In today’s evolving digital landscape, data reigns supreme as the foundation for decision-making, innovation and transformative growth. It has become the fundamental value driver in commercial enterprises, startups and even nation states. The public sector is among the largest producers of data globally, generating a diverse array of information types, including demographic, geospatial, economic, healthcare, environmental, educational and legal data. The challenge is aligning the processes and resources of the government enterprise to maximize value from its data.
To do that, it helps to think of data in terms of gravity. To increase gravity, we increase mass. To increase mass requires more volume (more data) or density (more data connections). And like gravity, data value lies not only in its existence, but in how we harness it to propel organizations forward on the digital journey. So, imagine data as a gravitational force that attracts opportunities, insights and advancements for organizations that harness its potential. In essence, the more data collected and the deeper we delve into its relationships, the greater its gravitational pull — on innovation, efficiency and strategic decision-making.
Gravitational Pull
An example of this gravitational power was demonstrated during the COVID-19 pandemic, when major U.S. airlines leveraged their loyalty program data as collateral to secure multi-billion-dollar loans during the ensuing economic crisis. (For example, United’s MileagePlus program was valued at ~$20 billion.) The airlines’ data proved to be worth more than their market valuations at the time. What the airlines did was immediately recognize the gravity of their data and mobilized it to secure their financial future during a crisis.
One of the best strategies for increasing data’s gravity is to visualize the government enterprise as a data network or cloud. Identifying data sources, consumers (including application systems), and pipelines — as nodes and connections — provides a way to map where and how data gravity can be increased. And like any network it can be reconfigured, modified and scaled to provide more volume, better flow and more efficient usage.
What’s Your Data’s Gravity?
As public-sector organizations embark on data-driven journeys and begin moving toward the AI frontier, it’s critical to understand their data networks and the gravity that can be created by identifying, mobilizing and harnessing more data into how the government operates. Asking thoughtful questions, for example: What does my data network look like and where are the key interconnections? How mobile is my data and what improves its ability to flow? What data is ready for use by key systems and applications? Who can I partner with to expand the volume and diversity of my data? And, where could I get more value from my data?
Embracing the analogy of data as gravity inside a network is a simple but powerful way to visualize how to create a data-centric operation that becomes the cornerstone of strategic advantage.
Winston Chang serves as Snowflake’s Global Public Sector CTO. He supports global government and education ecosystems for modernizing data practices. He is an expert in organizational transformation derived from data, AI/ML and innovation. His personal mission is to help government and educational institutions leverage data for maximum societal impact.
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