AI Readiness Starts With Data Readiness

Artificial intelligence (AI) holds the promise to transform how government agencies analyze information, deliver services and make decisions. But even the most sophisticated AI tools will fail without a fundamental resource: data. AI is only as good as the data it receives.

Making data AI-ready is not just an IT responsibility. All users have an important role to play in making sure AI solutions can accurately use the data that the systems they rely on and oversee hold. Getting ready for AI means doing the often-unheralded work of ensuring information is accurate, accessible, and fit for purpose.

Start With a Data Inventory

Before deploying an AI tool, agencies need to understand what data they have and where it resides. Data is often spread across legacy systems, spreadsheets, databases, departmental applications and external sources. Some of it may be duplicated, while other information may be difficult to locate or locked in formats that are challenging for AI systems to process.

Create an inventory of major data assets needed for current and near-term AI use. The inventory should include data owners, formats, sources, age, sensitivity and intended uses. This provides a foundation for determining which datasets are most valuable for AI initiatives and which need attention first.

Clean Up Inconsistent Data

AI systems can identify patterns in data, but inconsistent naming conventions, missing fields, duplicate records, and conflicting values can all undermine results.

To prepare data for accurate and effective use by AI, consider:

• Standardizing formats: Use consistent conventions for dates, addresses, agency names, and other recurring fields.
• Removing duplicates: Identify and reconcile duplicate records so they do not distort analysis.
• Addressing missing information: Determine which fields are essential and establish processes for adding missing data or tagging incomplete records.
• Validating accuracy: Review critical data to ensure accuracy and create processes for correcting errors.
• Tracking data freshness: Document when information was last updated and establish refresh schedules as well as schedules for archiving out-of-date information.

Not every dataset needs to be perfect before it can be used. But agencies should understand data gaps and how they may impact AI outputs.

Make Data Discoverable and Usable

High-quality data cannot make an impact if it cannot be found. Agencies should use common metadata standards to describe what datasets contain, where they came from, how they can be used and who is responsible for maintaining them.

Where possible, data should be stored in structured, interoperable formats rather than isolated documents or proprietary systems. Data catalogs, APIs, and shared standards can make information easier to access while reducing the need to repeatedly prepare the same datasets for different projects.

Build Governance Into the Process

Data governance — how an organization ensures its data is accurate, secure, accessible and used appropriately — has long been a critical practice. The use of AI has only amplified its importance.

Data governance policies should establish rules for access, retention, privacy, security and appropriate use. Developing and implementing these policies requires collaboration among program offices, records managers, privacy officials, security teams, legal experts and data stewards.

Treat AI Readiness as an Ongoing Practice

Data preparation is not a one-time project. Information changes and systems evolve. With those changes, the risk of AI errors increases. Agencies should monitor data quality over time, assign clear ownership, and periodically reassess whether datasets remain appropriate for their intended AI uses.

The agencies best positioned to benefit from AI will not necessarily be those with the newest tools. They will be those that have invested in understanding, managing and improving the data that makes those tools useful.

As the founder of GovEvents and GovWhitePapers, Kerry is on a mission to help businesses interact with, evolve, and serve the government. With 25+ years of experience in the information technology and government industries, Kerry drives the overall strategy and oversees operations for both companies. She has also served in executive marketing roles at a number of government IT providers.

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