About

F&A/UHR Data Strategy Background & Purpose

In 2023, leaders from F&A and UHR recognized the need for a coordinated approach to data. The aim: to create a strategy that unites our units under a shared vision while allowing each unit to meet its own operational needs. This work supports UGA’s strategic goals and the University System of Georgia’s emphasis on student success, operational efficiency, and informed decision-making.

Our Data Strategy Vision

Foster a data-centric culture that equips, enables, and empowers the F&A and UHR community to consistently use data-informed decisions to advance the university’s operational and strategic goals. Leverage this approach to drive impactful insights, enhance student success, support institutional security, and boost operational efficiency across all units.

Why We’re Doing This

Our goal is to create a cohesive, division-wide data vision, guidance, and standards that still allow each unit to meet its unique operational needs. The strategy is grounded in the following objectives:

• Adopt and maintain a data strategy and roadmap that allows F&A/UHR to improve access to reliable & integrated information, improve university operations, enhance campus safety, and improve student success and wellbeing.
• Champion a data-driven culture which supports access to and effective use of data.
• Adopt a data governance framework that meets all University System of Georgia and University of Georgia requirements, specifies accountability by defined roles and responsibilities, includes policies and procedures for requirements within F&A and UHR,  facilitates communication between all F&A and UHR units as well as other university partners, establishes and facilitates data education and management of a data culture, and measures and reports on progress and opportunities for improvement.
• Manage data as a shared resource for the benefit of the whole university and to support the university’s land- and sea-grant mission.
• Incorporate ethical standards for the use of data, including those outlined in the Association for Institutional Research (AIR) Statement of Ethical Principles and the CARE Principles.

Guiding Principles

1. Enhance data literacy across F&A, UHR, and the university.  This includes investing in our people to improve data curation, integration, visualization, and analysis capabilities.
2. Foster a data-informed culture, emphasizing “university” data as an asset and understanding the value of data in supporting the institutional mission and unit level operations. This also includes consistency so that the data management, security, processes, and standards are uniform across units and users.
3. Involve customers and stakeholders regularly in the development of product tools. This includes change management in the implementation of new analytical processes and requirements with a concerted effort in managing change across all users, customers, and stakeholders.
4. Prioritize data storytelling to effectively communicate insights and impact. This includes data transparency and communicating how and what type of data is used in the decision-making process.
5. Improve the accessibility and value of data. This includes transparency in data access so that users and consumers are using common data sets.
6. Optimize the use of technology assets. This includes agility so that data processes and requirements are adaptable to changes in the technological environment.

Strategic Priorities

1. Establish clear governance roles, policies, and processes.
2. Improve data quality and accessibility.
3. Enhance data skills through training and communities of practice.
4. Identify and deliver early win projects that demonstrate value.
5. Foster cross-unit collaboration to solve data challenges.

Phases of Work

• Phase I: Foundation Building (Completed)
  Division-wide data inventory, identification of shared “core data,” guiding principles, and early win projects.
• Phase II Implementation & Expansion (In Progress)  
  • Define and implement data governance which syncs with USG and UGA policy and guidelines, including use of UGA’s Data Dictionary (the Data Cookbook),
  • Design and implement, data standard operating procedures and a shared data infrastructure,
  • Identify data education initiatives and opportunities, and
  • Utilize a “pilot use case” to test and refine this work
• Future Phases: Continuous Improvement
  • Maintain the established data governance, infrastructure, operating procedures, and build on the “pilot use case” to add data analytics and dashboards to a share use space for access to information for decision making.
  • Support a “living” data strategy program and roadmap to identify priority analytics and/or dashboard and other data initiatives.
    

Program Roles & Responsibilities

Several groups support the F&A/UHR Data Strategy Program, each with defined responsibilities.

Executive Sponsors (University Cabinet Level) – Provide program oversight, high-level project approval and prioritization, policy approval, and project funding. They also serve on the Data Strategy Council, promote the program across the university, and help remove barriers to implementation.

• Ryan Nesbit, Vice President for Finance and Administration
• Juanita Hicks, Vice President for University Human Resources and Chief Human Resources Officer

Data Strategy Council – Senior F&A and UHR leaders appointed by the Executive Sponsors. The Council sets goals, approves policies and roadmaps, and meets at least annually to guide the program.

• Ryan Nesbit, Vice President for Finance and Administration
• Juanita Hicks, Vice President for University Human Resources and Chief Human Resources Officer
• James Shore, Senior Associate Vice President and Budget Director for Finance and Administration
• Chad Cleveland, Associate Vice President for Finance
• Brett Jackson, Associate Vice President for Auxiliary Services
• Clayton Wilcox, Interim Associate Vice President for Facilities Management
• Krista Coleman-Silvers, Assistant Vice President and Director of Space Planning and Management
• Allan Aycock, Associate Vice President for Institutional Research
• Kelly Slaton, Assistant Director for Institutional Reporting

Data Governance Committee – The operational arm of the program. Members implement the Council’s direction, ensure data is reliable and secure, and lead sub-groups on priority projects. Learn more about the Committee.

Contributing Members – Data stewards, custodians, and the Data Community of Practice. They provide subject-matter expertise and strengthen communication and culture, though they do not hold voting rights. Learn more about the Community of Practice.