CHIEF DIGITAL AND ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE OFFICER
9010 Defense Pentagon
Washington, D.C. 20301-9010
MEMORANDUM FOR SECRETARIES OF THE MILITARY DEPARTMENTS
(ATTN: CHIEF INFORMATION OFFICERS, CHIEF DATA
OFFICERS)
CHAIRMAN OF THE JOINT CHIEFS OF STAFF
(ATTN: DIRECTOR OF COMMAND, CONTROL,
COMMUNICATIONS AND COMPUTERS/CYBER J6)
UNDER SECRETARIES OF DEFENSE
COMMANDERS OF THE COMBATANT COMMANDS
(ATTN: CHIEF INFORMATION OFFICERS, CHIEF DATA
OFFICERS)
DIRECTORS OF DEFENSE AGENCIES
(ATTN: CHIEF INFORMATION OFFICERS, CHIEF DATA
OFFICER)
DIRECTORS OF DOD FIELD ACTIVITIES
(ATTN: CHIEF INFORMATION OFFICERS, CHIEF DATA
OFFICERS)
SUBJECT: Department of Defense Metadata Guidance
The enclosed metadata guidance consolidates and clarifies existing policy and
requirements from a variety of Department of Defense (DoD) and Federal sources. Clear and
consistent metadata management underpins the secure, interoperable data environments needed
for decision advantage and is essential for implementing the DoD Data Decrees, DoD Data
Strategy, and DoD Digital Modernization Strategy. Metadata management also supports data
practitioners throughout the Military Departments, Combatant Commands, Defense Agencies,
and Field Activities as they build data-centric, zero-trust environments across the enterprise.
Generating and applying metadata consistent with the enclosed guidance aligns with the
DoD Data Strategy and foundational interagency specifications. In addition, cataloging and
publishing metadata will bring valued insights to data consumers and supports data
interoperability across DoD environments. A data asset will acquire metadata, whether mission
or functional, throughout its lifecycle. The enclosed guidance outlines a baseline of minimum
metadata to be applied initially. As data is shared, additional metadata may be applied.
Implementation of this guidance in the Department with significant technical debt will
not occur overnight; however, we must start on the journey and identify any barriers in the way
of achieving our ability to be a data-centric organization. The Chief Digital and Artificial
Intelligence Office (CDAO), as the advocate for this guidance, is interested in component
feedback on implementation best practices and systemic blockers. The CDAO will actively seek
to remove barriers to implementation, using the CDAO Council as the forum to align and
accelerate our application of metadata.
