Community of Interest (2Z8N)
Guidance to COIs for Implementing Net-Centric Data Sharing. (See description below) (3BCM)
The Community of Interest (or COI) is a construct used by the Department of Defense as part of the DoD's Net-Centric Data Strategy. COIs are defined as "a collaborative group of users who must exchange information in pursuit of their shared goals, interests, missions, or business processes and who therefore must have shared vocabulary for the information they exchange." (31JJ)
COIs are organizing constructs created to assist in implementing net-centric information sharing. Their members are responsible for making information visible, accessible, understandable, and promoting trust – all of which contribute to the data interoperability necessary for effective information sharing. The focus for COIs is to gain semantic and structural agreement on shared information. For COIs to be effective, their scope—that is, the sphere of their shared agreements—should be as narrow as reasonable. (31JK)
This Guide which is also called 8320.2G, provides a set of activities that communities of interest (CoIs) can use in order to implement the goals of DoD Directive 8320.2, “Data Sharing in a Net-Centric Department of Defense”. (6NU)
The goal of the Guide is to provide a set of activities that members of CoIs and associated leadership can use to implement the key policies of the Net-Centric Data Strategy and ultimately increase mission effectiveness across the Department of Defense. The guide outlines the DoD's definition of Communities of Interest (CoIs), how they interact with the Department and portfolio management initiatives to drive implementation of information sharing, and specific steps needed to make data visible, accessible, understandable, and to promote trust. (70X)