When 2 + 2 = 5.
Today, we want to shed light on an often-overlooked area in many organizations: the gap between the data management / BI team and the integration team.
While you may be focused on writing code, building applications, or analyzing data, bridging this gap can allow you to capitalize on a lot of synergies that will benefit you in your daily work.
What if you could optimize your integration processes, ensuring that the correct data is readily available for you when you need it?
By collaborating closely with the data team, you can do exactly that. Collaborate on which data you need for integration purposes and what the data team needs for analytical purposes.
It will also give you a better understanding of their specific data requirements and capabilities.
Often the two coincide making some of the work you do redundant.
When collaborating you can get one shared space where you can have domain-related data placed for both purposes.
It’s a win-win.
Streamlined data integration
Working closely with the data department, you can tap into their expertise regarding data structures, formats, and quality standards.
This collaboration helps you streamline your integration processes, making them more efficient and serving multiple needs, not just the operational integration need.
Sounds good?
As a result, you often will only need to maintain one pipeline of data in and out of a given source system since you will make sure to make it available to the data team as well.
As a bonus, you have also created a more robust infrastructure with fewer ways of touching source systems.
Improved data operations
Collaboration with the data department allows you to establish a shared foundation for your data to be used both operationally and analytically.
The benefit?
You’ll be able to use some of the disciplines the data team already does (i.e. extracting data on a scheduled basis), in your integrations too.
So you can ease the pressure on your source systems by not querying historic data that’s already available in your shared space, (also known as data hub, data platform, ingest area, staging area, or cache layer. )
That’s right.
Enhanced source system understanding
Let’s jump into the benefits for the data management / BI team.
Just imagine that you could gain valuable insights into the organization’s data landscape…
Wouldn’t it be great if you could
Well, now you can!
By getting this knowledge, you can better analyze and interpret the data, providing more insightful and informed recommendations to decision-makers.
This enhances your credibility and empowers you to contribute more effectively to strategic initiatives.
What have you got to lose?
Increased data governance
But it doesn’t stop there.
Collaborating with the integration team allows you to jointly develop and enforce consistent data governance policies and procedures.
By aligning efforts, you can:
This strengthens your data governance framework, ensuring data integrity, privacy, and compliance with regulations. It also enhances your role as a steward of data within the organization and your specific domain.
Domain-driven architecture
And one more thing:
Bridging the gap between the data and integration teams fosters a culture of innovation and domain-centered knowledge.
Through collaboration with the integration team, you gain exposure to new data sources and technologies. This exposure also allows you to focus more closely on the specific data domain you’re a part of.
By doing your data structures and architecture and working in a domain-oriented setup, you ensure that it’s always the people most knowledgeable about a certain area that has the power of decision.
This will also be your (potential) first step toward a Data Mesh. (Data Mesh will play a huge role in the years to come, but that’s a talk for another day.)
While there are overlapping benefits for both teams, it’s crucial to recognize the unique advantages each team gains through closer collaboration.
The integration team benefits from:
The data management team on the other hand gains:
By bridging the gap between these teams, you create a more synergetic and efficient environment, cultivating collaboration and a much higher degree of data literacy.
Bridging the gap between your integration team and data team will enable both teams to do what they do best, while achieving more together than they can do alone.
So 2+2 = 5
– Martin Lindberg Lüttge
Director, Business Data Solutions
