Federal chief data officers (CDOs) are succeeding in meeting their goals but face ongoing challenges, including a lack of clarity in their roles and insufficient support from leadership, a new survey reports.
While CDOs are consistently building data maturity and advancing their missions, half of those surveyed in the Data Foundation and Deloitte 2024 Federal CDO Survey cited conflicting legal authorities as a key obstacle.
The OPEN Government Data Act, enacted in 2019 as part of the Foundations for Evidence-Based Policymaking Act of 2018 (Evidence Act), directed the 24 Chief Financial Officers Act agencies to designate CDOs. The Evidence Act established a framework to promote transparency and accountability through better data governance.
The majority of Federal CDOs – 83 percent – reported at least “somewhat” achieving their mission, but many expressed concerns about overlapping responsibilities with chief information officers (CIOs) – complicating mission clarity.
“In the face of resource constraints and growing complexities, CDOs have demonstrated an ability to provide a foundation for data management and use in their organizations – and may need more support as they move forward to further enhance the function of the CDO office,” researchers wrote.
A significant challenge is the lack of guidance from the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), which is responsible for providing guidance to support provisions in the OPEN Government Data Act. Over half of CDOs said they don’t have the guidance necessary to implement the law, and 72 percent called for an updated Federal Data Strategy implementation plan to better achieve their goals.
“One CDO noted the lack of implementation authority and lack of detail in OMB guidance can limit its usefulness,” reads the report, noting that outside of OMB, additional leadership is necessary from within their organization.
“Need for more specific, authoritative support is reflected by the 40 [percent] of CDOs that also reported that guidance from their own agency or department heads related to the CDO role specific to their organization would be helpful in supporting their mission,” it adds.
Artificial intelligence has added further complexities, with CDOs noting that emerging AI responsibilities have created new conflicting statutory or legal authorities, leading to redundancies. Many also say they need additional role clarifications with the new technology, with 90 percent of CDOs saying they use AI to some extent and plan to further their use of AI but require guidance.
“In the face of evolving data needs from the American public and rapidly emerging technological capabilities, CDOs are well positioned to share lessons learned and inform a responsible approach to innovation in government,” wrote researchers. “However, the 2024 CDO Survey indicates a broader, whole-of-government view of data governance may be necessary – especially as the world advances further into the age of AI.”
Additionally, the CDO-CIO relationship remains challenging, while many CIOs viewed CDOs as complementary to their role, just over half of CDOs find the CIO’s mission as “very” complementary to their own.
“The marked decline in favorability of CDOs reporting to CIOs may be due to the evolving maturity of the CDO function in government and a lack of clarity related to data responsibilities,” says the report. “When asked where CDOs need more support, some CDOs cited the delineation of the CDO and CIO roles. Further, when asked for examples of conflicting statutory or legal authorities that create challenges for effectively implementing the CDO mission, CDOs pointed to the overlap of CDO and CIO responsibilities.”
More organizational support is also required to effectively achieve CDOs’ mission, those surveyed said, with the majority reporting that they had less than 10 full-time equivalent employees to support their mission. Many also claimed they lacked the necessary funding, with 84 percent citing budgetary constraints as a limiting factor.
Steps recommended by the Data Foundation and Deloitte researchers include clarifying the roles and responsibilities of CDOs, supporting data readiness for AI implementation, strengthening leadership support for CDOs, and enhancing or updating the Federal Data Strategy to coordinate information sharing and agency standardization.
