National Guard Bureau hires its first chief data officer

The National Guard Bureau just hired its first chief data officer to reform and manage its data, according to a senior official.

Speaking today at a Defense Writers Group, Gen. Daniel Hokanson, chief of the National Guard Bureau, told reporters the CDO will, in part, help the Guard utilize data it may not be taking the best advantage of.

“We recently hired someone to help us manage all of the data that we have and also . . . find out those things that we’re doing [if] there’s a better way to do it, and also help identify those things that we just don’t need to do anymore because they’re no longer relevant,” he said.

The Guard tries to use data to “help be predictive whenever possible,” Hokanson added, citing the California and Colorado wildfires as an example.

The Guard was able to gather data showing fire hotspots to the Forest Service and local fire departments, he said, which helped them “better manage data.”

Hokanson declined to name the CDO.