Playbook: Adoption Guide
Readiness
Is your organization ready to adopt the Better Deal for Data? Before you adopt the BD4D Standard, it’s critical to understand the role of Your Data in your organization. These questions will guide you through key considerations.
1. Read through the BD4D Commitments and their explanatory text.
- Is your organization aligned in mission and principle with Better Deal for Data?
- Is data used primarily for social benefit, or are there other factors?
- Can your data practices be transparent enough to ensure that there are no surprises to the individuals and communities you serve?
2. Review your data practices.
- What types of data do you collect? Many organizations collect similar general categories of data, such as:
- case or client management
- demographic
- financial
- lived experience, or social determinant factors
- personally identifiable information
- program activities, usage, impacts, indicators, outcomes, or performance
- workforce or volunteer management
- Is data that qualifies as Your Data under the BD4D Standard collected directly from the individuals or communities you serve? Is information gathered about them from other sources?
- How is that data administered? Who accesses, manages, or uses it?
- Is any of that data shared externally, or processed by third-party vendors? How?
3. Consider your data stakeholders.
- Do the individuals and communities you serve know how you analyze, use, and share their data? Have they given implicit or explicit permission for you to do so?
- Who is directly, or indirectly, affected or impacted by your data practices?
- How do you communicate with these “data stakeholders”? Have you engaged those whose data you collect to understand their concerns, sensitivities, and perceived risks about your use of their data?
4. Evaluate your data policies.
- Do you have a data privacy policy? Do you have data use agreements with your partners and vendors? If not, is it feasible for you to do so?
- Are your staff, volunteers, advisors, board members, and contractors aware of your data policies? Are they bound by confidentiality or non-disclosure agreements?
- What local, regional (e.g. state or provincial), national, or international data protection and privacy laws or regulations apply to your organization?
Sensitive Data
Implementation