Is my data architecture good?

Is my data architecture good?

Over the last few months I’ve had a number of clients ask me to review their data architecture.

When I say “sure” they share an architecture diagram and maybe some documentation that elaborates on their architecture. Then they ask something like - “Is our data architecture good? Do you notice any issues?”

It’s an impossible question to answer. So I usually reply with a question;

“It could be just fine. What challenges are you having? What can you not do that you want to do?”

A good data architecture doesn’t exist in isolation. There is no picture-perfect pattern to follow.

So what is a good data architecture? And how would you spot one?

There are only two kinds of data architectures. Those that work for your business. And those that don’t. Until I know if your architecture is “good” or not I have to know what challenges you are facing or what you wish you could do.

Only then can we talk about if your data architecture works. Or doesn’t.

Yes, we could nitpick about niche design patterns, hardware configurations, or development best practices. I have opinions of course. But none of that makes a good architecture. You could have an architecture that follows all the industry best practices perfectly and still fail if it doesn’t work for your business.

So instead of asking “do we have a good data architecture?”, try this.

Are we serving the needs of the business effectively? And how can we increase our capacity to empower the business?

I’m here,

Sawyer