The Office of Data Governance and Analytics (ODGA) within the Secretary of Administration was officially established on July 1, 2021. The organization has grown from a staff of four to now fifteen and growing. Even with a small team, limited resources, and the establishment of the organization during a pandemic, ODGA has stamped itself as invaluable within the Commonwealth of Virginia having supported Governor-level initiatives and developed innovative solutions to support agencies. Furthermore, the Office of Data Governance and Analytics has been heralded as a thought leader for other states in terms of open data, infrastructure, and business intelligence capabilities.

Most recently, the Chief Data Officer has been asked to collaborate on several initiatives including workforce development, cybersecurity, and Operation Bold Blue Line. Not without mention is the continued work on developing the Commonwealth of Virginia’s first universal entity index, known as CoVERED (Commonwealth of Virginia Entity Resolution for Enterprise Data), that paves the way for a single citizen experience.

This report highlights the Office of Data Governance and Analytics’ proof of performance, which includes solutions the team has developed or are in development, as well as Commonwealth executive branch agency projects. The Virginia Data Governance Framework section outlines the Virginia Data Advisory Commission and the Commonwealth of Virginia data governance structure in progress.

The Office of Data Governance and Analytics asks that the General Assembly view this report with the awareness of what has been accomplished on a short runway with limited staff and during an administration transition. The organization is poised for growth and has established an outstanding reputation with each agency engagement. We are standing at the threshold for realizing the potential impact the Office of Data Governance and Analytics can have on the Commonwealth of Virginia, ultimately establishing Virginia as a national leader in data-driven performance management.

In the coming months, the Office seeks to make the role of the Chief Data Officer as well as the agency permanent while securing general funding to expand the incredible work that has begun. This growth allows the ODGA to better support agency partners and constituents as the work continues to stabilize the ecosystem of data governance and data sharing in the Commonwealth.