[@OKau] A Missing Link

Fri May 8 02:00:49 UTC 2015

Me again….

I think you are all correct even though the discussions appear to be in conflict.  Economic value is most certainly derived from open data, but as Craig correctly points out most government data could not be used in a commercial situation in its existing form.

Another pontoon not always mention in this debate is that the public themselves generally are not interested in open data.  they are interested in information, or products and services that may be based on open government data.

Steven points out some very valid concepts and policies from the Public Service Commission and these are good points as is the WoG directions.  But, having worked in government the ability to collaborate with other agencies is often restricted by senior management.  They want to make their Secretary look good and so are not happy about helping another agency that might result in that agency’s Secretary receiving the glory…unfortunately its human nature.

However, the looking at the point Craig makes about the lack of useful government data, I feel that the ’secret’ to this issue is as simple as ensuring that data with an agency is well described and able to be re-used within that agency.  If this occurs, then the data becomes closer to meeting the needs of the pubic in general and commercial users in particular.

Data management in the public domain is poor, but so to is it in the commercial sector (I appreciate this is a huge generalisation…)  Research shows that knowledge workers cannot find the data they need to do their job, make decisions on incomplete data sets, re-create data that already exists in their organisation.  This costs significant resources to an organisation.  Large savings can be made by ensuring data is effectively managed internally, and this in turn makes the data more usable and more reliable for external consumption.

A small cultural change in many organisation sis required to reap these benefits, but it takes support from the highest levels who often do not even know there is a problem.  I have called this concept Intelligent Data Management and would suggest most organisations do not manage their data intelligently... 

Ben Searle

Email:    bensearle54 at gmail.com
Mobile:  +61 (0) 400 453 601

> On 8 May 2015, at 11:28 am, Steven De Costa <steven.decosta at linkdigital.com.au> wrote:
> 
> +1 Craig :)
> 
> However, it would be nice if the data the Government spends tax dollars on to collect was available for all. Then they'd we'd all be able to derive value. In some cases the government can spend millions to sustain a dataset which is 70% correct. Releasing it, even with that deficiency, allows the community to fix the data itself and ultimately shifts the cost away from the Government and into the community. The Government can then be a subscriber and contributor rather than the owner.
> 
> Hoots!
> 
> STEVEN DE COSTA | EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
> www.linkdigital.com.au <http://www.linkdigital.com.au/>
> 
>    
> 
> On 8 May 2015 at 11:07, Craig Thomler <craig.thomler at gmail.com <mailto:craig.thomler at gmail.com>> wrote:
> Ironically the Federal agency I am currently working in blocks the link to the Sunlight Foundation report due to Scribd being 'untrusted'.
>  
> I've recently dealt with four other Australian Government agencies that are unable to reach the OKFN, OGP, OpenAustralia & Sunlight Foundation websites and other key resources on open data as they are classified by the agency web filtering services as "political" or "high risk". 
>  
> This was explained to me at one agency as due to a tightening of classifications in 2014 to prevent public servants from accessing 'unnecessary content'.
>  
> It's hard to convince public servants of the benefits when they can't directly access the necessary information for decision-making.
>  
> Cheers,
> 
> Craig
> 
> _________________________________________________
> 
> Craig Thomler
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> On 8 May 2015 at 10:05, Alex (Maxious) Sadleir <maxious at gmail.com <mailto:maxious at gmail.com>> wrote:
> The Sunlight Foundation has collected 100 case studies to "illustrate the social impact of open data and digital transparency initiatives in different countries, cities and communities".
> http://sunlightfoundation.com/blog/2015/05/05/a-new-approach-to-measuring-the-impact-of-open-data/ <http://sunlightfoundation.com/blog/2015/05/05/a-new-approach-to-measuring-the-impact-of-open-data/>
> 
> On Fri, May 8, 2015 at 9:47 AM, Steven De Costa <steven.decosta at linkdigital.com.au <mailto:steven.decosta at linkdigital.com.au>> wrote:
> No!
> 
> Don't get drawn into a hostage negotiation ;)
> 
> That argument is one where the data holder will say, "Show me proof I'll get value, then I'll release the data".
> 
> Instead, we need to keep the conversation on the data itself.  
> 
> However, if you must preemptively demonstrate value I think there are two sensible and non distracting ways to do it.
> 
> 1. The macro economic argument. Talk about the economy, information goods, theory of the firm and transaction costs - all in broad terms. When you do this you can then find evidence of other changes in the (information) economy to cite as examples. 
> 
> 2. The micro economic argument. Talk about the shift in government-citizen dynamics brought about by modern communication mediums and the learned behaviors of digital natives. You can then cite examples of large changes in consumer behaviour born from peer to peer networks, social networks and consolidated consumer markets (amazon, app stores, etc). 
> 
> If a government agency is serious about working out the best areas where the release of data will improve the economy within their jurisdiction, or enable more effective G2C and C2G interactions then they should consider employing economists and statisticians to develop econometric models which demonstrate the likely value of releasing data. They should also consider what stimulation they'd need to provide to ensure that a supply-demand relationship emerges to maintain the long term value they expect to create.
> 
> Cheers,
> Steven
> 
> 
> STEVEN DE COSTA | EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
> www.linkdigital.com.au <http://www.linkdigital.com.au/>
> 
>    
> 
> On 8 May 2015 at 09:10, Ben Searle <bensearle54 at gmail.com <mailto:bensearle54 at gmail.com>> wrote:
> Hi,
> 
> An open data related thought based on a number of years working in the data management space across different levels of government.
> 
> Most government organisations and individuals in those organisations understand the benefits of making their data available to the public.  That debate has generally been won.  But, most organisations are suffering reduced budgets and appreciate that they must expend some resources to comply with the open data philosophy.  This costs their organisation.  But what benefit do they get back from releasing their data?
> 
> Generally not much direct benefit, other than complying with broad government objectives.  So, what is their answer to the question of “whats in it for me?”….generally not much.  Until we can effectively answer that question the supply side of open data will continue to be limited and we will continue to have data released purely to increase data set numbers and meet KPI’s but will that data be useful?  Based on current activities, much of the existing open data would not be consumed by organisations wishing to generate digital products.
> 
> What is missing? 
> 
> 
> Ben Searle
> 
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