Open Data Services
Open data only helps once somebody can find it, understand it and is allowed to reuse it. I accompany the way there: from the question of which holdings belong outside, through formats and licences, to a publication process that survives everyday work.
What it is for
For public bodies, companies, associations and organisations that hold data and want, or have, to open it. Also for those where something is already running and nobody is retrieving the figures.
How I go about it
First the review. Which holdings exist, who maintains them, what may leave the house, and what is delicate legally or in substance.
Then the strategy. Goals, priorities, an action plan with a sequence. Along with the classification: what the law demands, what data protection demands, and where anonymisation helps.
Then the technology. Choosing a portal and tools, or doing without: often it is enough to describe data in line with the standards and let existing portals collect it. That is exactly what the Open Data Wizard is for.
Then the data itself. Cleaning, structuring, standardising, adding metadata, assigning a licence. And the question of which datasets come first.
Finally the operation. Who updates what and when, out of which system, and how anyone notices when it stalls. On request, an introduction and working sessions for the departments.
What is not part of it
No refining data for stock. I do not prepare everything that is there, only what there is demand or an obligation for. The rest waits.
No permanent upkeep by me either. The data stays with your departments, and the process is built to fit in there. If it only works while I am around, it is built wrong.
Frequent questions
Do we need our own portal?
Not necessarily. Often it is enough to describe data in a standards-compliant way and let existing portals harvest it, which is exactly what the Open Data Wizard is for.
Which data is suitable?
Anything without personal reference and without third-party rights. Whatever falls in between we settle beforehand, with anonymisation if needed.
Who maintains the data afterwards?
Your departments. The publication process is built to fit existing workflows.