Data as a Product for large enterprises

Beyond the Monolithic Data Platform: Building a Self-Service Data Mesh for the Enterprise

Here's a pattern we've consistently observed while working with large enterprises: As organizations scale, their data challenges grow exponentially. We're not talking about the typical problems that any company faces with data – we're talking about the unique challenges that emerge when you have thousands of users across hundreds of business units, all needing to work with data in sophisticated ways.

Why Large Enterprises Are Different

Let me share what we've learned from our enterprise customers. When you're operating at that scale, everything changes. It's not just about having more data or more users – it's about managing complexity at a fundamentally different level. In these environments:

• A "simple" schema change can affect hundreds of downstream processes
• Central data teams become overwhelmed with requests from dozens of business units
• Business users, despite their expertise, feel powerless to work with their own data
• Innovation slows to a crawl as teams wait for central approval and implementation

The Hidden Cost of Centralization

As data practitioners in large enterprises, we've gotten pretty good at discussing traditional forms of technical debt - poorly optimized queries, inadequate documentation, or suboptimal data models. But there's a more insidious form of technical debt lurking in our enterprises: organizational data debt.

This debt manifests in familiar ways:

• Monolithic data platforms where every change requires central team approval
• Unclear ownership of datasets leading to quality issues
• Brittle pipelines where changes in one place cause cascading failures
• Shadow IT where teams build unofficial solutions out of frustration
• Documentation that's always out of date because it's everyone's (and therefore no one's) responsibility

Why We're Building Something Different

This is why we're fundamentally rethinking how a data platform should work for large enterprises. We're not just implementing data mesh principles – we're building them into the DNA of our platform in a way that makes them accessible and intuitive for everyone.

Domains: Your Team's Data Home

In our platform, a domain isn't just a technical concept – it's a living workspace where teams can truly own their data. Imagine walking into a digital space that's:

• Completely yours: Your team's private workspace for data experimentation and development
• Fully equipped: All the tools you need for data management, right at your fingertips
• Intuitively organized: No complex technical setup – just start working with your data
• Self-contained: Your own compute resources, storage, and governance rules
• Observable: Built-in monitoring and alerts that make sense for your domain

Data Products: Sharing Made Simple

We've reimagined data products to be as easy to create and share as documents in a modern workspace. Each data product comes with:

• Version Control: Track changes and manage updates with a familiar interface
• Quality Assurance: Automated checks and validations built right in
• Clear Documentation: Templates and tools to make documentation a breeze
• Impact Analysis: See who's using your data and how changes might affect them
• Change Management: Simple workflows for updating and communicating changes

The Self-Service Revolution

Here's what makes our approach different: Everything is designed for self-service. We're not just providing technical capabilities – we're making them accessible to everyone who needs to work with data.

Want to create a new dataset? There's no need to write complex SQL or understand intricate system architectures. Our intuitive interface guides you through the process:

1. Start in Your Domain
   • Choose your domain workspace
   • Select the type of data asset you want to create
   • Use visual tools to define your data structure
2. Develop and Test
   • Work freely in your private space
   • Use visual data transformation tools
   • Test and validate with immediate feedback
3. Share as a Data Product
   • Convert internal datasets to data products with a few clicks
   • Automatically generate documentation templates
   • Set up sharing and access controls visually

Real Benefits for Real Teams

This approach is already transforming how large enterprises work with data:

1. For Business Teams
   • Create and manage datasets without waiting for IT
   • Experiment freely without breaking things for others
   • Share data products confidently with other teams
2. For Data Engineers
   • Focus on innovation instead of request management
   • Build reliable, reusable data products
   • Implement changes without fear of unknown impacts
3. For Data Architects
   • Design domain boundaries that make sense for your organization
   • Implement governance that enables rather than restricts
   • Scale data operations without scaling complexity

Looking Forward

This isn't just another data platform – it's a fundamental reimagining of how large enterprises should work with data. We're building it because we've seen firsthand how crucial it is to empower business teams while maintaining the governance and reliability that enterprises require.

The future of enterprise data isn't about making central teams bigger or processes more complex. It's about giving power back to the people who understand the data best, while providing the guardrails and tools they need to use that power effectively.

What challenges are you facing in your enterprise data journey? How are you balancing the need for autonomy with the requirements of scale? We'd love to hear your thoughts and experiences as we continue building the future of enterprise data platforms.