1. 9. SDMX Governance
Understanding shared responsibilities and governance rules
Marco Pellegrino
Unit B1: “Methodology and corporate architecture”
SDMX Basic course, March 2015

2. WHAT IS GOVERNANCE ? In dictionaries
The system of rules, practices and processes by which an organization is directed and controlled.
The way that a city, company, etc., is controlled by the people who run it.
The action or manner of governing a state, organization, etc.
The mechanisms an organization uses to ensure that its constituents follow its established processes and policies.
and many more…

3. Synonym of quality, of ISO definition of standard
WHAT IS GOVERNANCE ?
In the specific case of SDMX
A common and shared effort by all SDMX stakeholders to define clear organisational and operational rules and arrangements which everyone should abide by with a view to make the best use possible of the SDMX project in the interest of all (data producers and users).
Synonym of quality, of ISO definition of standard
A document, established by consensus and approved by a recognized body that provides for common and repeated use, rules, guidelines or characteristics for activities or their results, aimed at the achievement of the optimum degree of order in a given context.

4. WHAT DICTIONARIES DO NOT SAY…
Governance is essential
"If you do not go to governance, governance will come to you"
If you think governance is a burden, try "non-governance"
Governance is a pre-requisite as well as an ongoing task
Not all principles can be thought of from the start
Some principles have to be revisited based on experience

5. WHAT DICTIONARIES DO NOT SAY…
Governance is a quality tool
It provides for homogeneity across your project
It sets up an established framework
for implementers
for external users
Governance saves time
You do not have to constantly "reinvent the wheel"
Easier said than done… but worthwhile the investment !

6. HOW IS GOVERNANCE IMPLEMENTED in SDMX?
In SDMX, governance is implemented at two levels:
Overall level
"Governance of Commonly Used SDMX Metadata Artefacts"
Global DSD level
Maintenance agreements on the governance of individual SDMX artefacts (essentially Global DSDs)

7. SDMX GENERAL GOVERNANCE FRAMEWORK
Defined in document "Governance of Commonly Used SDMX Metadata Artefacts" (
Governance structure
Governance principles
Governance rules (e.g. change management)
Clear definition of roles
Living object: new needs may arise that will necessitate adaptations of the governance

8. GOVERNANCE STRUCTURE

9. GOVERNANCE PRINCIPLES
Commitment to actively collaborate
Freedom of extension
Planning and coordination
Standardisation: No duplication of concept principle
Stability and pro-activity
Freedom of application and scope
Re-usability: Use of cross-domain concepts and code lists
Accountability: Versioning and change management
Transparency
Close relationships with users

10. Maintenance of SDMX artefacts
GOVERNANCE RULES
Maintenance of SDMX artefacts
Maintenance schedule
Change management
Versioning

11. CLEAR DEFINITION OF ROLES
Based on a traditional RACI model :
R = Responsible (Main responsibility)
A = Accountable (Decision-making instance)
C = Contributing (Participation in execution or decision making)
I = Informed (Notification is given to)
Basic philosophy :
Every stakeholder knows what he has to do

12. MAINTENANCE AGREEMENTS FOR GLOBAL DSDs
Objective :
Specify clearly who does what, when, how and why
Template :
To be found in "Governance of Commonly Used SDMX Metadata Artefacts" (

13. MAINTENANCE AGREEMENTS FOR GLOBAL DSDs
General arrangements (example taken from NA Global DSD
Three types of changes are foreseen: structural changes, annual maintenance changes and fast-track maintenance changes:
Structural changes would be triggered by changes in methodological guidelines or from a comprehensive review of the content of official data flows. This would involve a full review of the entire set of DSDs, including possible restructuring or replacing of concepts and code lists and will only be done through extensive consultations.
Annual maintenance changes could be proposed by anybody, and would serve the purpose of allowing for new data exchange needs by any party. All such change requests are analysed and assessed with due care. In particular, the ownership group will ensure consultation with the respective domain groups that agencies in the ownership group have established to guide the development and implementation of the statistical methodology underlying BOP, FDI, and NA, respectively. In particular, the domain groups mentioned as "major stakeholders" will play a role in the final approval process of the change requests, recognizing the role they play in developing the manuals setting forth the methodology for the respective domains.
Fast-track maintenance changes can be proposed by any of the organisations represented in the ownership group. Only changes not breaking backwards compatibility can be issued as fast-track. Fast-track changes follow the same change management process as normal changes but are applied with immediate effect if approved and do not need to wait until the next annual maintenance cycle. The ownership group will agree a procedure for timely follow-up of fast-track change requests. Fast-track change requests are subject to review in the following annual maintenance cycle.

14. MAINTENANCE AGREEMENTS FOR GLOBAL DSDs
Description of objects (artefacts)
CODE LIST ID
CONCEPT
USED BY
MAINTENANCE
TYPE
CL_AREA
Reference country or area
Counterpart country or area
BOP, FDI, NA
IMF SC
CL_COFOG
Expenditure (by Function of Government) NA
Eurostat CD
CL_COICOP
Expenditure (Household expenditure by purpose)
CL_CONF_STATUS
Confidentiality Status
SDMX
CL_COPNI
Expenditure (Purposes of Non- profit institutions)
CL_COPP
Expenditure (Classification of Outlays of Producers)
CL_CURRENCY
Currency of denomination
BOP, NA
CL_CUST_BREAKDOWN
Coding for custom breakdowns
CD = SDMX Cross-Domain Code Lists
SC = Shared Code Lists
DS = Domain-Specific Code Lists

15. MAINTENANCE AGREEMENTS FOR GLOBAL DSDs
Change management timeline
When
Who
What
Deliverable
April
Anybody
Deadline for change requests
Change request with artefact to be changed and data flows affected
May - June MA
Consolidation of change requests within domain between domains (for shared artefacts)
Issue log with change classification and impact on data flows
June OG
OG Video Conference
Evaluation on last year's cycle; discussion on issue logs provided by MAs; approval of joint issue log
OG report on last year's cycle Approved issue log for consultation
Incorporate change proposals into reporting frameworks
Updated draft DSD matrix
June - November
Consultation with respective constituencies on changes and implementation planning
Constituency report Implementation plan
December
Incorporate constituency comments into reporting frameworks

16. Governance is essential; Quality tool, not a constraint or a burden;
KEY messages:
Governance is essential;
Quality tool, not a constraint or a burden;
Worthwile spending the necessary time to define governance;
Makes processes faster (better cost efficiency)
Statistics are no substitute for judgement" (H. CLAY)