This weblog, initially printed in September 2021, was up to date in July 2023. 

Area-centric knowledge structure could be very intently associated to knowledge mesh and shares two of information mesh’s pillars: domain-oriented design and federated knowledge governance. For organizations which are within the advantages of information mesh however don’t need to totally commit but, a domain-centric knowledge structure is a strong step in direction of knowledge mesh. 

As somebody whose function at Domo is to offer knowledge governance recommendation to the corporate’s largest clients, I’ve numerous conversations with IT leaders about knowledge lakes—and the way Domo’s knowledge expertise platform is able to querying knowledge immediately from these lakes. 

At its core, a knowledge lake is a centralized repository that shops all of a corporation’s knowledge. That knowledge will be structured and unstructured however is often separated by area and managed by a staff typically known as the Middle of Excellence (CoE). 

Organizations I communicate with are inclined to have already got an information lake—whether or not it’s within the cloud or on-premise—or need to implement one in Domo. 

The explanations for desirous to implement an information lake are easy: they price lower than knowledge warehouses or databases, are loads extra accessible to all the group than knowledge that lives in silos, and are perfect for machine studying. 

What’s extra, knowledge lakes make it straightforward to control and safe knowledge in addition to preserve knowledge requirements (as a result of that knowledge sits in only one location). 

For these causes and others, knowledge lakes are in style investments. However as most knowledge practitioners know, some knowledge lakes have downsides.  

For one, the hassle and price to take care of an information lake and its respective knowledge pipeline can enhance over time. For one more, as an information lake grows in complexity, it could actually result in delays that impression innovation. 

Higher BI with knowledge lakes 

To get higher, extra related BI insights from their knowledge lakes, many Domo clients are shifting in direction of a domain-centric knowledge structure, whose key part includes taking knowledge stewardship duties away from the CoE (or IT) and giving them to the enterprise models (BUs) themselves. 

This permits the CoE to focus on the administration, upkeep, and innovation of the info platform whereas permitting BUs—whether or not it’s the HR division, the finance division, or every other a part of the group—to captain their very own ships, so to talk. 

How do you open this door? There are three keys: 
  
1—Empower BUs to personal and take care of their very own knowledge  
The simplest method to empower a BU is by beginning with a person throughout the unit that has an excellent understanding of their group’s knowledge in addition to the topic space, is aware of the best way to correctly use the info platform, and is comfy answering colleagues’ questions on knowledge or the platform. 

When you’ve recognized who that particular person is (or may very well be), getting all the staff in control turns into a lot simpler. In my expertise, the very best methodology for instructing customers a new platform is thru knowledge implementation. Choose a valid-but-not-too-complex use case, then run the use case implementation from finish to finish. 
  
2—Guarantee that enough communication channels exist between the CoE and BUs  
That is particularly vital whenever you get to the purpose the place numerous entities are managing content material creation and its use. 

One method to create sturdy communication channels is to type a governance council {that a}) consists of the knowledge leads from every of the BUs in addition to a consultant of the CoE, and b) is prepared and ready to meet recurrently to debate platform utilization, classes realized, and alternatives for knowledge sharing. 

One other method is to construct a customized touchdown web page on the info platform that has latest information, any guidelines or rules round knowledge use, and hyperlinks to coaching in order that your BUs can maintain their talent ranges excessive.  
  
3—Create a platform-monitoring dashboard  
Once you get to the stage the place you’ve bought loads of new content material creators in your knowledge platform, you have to to maintain observe of them to make sure they’re taking part in by the principles. That’s the place a platform-monitoring dashboard can actually assist. 

In Domo, the first supply of this knowledge would be the Exercise Log dataset. This dataset has an inventory of all actions taken by any person. Some nice visualizations you can begin with in your monitoring dashboard are: 

• Coverage adherence charges. When implementing Domo, resolve on a naming conference and follow it. A visualization exhibiting naming conference non-compliance will assist guarantee customers adhere to this coverage. 
• Knowledge exporting. Customers who export knowledge out of your knowledge platform symbolize a safety threat—and will imply that customers don’t perceive the platform effectively sufficient and are exporting the info to be used in different knowledge instruments equivalent to Excel. A visualization of this can be utilized to establish these safety dangers and areas the place extra coaching is required. 
• Content material creation benchmarking. A visualization evaluating every BU’s content material creation charges may very well be used to establish the place coaching or adoption is inadequate in a BU. This data may result in extra coaching workshops to extend adoption. 

What a domain-centric method can do for you 

With a domain-centric method to knowledge structure, an entire new world throughout the fashionable BI universe opens, as a result of the next takes place:   

• Effort is distributed to the right elements of your group. As your group’s BI implementation continues to develop and unfold throughout the enterprise, the hassle to take care of present content material—as effectively as create new content material—will enhance. Enabling and empowering BUs to construct their personal content material can drastically scale back the want for the CoE to be concerned in that concern, which in flip allows the CoE to deal with ensuring that elevated utilization doesn’t change into a downside space. 
• Content material possession is assigned to those that realize it greatest. A website-centric knowledge structure permits the finance staff to manage finance knowledge, the HR staff to manage HR knowledge, and so forth. Not solely does this scale back the safety threat of the CoE accessing doubtlessly delicate data, however it additionally ensures that the customers who’re most conversant in the topic are those managing, creating, and validating knowledge. 
• Shadow IT turns into much less of a risk. One thing I’ve seen with clients who limit content material creation to only some customers is the event of shadow IT, which is a time period for when programs are deployed by departments to work across the shortcomings of programs they’ve been requested to make use of. Shadow IT operations can seem benign. Nevertheless, as they develop, not solely do governance dangers equivalent to safety and regulatory non-compliance, lack of auditability, and knowledge leaks additionally develop, however the opportunity of a political battle between the brand new shadow IT and the present knowledge platform turns into extra probably, which might negatively have an effect on firm tradition. 

To study extra about implementing a domain-centric knowledge structure as a part of your fashionable BI technique, contact me at karl.altern@domo.com. Or, if you’re already a Domo buyer, contact your account government (AE) or buyer success supervisor (CSM). 

NOTE: This submit was written with steering from TreeHive Technique principal Donald Farmer, an internationally revered speaker, author, and guide who served as moderator of Domo’s ‘Curiosity: Do Knowledge In a different way’ video collection in 2020.