners and PMs should establish, register, and maintain identified COIs.
7.4.3.4. Provide Enterprise Data Assets
Provide Discovery Metadata
Associate or generate discovery metadata for data assets. This activity is the 'tagging' of data assets to provide value-added information about data assets that can be used to support discovery, accessibility, information assurance, and understandability.
Responsibilities: Program Managers (PMs) should ensure that discovery metadata is provided for all data assets created/managed by the Program.
Post Discovery Metadata
Providing, or posting, discovery metadata to catalogs, registries, etc., that can be searched. It is through 'posting metadata' that metadata catalogs are populated. This activity allows data assets to be discovered (but does not guarantee access to the data asset).
Responsibilities: PMs should ensure that discovery metadata associated with each data asset is posted to searchable metadata catalogs (established by the Domain and by Programs).
7.4.3.5. Govern Data Activities
Participate in DoD Information Enterprise (DoD IE) Governance
Participate in governance activities that enable net-centric data asset sharing. This includes participation in DoD IE Enterprise Service efforts, net-centric architectural compliance, Capabilities Portfolio Management for net-centric information sharing, etc.
Responsibilities: Sponsor/Domain Owners should participate in DIE governance activities to ensure the proper processes are followed and executed within their Domain to enable the net-centric Domain environment.
Enforce Data Guidance
Participate in enforcement/compliance activities that assess net-centric architectures against Net-Centric Data Guidance that was developed in the Data Planning process.
Responsibilities: Both Sponsor/Domain Owners and PMs should enforce established data guidance (including conformance to standards and adherence to DoD/Domain issuances).
Advocate Data Strategy(s)
This activity involves vetting, publicizing, and institutionalizing the Net-Centric Data Sharing plans and guidance developed in the Data Planning process.
Responsibilities: Both Sponsor/Domain Owners and PMs should advocate the DoD Net-Centric Data Strategy and Domain-established data guidance.
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