Spurred on in part by that report, federal agencies are starting to get their act together on XML. An XML Work Group in the federal government offers a forum for sharing ideas, and has drafted guidelines for the use of XML in agencies. The group has also started work on an XML registry to document current uses of XML by different agencies (I took part in the research for that registry).
Leadership needed most of all
While these steps with XML are useful, the really hard work lies ahead. Using XML to help the different agencies within DHS share knowledge, as well as the outside organizations on which DHS depends (like the intelligence agencies), will require a common vocabulary for the exchange of information. Many industries have developed these common vocabularies, called metadata in geek-speak, for XML business messages in finance, travel, health care, and retail for example.
But there is no magic wand that can develop these vocabularies. They can happen only when the stakeholders in the process work together to make them happen. And to get to that stage will require a dramatic change in organizational culture as well as strong leadership. No technology can overcome the turf-protecting, information-hiding, and finger-pointing that has characterized much of the homeland security effort up to now.
Here is where the agencies can learn another lesson from industry. If Sun Microsystems, IBM and Microsoft can collaborate to develop Web services or establish the Electronic Business XML (ebXML) standards, why can't federal agencies collaborate on homeland defense?
Links:
Gartner Inc. analysis of DHS. http://www4.gartner.com/DisplayDocument?...
ITAA announcement on DHS. http://www.itaa.org/news/pr/PressRelease...
General Accounting Office report on XML: http://www.gao.gov/new.items/d02327.pdf
Article on federal XML guidelines. http://www.xml.com/pub/a/2002/02/06/fedg...
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