Church Data Standards

Overview

Church Data Standards defines a shared vocabulary for the records the church relies on most: members, churches, institutions, employees, and finances. Each key field gets one agreed definition, format, and owner, so a report from one region can be compared with a report from another.

The Data Governance team coordinates the work with the world divisions and the systems that hold the data, so the standards reflect how the data is really used.

What the project delivers

• A data dictionary: plain-language definitions for every key record and field.

• Shared code lists: one list of entity types, roles, and statuses used by all systems.

• Quality rules: checks that flag missing or conflicting values before they reach a report.

Timeline

1. Inventory: list the records and fields that reports depend on. Complete.

2. Define: agree definitions and owners with the divisions. In progress.

3. Adopt: map each core system to the standards and fix the gaps. Planned.

4. Maintain: a review cycle so the standards keep up with changes. Planned.

Questions

Use the contact form to reach the Data Governance team about this project.