Do You Need A Modern Data Stack Consultant
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Modern data stack consultant plays an important role in companies looking to become data-driven. They help companies design and deploy centralized data sets that are easy to use and reliable. They do so by using cloud based solutions that help automate data pipelines and processes with less code than in the past.
But in order to understand why you need a modern data stack consultants we should take a step back.
We first need to understand what the modern data stack is and if you need it.
In this article we will not only discuss modern data stack consulting but also data stacks in general and the role they play in your organization,.
What Is The Modern Data Stack
In simple terms, the modern data stack (MDS) is a collection of tools that enable data integration. These tools include an automated data pipeline for extracting, loading and transforming data, as well as a cloud-based data lake or columnar warehouse to store the data. Additionally, the MDS requires a data transformation tool and a visualization or business intelligence (BI) platform to make use of the data.
The key difference between a modern data stack and a traditional data stack is the hosting. The modern data stack is hosted in the cloud, which means it requires minimal technical input from users. This also guarantees easy access for end-users and allows for quick scalability without the added cost and downtime associated with scaling a traditional data stack.
The modern data stack is designed with business users in mind, eliminating technical barriers that have previously hindered analysts and other key stakeholders from accessing and utilizing a company’s data. It also makes integration and analysis tools user-friendly, requiring minimal technical knowledge. By reducing technical complexities, the modern data stack offers numerous benefits for companies that adopt it.
Here are some general layers in the modern data stack.
- Data storage: databases (such as Snowflake, BigQuery, or Redshift) for storing structured and unstructured data
- Data processing: technologies (such as Apache Spark, Presto, or Apache Flink) for processing and analyzing large data sets in real-time
- Data visualization: tools (such as Tableau, Looker, or Power BI) for creating interactive dashboards and visualizing data in an easy-to-understand way
- Data pipeline components: technologies (such as Airflow, dbt, or Fivetran) for extracting, transforming, and loading data in real-time
- Cloud computing: cloud services (such as AWS, Google Cloud, or Azure) for storing and processing data at scale
- Data governance and security: tools and practices for ensuring data quality, protecting data privacy, and complying with regulatory requirements.
But, the modern data stack is far from perfect, and later on we’ll talk about some better solutions.
What Do Modern Data Stack Consultants Do?
Modern data stack consultants can range in terms of the services they provide. Some can help set up your baseline data stack others can go from raw data source to machine learning models with tools like Preemo.io.
The key is for your team to figure out what types of data use cases they have prior to looking for a modern data stack consultant or at least consulting with one prior to taking on a full-on project. Otherwise, it could eventually lead to unnecessary work and costs that your team could avoid.
In order to be able to provide this service your data consultants likely will go through some form of data strategy questionnaire like this one. This will help provide insights into your companies business and technical needs.
Here are several other benefits modern data stack consultant can provide:
- They will help take your teams data and make it useful
- They can help your team find and piece together the right solutions to build your modern data stack
- They will be up to date on the newest tools such as 5x, Portable and dbt which help fill in and improve the current modern data stack
- They can help a company optimize their data warehouse for performance. This includes identifying and resolving bottlenecks, setting up indexing and partitioning, and configuring the database for optimal query performance.
- They can help a company with data governance. This includes ensuring data quality, implementing security and compliance measures, and setting up data lineage and auditing.
- They can provide training and ongoing support for the company’s data warehouse and data analytics team. This includes training on the technology, best practices for data warehousing, and troubleshooting assistance.
- Finally, a modern data stack consultant can help a company make better use of their data. This includes identifying key metrics, setting up reports and dashboards, and providing insights that can inform business decisions.
How Can A Modern Data Stack Benefit My Company
A modern data stack can benefit your company by providing a robust and scalable infrastructure for collecting, storing, and analyzing data. This can enable your company to make data-driven decisions, improve operations, and gain a competitive advantage. Some specific benefits include:
- Improved data quality: With a modern data stack, you can ensure that your data is accurate, complete, and reliable.
- Increased efficiency: A modern data stack can automate many manual data processing tasks, freeing up time and resources for other activities.
- Better insights: A modern data stack can provide advanced analytics capabilities, such as machine learning, that can help you uncover hidden patterns and trends in your data.
- Greater scalability: A modern data stack can handle large volumes of data, making it possible to scale your data processing capabilities as your company grows.
- Better collaboration: A modern data stack can provide a centralized, shared repository for data, making it easy for different teams and departments to access and work with the same data.
- Better security: A modern data stack can help you protect your data from unauthorized access and breaches.
Which Projects Can a Modern Data Stack Consultant Help With?
Modern data stack consultants will take on all different forms of projects. In some cases they might be helping you build your data warehouse from scratch. In other cases they will be helping you with a data migration project. There really are a whole host of projects where modern data stack consultants are useful. Here is a further list.
Modern Data Stack consultants can help with:
- Develop your teams end-to-end data pipelines
- Modern data stack architecture
- Design and deploy implement machine learning pipelines
- Design your data model
- Develop an overall data strategy
- Data migration
- Centralizing siloed data sets
- Write data transformation
These are just some of the projects your modern data stack consultants might help you with. It does depend how much they focus on end-to-end data projects. Some modern data stack consultants are purely focused on the design of your data stack and others may design and implement. So do make sure you ask how far your consultant will go in terms of a modern data stack consultant deployment.
In addition, your modern data stack consultants should also help you figure out which solution will be best for you.
What Tools Do Modern Data Stack Consultants Work On
Truthfully, if we were to list every tool modern data stack consultants worked on, this article would never end. But here are a few.
Integration Solutions
Orchestration, ELT and ETL solutions
Data Warehouses
Visualization Solutions
- Looker
- Power BI
- Tableau
- Sigma Computing
- Mode
Data Catalog Solutions
Observability Solutions
How To Start Your Modern Data Stack Project
Before looking to hire a modern data stack consultant, you will want to assess a few things. Here are just some high-level questions you should ask yourself before looking into a modern data stack consultant.
- Do you really need an entire modern data stack or can you use baseline components
- What business goals are you trying to drive with data
- Which data solutions should your company pick
- What types of reports/use cases do you want to create
- How will you manage your data
Do you really need a modern data stack?
To answer this question, you need to know where all your data is and how you really want to use it. If you’re not 100% sure on this, our team would be happy to have a 30 minute free consult with you to see if the answer is yes or no.
Modern data stacks can provide a lot of value in terms of centralizing your data and making it easier for your data analysts to access. However, they also require experts to manage and maintain it. So even if you have a consultant build it, there will be future costs. So you need to make sure your company needs a modern data stack.
What business goals are you trying to drive with data
One of the biggest mistakes companies make is that they read that they need a modern data stack and then start looking for consultants. When you should first see if the idea of a modern data stack aligns with your business goals. To do this, first you should figure out what KPIs or OKRs align with your businesses goals. Once you have those you can work to figure out where you would get that data.
If your team doesn’t have the expertise or time to do this, then it might be time to hire a data consultant who can provide those insights for you. Our team has done this dozens of times for companies in multiple industries so feel free to reach out.
What types of reports do you want to create
Finally, what do you actually want to do with your data? Are there specific types of reports that you want to create? Are you looking to build automated reporting or use Excel?
Try to get a general idea of where you actually want to be in the future. Yes, a modern data stack consultant should help you do a lot of this. But having a general idea will help save time and ensure that the project runs even smoother.
How will you manage your data in the long term
Building a modern data stack is only step 0 in your companies journey of becoming data-driven. Another important aspect a top tier modern data stack consultant will consider is data governance, privacy and security. There is a lot of data that your company may have access to that could put them at risk. There are data breaches every day, some external others internal. A good modern data stack consultant will make sure that access management is set-up correctly. They will also work with your team to set-up policies in terms of how to continue to manage and maintain good practices.
So Should Your Hire A Modern Data Stack Consultant?
Overall, if your team is looking to build a modern data stack and you either don’t have the time or expertise, then you should reach out to a modern data stack consultants. Most will provide some form of consultation that should be aimed at answering the most important question of “do you need a modern data stack”. The answer isn’t always yes.
But if you believe it is, then consider reaching out to us. We’d love to help guide your company on your modern data stack journey.
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