Ketenbureau i-Sociaal Domein

Challenge

The social domain is one of the most complex chains in Dutch government: municipalities, care providers, care offices, the CIZ, the SVB, and central government exchange data daily on clients, decisions, allocations, and declarations. This happens through the iStandaarden (iWmo, iJw, iWlz, iPgb), but the concepts behind those standards are not always defined consistently. The Ketenbureau i-Sociaal Domein coordinates standardisation in this chain and needs someone who can carry both the semantic and the process track.

What I do

As data standards advisor at the Ketenbureau, I work on three interconnected tracks:

Unity of Language. The social domain has dozens of concepts that are defined slightly differently in each law and each system: “client”, “provider”, “allocation”, “notification”. Together with the Ministry of Health (VWS), VNG, VECOZO, Nictiz, and Zorginstituut Nederland, I work on a shared conceptual framework that makes these differences explicit and, where possible, harmonises them. This track is made visible through inspiration sessions (the first on 12 May 2025) and the annual Week van de Standaarden.

GIZO. In collaboration with Zorginstituut Nederland, I develop the Gemeenschappelijk Informatiemodel Zorg en Ondersteuning (GIZO), which semantically connects the iStandaarden and aligns with the Gemeentelijk Gegevensmodel. This project is described separately on the GIZO project page.

Messaging standards development. Advisory work on the further development of the messaging standards managed through the Ketenbureau, including simplification and modernisation of existing message exchange.

Key design decisions

• Semantics as the chain connector. The iStandaarden originated historically per law. Unity of Language does not start by rewriting the standards, but by making explicit where concepts converge and where they do not, so that chain partners know when they mean the same thing.
• Broad support as a precondition. The social domain includes both public and private parties, each with their own systems and interests. Inspiration sessions and the Week van de Standaarden are deliberately deployed as instruments to build support before standards are formalised.
• Alignment with the GGM. Municipalities are the linchpin of the social domain; their data model (the GGM) is the logical anchor point for harmonisation. By connecting GIZO and the GGM, the bridge is built between chain standards and municipal information management.

Results and adoption

The work at the Ketenbureau contributes to a coherent semantic layer beneath the social domain: from shared concepts to harmonised information models. The Unity of Language inspiration sessions bring together parties that normally operate in separate forums; the Week van de Standaarden makes the work visible to the broader chain. The programme continues through 2025 and 2026.