Data Governance for Planners

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Planning offices are conduits of information. They receive, create, use, and share data from a wide array of sources. This data continues to grow in volume and importance. It has arguably become a planner's most important resource, and planners should manage this resource with the best practices available.

Conventional methods are ready to evolve. Gone are the days of file cabinets, paper reports, and simple spreadsheets saved on a local hard drive. Valuable custom-made data developed by staff may not be reliably backed up or integrated with other systems. Much of our data is stored in siloed databases scattered across an archipelago of shared network drives with unusual folder names and inconsistent formats. Sensitive data may lack privacy and security protections.

This is the typical state of data management in the modern planning office. We know we can do better; we know that we should. But how?

This PAS Memo explains why good data management must be a fundamental practice for planning offices and provides planners with a clear understanding of how planning data management practices can be improved through a process known as data governance. Borrowing from the best ideas established in the information technology (IT) industry, this Memo contextualizes a basic data governance framework that planners can develop in collaboration with other subject matter experts to meet the specific needs of planning practice.

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