1. Department of Homeland Security Metadata Center of Excellence
The FEA Data Reference Model Status Update: After the Storm(ing)…
Michael C. Daconta
Metadata Program Manager
September 19, 2005

2. Speaker Introduction DHS Metadata Center of Excellence
DHS Data Management Strategy
Metadata Registry/Repository
DHS Data Architecture and Standards
National Information Exchange Model
DHS/DOJ initiative to improve and leverage GJXDM for homeland security.
Federal Enterprise Architecture Data Reference Model
Experiment in FEA RM development
DHS Leadership of an Inter-agency team.
Thanks to OMB and the CIO Council for trying this new innovative approach!

3. Agenda The Tuckman Model of Team Development Forming Storming Norming
Public/Private Working Group
What is the DRM?
Information Sharing Use Case
Storming
Just a techie thing?
Blind men and the elephant
XML Schema
Norming
Re-examine first principles
Convergence
Abstract Model
Performing
Management Strategy (around COIs)
Next Steps (move this to conclusion)
Conclusion

4. Tuckman Model of Team Development
Bruce Tuckman
'Developmental sequence in small groups‘, 1965
Forming
The group comes together and gets to initially know one other and form as a group
Storming
A chaotic vying for leadership and trialing of group ideas/processes
Norming
Eventually agreement is reached on how the group operates.
Performing
The group practices its craft and becomes effective in meeting its objectives
Forming
Norming
Performing
Storming

5. Forming Wiki Three part working group Environment Open working group
Initial meeting: February 7th, 2005
Agency participation: 124
Designated Agency Reps: 30
Environment
Initial Volume and agency comments
Response to EO on sharing terrorist information
My brief on DRM for information sharing, article on XML.com, Semantic Web book
Open working group
# participants in workshops: 543
Highly interactive
# vendor product demonstrations on draft specifications: 4
Initial Educational Focus
What is the DRM?
Information Sharing Use Case
Wiki
EO13356
HSPD-11

6. The Role of the DRM DRM Purpose (from Volume 1) DRM Usage
“The DRM’s primary purpose is to promote the common identification, use, and appropriate sharing of data/information across the federal government.”
DRM Usage

7. What is the DRM? (1) - Describe
Answers: How do we make our data interoperable?
Logical Data Modeling.
Class, Property, Data Type, Association
Goals:
Unambiguous, Defined, Registered
Logical Data Model != RIM

8. What is the DRM? (2) - Discover
Answers: How does a class of users find relevant information?
Taxonomy
Article at XML.com “Formal Taxonomies for the Federal Government”
Context is more than categorization.
Data Asset Directory (Data Source Context?)
Business Rules

9. What is the DRM? (3) - Share
Answers: How do we effectively exchange and access information?
Sharing is Exchange and Access
National Information Exchange Model (NIEM)
Developing “Core” Interagency XML Exchanges
NIEM 0.1 on Sep 30

10. Information Sharing Use Case
Description
Sharing
Context
Org 1
Org 2
Data
Elems
Exchange
packages
Registry
COI Context
Core Context
Components
Assembly
Discovery 2 3 1

11. Information Sharing Scenario
Markle Report.
“Creating a Trusted Network for Homeland Security”
Vignette 3.
Scenario: Terrorists planning an attack on Rail lines using Chlorine gas

12. Storming The DRM was the last reference model for good reason…
The working group is treading on an area that directly affects Agency systems
Data Modeling and Knowledge Representation are evolving
How we stormed:
The communication gap
Blind men and the elephant
Asked to accelerate the schedule …
Cutting the Gordian Knot
You’re not from around here are you?

13. Communication Gap (just a techie thing?)
Data is Hidden behind the flashy GUI!
I am the Great and Powerful OZ (aka Application)…
“Pay no attention to that man behind the curtain”
…Yep, there’s the Data!

14. Blind Men and the Elephant…

15. It’s time to answer the mail!
The Gordian Knot…
“The biggest impediment to all-source analysis—to a greater likelihood of connecting the dots—is the human or systemic resistance to sharing information.” Commission Report, Pg 416, July 22, 2004
“This area has received increased attention but the federal government still faces formidable challenges sharing information among stakeholders in an appropriate and timely manner to minimize risk.” - GAO, “HIGH-RISK SERIES, An Update”, January 2005,
“Equally problematic, individual departments and agencies continue to act as though they own the information they collect, forcing other agencies to pry information from them.” - Commission on Intelligence Capabilities of the US in regard to WMD, Pg 14. March 31, 2005
“Bush’s choice to run Information Sharing Environment draws criticism” - GCN Article, June 3, 2005
“Info Sharing still the missing link.” - Federal Computer Week Article, June 6, 2005
“Intelligence Changes Still Thwarted By Lack Of Information Sharing.” - Information Week Article, June 7, 2005
“This committee has long been concerned about the lack of information sharing and analysis within the government and among the relevant public and private sector parties.” - Rep. Tom Davis, House Government Reform Committee. June 9, 2005.
“But we're not as convinced that information sharing between agencies, and the computer technology needed to analyze it, has improved.” - Boston Herald editorial staff, Saturday, June 11, 2005
It’s time to answer the mail!

16. Cutting the Gordian Knot…
Concept
Root Cause of the Problem:
Information Sharing must not stay an abstract concept.
Perfect is the Enemy of the Good
We must not wait for the perfect representation, the perfect governance process or the perfect registry.
The Solution: Concrete, Measurable Implementations
Concrete = Can be processed by software
Measurable = Can be compared and graded
Implementation = Specific to an Agency
This approach will enable accountability!

17. A New Concrete Approach
DRM XML Schema
XML
Schema
XML
Instances
<DRM>
<Description>
<Structured>
XXXX
</Structured>
</Description>
</DRM>
DRM Management Process =

18. DRM XML Schema - Example

19. You’re not from around here are you?
Data artifacts typically present in robust data architectures
Standardization
Areas
Categories
Standards
How does the schema approach fit with existing COIs?

20. Norming Leadership Open Processes are messy … They trade off
The group is converging on a shared understanding…
The group leads, DRM leadership and editors are working well together …
Thanks to: Karen Evans, Dick Burk, Kim Nelson, Mary McCaffrey, Susan Turnbull, Bryan Aucoin, Larry Fitzwater, James Feagans, Suzanne Acar, Brand Niemann and the entire DRM Team…
A DRM community has been formed!!
Open Processes
are messy …
They trade off
efficiency for adoption …
Success
Leadership
Goals

21. What is the DRM? Data Context: How do I find data? Data Sharing:
How do I exchange
data?
Data Description:
How do I
understand what
the data means?

22. Achieving this requires Data Fidelity…
Too much focus on production …
Look & Feel, GUI, WYSIWYG, Postscript, …
First 40 years in IT we’ve perfected graphics fidelity … In the next 40 years we will perfect data fidelity … let’s begin!
Tactical Goals:
Consumer-Centric
Information
Many-to-Many Interfaces
Knowledge Line-of-Sight
© Microsoft

23. DRM Abstract Model (Overview) -DRAFT
Data Description:
How do I
understand what
the data means?
Data Context:
How do I find data?
Data Sharing:
How do I exchange
data?

24. Another relational view …
Data
Asset
Query
Point
Model
Exchange
Package
FEA BRM
Sub-function
Taxonomy
describes
exposes
outputs
input for
Data Description
Data Sharing
Data Context
categorizes
aligns with

25. DRM Abstract Model (Data Context) - DRAFT
manages
DBMS
categorizes

26. Data Context Example Recreation.gov Scenario Simple Categorization
Recreation Area is part of the Inventory and type of Fixed Asset

27. DRM Abstract Model (Data Sharing) - DRAFT
Fixed
Exchange
Org A
Org B
Trigger
DBMS
Query
Response
Point

28. Data Sharing Matrix A division of exchanges by type of data sources
Structured data (relational)
Semi-structured and unstructured (“document”)
CRUD operations
Retrieval and Analysis
Each combination of exchange (1 -> 2, 2-> 3, 3 -> 1, etc.) defined.

29. Data Sharing Example Recreation.gov RecML Document Response RIDB
Query
Point
(CGI
Program)
RIDB
Query (Get String)

30. DRM Abstract Model (Description) - DRAFT
Data Assets
Metadata
Data model
Data
Structured
Semi- Structured
Unstructured

31. Data Description Example
Recreation.gov Data Model

32. Performing Team is charging into this phase! Business Driven Tailored
Technical actions are only based on desired business outcomes
Upcoming CIO Council Briefings
Tailored
Practical Implementation Approach
Phased Implementation
We are in the Home Stretch
Next Steps
Deliverables

33. The DRM is business-driven!
COI
Org 2
Org 3
Org 1
Agility
Increased Information Sharing
Common Understanding
Improved Discovery
Rapid Harmonization
Consistent Models
Screening
Emergency Management
Law Enforcement …
Intelligence
COIs are both
Intra and Inter-
Organization
BRM
DRM
Cross- Agency
Business
Need

34. DRM Implementation is tailored – DRAFT
Level 1: Cross-COI
Level 2: COI
Level 3: Transaction
Analogy for Levels of Specificity
© Google
Levels of Specificity and Harmonization under consideration…
People View (on right)
Cross-COI
COI
COI-member
Process View … Harmonization Continuum
Level 1. Describe Data Assets.
Level 2. Categorize.
Level 3. Share.
Level 4. Harmonize.
Level 5. Measure (Optimize).
Content View
Taxonomies
Common Entities
Common Exchanges
Phased Implementation Plan

35. Home stretch for the DRM Working Group
Deliverables
Create DRM Version 1.5
Chapter: Overview (Michael Daconta)
Chapter: Categorization/Context (Jim Feagans)
Chapter: Sharing (Bryan Aucoin)
Chapter: Description (Larry Fitzwater)
Illustrative examples
Address submitted agency comments
Glossary of terms
DRM Management Strategy (Suzanne Acar)
DRM Implementation And Testing Strategy (Brand Niemann)
Milestones
First Draft: August 31st.
2nd Quarterly Public Forum: TBD.
Second Draft: September 19th.
Third Draft: October 10th.
Release to CIO Council: October 17th.
Release to OMB: November 17th.

36. Conclusion As We May Think1…
“Our ineptitude in getting at the record is largely caused by the artificiality of systems of indexing. … The human mind does not work that way. It operates by association. … Selection by association, rather than indexing, may yet be mechanized.” Vannevar Bush, 1945
The DRM represents an unprecedented opportunity
These are systemic problems … the status quo is unacceptable.
The DRM Working Group is now Norming and Performing!!!
A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step. - Lao-Tzu
All Aboard!!
1 © Vannevar Bush
© Ocean Cruise Guides

37. Questions?