BATTLE CREEK, Mich. -- Several DLIS employees recently participated in an Information Quality course offered by Dr. Richard Wang, director of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology Information Quality program, at the Defense Logistics Information Service, headquartered in the Hart-Dole-Inouye Federal Center here.
Wang is the author of many publications about data quality. During the course, he offered his expertise and recommended tools to assist DLIS in the continuing development of its Data Quality program.
The Quality Database is designed to ensure DLIS customers have the best data. Ongoing training is meant to reinforce DLIS' application of well-recognized, rule-based strategies and approaches in the performance of data integrity and cleansing initiatives. According to Elaine Chapman, chief of the DLIS Data Integrity Branch, DLIS' various divisions collaborate to provide customers with the best products containing the highest quality data. Around DLIS, many people feel that data is the "DNA" of Defense Department IT systems. Since the workforce here provides many of those systems, quality is important to every strand of that DNA in order to have a quality product.
Besides Wang, other experts also spoke during the program. Michael Mielke from Germany’s German Rail and James Funk, chief information architect for S.C. Johnson Company, provided instruction in addition to many working examples of data quality projects. Together, they added to DLIS’ data quality expertise. Wang compares organizational data quality efforts to building a house: “you cannot build walls until you have a foundation.”
Each participant was asked to present a data quality problem to the class. Together, each data quality issue was discussed in great detail. The discussion will allow each participant to submit a final report to Wang on his or her data quality issue. This report will include a detailed description of the problem, the steps taken over the next six months to resolve the problem and the resolution results.
Upon completion of the data quality report, the participants will receive a Data Quality Certification from MIT Information Quality program, allowing them to attend an advanced data quality program, available only to those with demonstrated capability in implementing data quality projects.
A field activity of the Defense Logistics Agency, DLIS creates, obtains, manages and integrates data from a variety of sources. It shares this data through user-friendly products and services that support logistics operations throughout the Defense Department, other federal agencies and elements of the private sector. DLIS' expertise in federal, U.S. military, NATO and other international cataloging and information management makes it an important contributor to electronic commerce between the U.S. government and its many suppliers. For additional information about DLIS, visit www.dla.mil/dlis or call (269) 961-7019.
Defense Logistics Agency provides supply support, and technical and logistics services to the U.S. military services and several federal civilian agencies. Headquartered at Fort Belvoir, Va., the agency is the one source for nearly every consumable item, whether for combat readiness, emergency preparedness or day-to-day operations. More information about DLA is available at www.dla.mil.
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