Managing Risks
It’s important to match your ambition with your capabilities and investment. Here we present 3 simple but crucial steps for ensuring these are aligned.
Align your purpose for opening data with your organisation’s strategic goals
Before you begin discussing the purpose and value of opening data in your organisation, you need to assess your organization's readiness for open data. This includes understanding the organization's values, strategic priorities, and existing policies.
Tool: Open Data Maturity Model
Develop a culture of support for open data (a ‘presumed open’ mindset) within your organisation
For most organizations to embrace open data and move towards a "presumed open" mindset requires vital cultural change within . The concept can be scary for some stakeholders, so it's important to make it less intimidating.
One of the biggest challenges for organisations opening data is the fear of unintended consequences. This fear often stems from concerns about organizational reputation and the potential misinterpretation of data, contravening data protection laws, or revealing information to competitors. It’s reassuring to have a rigorous risk assessment process to reassure stakeholders about data publication.
Tool: Risk, Assumptions and Dependencies
Tool: Data Sharing Risk Assessment
Communicate openly and honestly about your data with your intended audience
Your users are a subset of your wider audience. Your audience is anyone with an interest in your data being open, and might include your employees, your IT and communications teams, campaigners, journalists, regulatory bodies (including data protection) and competitors.
Clear communication and transparency are needed to build trust with internal and public audiences. Organizations need to demonstrate that they are listening and not working in an insular fashion. This includes being open about the limitations of your data.
To Do: Make a list of all the audiences or direct/indirect stakeholders you can think of who may be interested in your open data.
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