Some people may wonder why this site’s domain is dataechosystems.com or why this is the home of the data overlords? In order to answer the second part of the question, we really need to understand the answer to the first.

Before any of today’s modern communication tools, the simplest way to transmit information between two people was direct interaction. Living things communicate through signals and people are the same way. The earliest humans used body signals and as the world around them expanded, they added verbal then written communication. To date, the only sure way to get information across to someone is in person and direct. We have all played the telephone game as children where one person passes a simple message to the next and so on. By the time that message gets back to the original communicator, it sounds nothing like the original. There are many reasons for a failure to get your message across in the game. Other than the original speaker, no one knows what was meant by the words. Individual bias of each speaker and listener impact the word meaning and the message. Of course you also have to account for how quietly or loudly one passes the message. Now imagine a room full of kids trying to listen to and pass the same message to everyone at the same time. The sound is echoing off some things and getting absorbed by others causing all kinds of distortion as it interacts with the world.

The same thing happens in today’s world with data. The applications, tools, formats, and databases that make up the data ecosystem all impact the original message. Most of us will walk day one into work and not find a data ecosystem, but what I term an “echo” system. The original data and messages have been sent in many formats to many places, showing up in reports and tables, each having been distorted by business rules, data type differences between source and target, and the interpretation of each and every thing and person that interacted with it. It has bounced around so much and for so long, it is hard to understand the original meaning or even where it came from.

So, how do we avoid building “echo” systems and start the work to rebuilding our environment into an ecosystem? Well, first thing we have to do as data professionals is admit we caused the problem in the first place. Let’s face facts. We love data and we want everyone else to love it too. In order to make that happen, we can’t say no when someone wants it and they want it now. We copy it everywhere, create report upon report to present it a million different ways, and move it to the newest database platform or application without ever considering the problems that can cause. Before anyone sends me a note, that it was out of their control and the business demanded this be done and done without documentation, I will argue that as a data professional it is not only your job to educate data consumers on the echo effect, but solution an ecosystem that minimizes it. Sometimes, that means having a tough conversation. The truth is that you were just too excited and forgot to say “wait, lets take a moment to do this right”.

So where do we start? We need to take a moment and learn about the things available to us to minimize the echo effect. The things that are a part of a well designed ecosystem include master data management, data governance, case specific data architecture standards, database platforms that are flexible, and integration tools that can support the multitude of ways data needs to move. Implementing these things the correct way will allow your ecosystem to support the ever changing needs of your data consumers. Failing to do so will hinder your organization and limit your ability to change with the times.

We have one final question to answer right now. What in the world is a data overlord. A few years ago, my son while in 1st grade was asked to explain what his dad did for work. He wrote that his dad was a data overlord. He told his teacher that I tell people what they can and can’t do with their data. When I got promoted, my kids asked if I wanted a cake that said “Congrats Senior Data Overlord”. The truth is that I don’t tell people what they can or can’t do with their data. I provide them the rules and ecosystem so they can do what they want with their data and not regret their decisions.

I plan on this blog covering and providing many of the things needed to build the right ecosystem for your organization. In my next installment, I will talk about maybe the most important thing needed, the role of a data solutions architect in your organization. What does one do and what skills do they need to have?