Pandemic Response Rapid Response Data Catalog

A division of the mayoral office in a major metropolitan area needed to elevate their data governance in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. This division is devoted to the expansion of economic opportunities in a major metropolitan area. To accomplish their goal, the division works to facilitate innovative product development and cross-agency data sharing, making it more convenient for residents to access the resources and support they need.

To advance equity and inclusion due to the negative impacts of COVID-19 on communities of color, the client needed to expand their data sets to identify systemic factors driving disproportionate outcomes, evaluate policy proposals meant to alleviate adverse effects and develop evidence-based programs that support an equitable recovery.

PruTech built a standalone data catalog to store data into Airtable using a user-friendly web UI and a submission form built with open-source software. This data catalog compiled a variety of relevant information, including data source, summary description, city agency, open text space to list, and document known issues, source type (e.g., public, private, open, and commercial) and assigned contact person.

This data catalog provided agency users with a single access point to search and contribute data sets and the ability to share data sets with internal agency users or external users. The catalog could also flag content as private or public, making private data sets accessible only by internal users via application authentication or authorization. Public data sets, on the other hand, remained available to all users—including citizens—without the need for authentication or authorization.

PruTech’s rapid response data catalog solution significantly improved the division’s ability to securely collect, store, and analyze data in a collaborative manner. Content contribution became quick and seamless thanks to the intake UI and submission form. The system’s search functionality included filtering, tagging, and printing capabilities, boosting operational efficiency. Additionally, features such as user management, authentication, and authorization gave their data sets an added layer of security.

With their improved governance of data usage and access rights, the division attained a level of collaboration that enabled them to meet the intensified demands of the pandemic era.