Data Contracts — ensure robustness in your data mesh architecture
In a federated architecture, in which responsibilities are distributed between domains, it’s harder to oversee dependencies and obtain insights in data usage. This is where data contracts come into play. Why do data contracts matter? Because they provide insights into who owns what data products. They support setting standards and managing your data pipelines with confidence. They provide information on what data products are being consumed, by whom and for what purpose. Bottom line: data contracts are essential for robust data management!
Before you continue reading, I encourage you to look at data product distribution and usage from two dimensions. First, there are technical concerns, such as data pipeline handling and mutual expectations on data stability. Second, there are business concerns, like agreeing on the purpose of data sharing, which may include usage, privacy, and purpose (including limitations) objectives. Typically, different roles come into play for each dimension. For technical concerns, you commonly rely on application owners or data engineers. For business concerns, you commonly rely on product owners or business representatives.
Data Contracts
Data contracts are like data delivery contracts or service contracts. They’re important because when data products become popular and widely used, you need to implement versioning and manage compatibility. This is needed, because in a larger or distributed architecture it’s harder…