Understanding and Protecting Data
A conversation with Jack Berkowitz, the Chief Data Officer at ADP
In this Spotlight, Jack Berkowitz, the Chief Data Officer at ADP discusses the importance of unlocking data silos to share and understand information while still protecting the client’s privacy. We will then shift gears to share the secrets of how ADP evaluates data to know if a company is genuinely seeking diversity, equity, and inclusion. We will conclude with a section devoted to why the pivot to the cloud added the pace and framework to accelerate their business.
“Our challenge, and I think it's a challenge of the industry, is how do we put an ordinance around the data, the security, the privacy, the ethics of using that information.”
Unlocking Data Silos
Data is our middle name, corny but true, and we deal with massive amounts of data. One of our focus areas is making sure everybody in the organization, all 58,000 associates, understands the information we gather. Over the years, we noticed an interesting dichotomy forming with data silos and protection. We wanted to unlock the value of data and still honor the wishes of client privacy. The key to unlocking this data is the governance layer we created over the data we collect. The governance we implemented allowed the data silos to dissipate while protecting clients' data. The data we collect is well understood and respected at all times.
By unlocking the data silos within the company, we can now leverage this data with integrity for optimal sharing, while at the same time protecting and honoring the wishes of our clients as we move towards a single global data platform to accelerate the way our teams serve our clients.
"There's a need in society to continue to push forward with creating an inclusive environment for everybody, and the first way you do that is by measuring it. If you can't measure it, then you have no idea if you're making improvements to people's situation or not."
Data, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion
A large portion of what we're doing right now at ADP provides client companies the ability to measure how they're doing with diversity, equity, and inclusion. Not only to measure it internally but then use benchmarks to compare themselves to other companies related to DEI.
We ask questions like, "Assess how well are you doing in creating environments for people? Are you creating opportunities for the people you bring in to thrive and grow inside their organization?" Invitations are nice, but participation, growth opportunities, a voice, and a level playing field will create an environment safe for all people.
Why We Moved to the AWS Cloud
In mid-2019, we stepped back to study how we processed the data on-prem. Initially, we had many problems just managing the demand of it all. We had engineers staying up to 2:00 or 3:00 in the morning to get time on the systems, just to timeshare.
We worked with AWS, and we said, "Hey, we want to move our data into the cloud." And we did it for three fundamental reasons.
The Benefits of the Cloud
Re-Architecting Data in the Cloud
We launched our first capability with AWS in February 2020, then COVID hit. We began to process all of the data with Workforce and Advance Pay by the end of March. We had to be up and running with reports and other capabilities to help our company operate the loans and small business capabilities to the tens of thousands of businesses we partner with. This urgency drove awareness about how we could use the cloud for further innovation.
As the speed of innovation increases, we see the need to put the right governance frameworks in place to use the information properly. We stood up an AI and data ethics board at ADP, where both internal and external experts weigh in on the proper governance framework to implement as we move forward. It takes time to build these frameworks initially, but data reveals an overall increase in pace once in place.
“People think, “Well if I’m going to have guardrails, I’m going to slow down.” And it’s exactly the opposite. By creating structure, your people can get to it, and you feel more confident. So you can execute very quickly.”
About the Leaders
Jack Berkowitz
Chief Data Officer, ADP
Jack Berkowitz joined ADP in August 2018 and currently serves as Chief Data Officer. Jack previously served as the Senior Vice President of Product Development for DataCloud, ADP’s People Analytics, and Compensation Benchmarking solution. In addition, as the leader of the DataCloud team, Jack is responsible for ADP’s vision and approach to Artificial Intelligence, and the development of Cloud-native machine learning solutions that span across ADP’s HCM product suites.
Bryan Landerman
AWS Enterprise Strategist
Bryan Landerman joined AWS as an Enterprise Strategist and Evangelist in February 2019. In this role, Bryan works with enterprise executives to share experiences and strategies for how the cloud can help them increase speed and agility while devoting more of their resources to their customers. Prior to joining AWS, Bryan was the CTO at Cox Automotive.