data mesh

At Annalect we have adopted the data mesh framework to deal with data engineering. Introduced in 2021, the Data Mesh framework provides a dexterous approach to dealing with data: with it, data is grouped into independent, focused data domains — without the need for centralized management — thus, easing the burden on one central team. By distributing ownership of various data amongst numerous teams, it’s served stakeholders in a more flexible and accountable way. We published a more detailed take on our data Mesh approach on Annalect Blog. We also partnered with peers at AWS to author a post on this same subject matter and wrote about it on AWS Blog. Since the topic is of high relevance to me, I also posted my reflections on data mesh on Medium.

clean rooms

In the world of media and advertising, managing data with care is essential. One of the technologies that help to handle data with proper security and privacy is a "clean room". Think of a clean room as a secure area where people can bring their information and run specific checks without seeing each other's data. This proves invaluable for tasks such as attribution and measurement. At Annalect, we've been pioneers in using and shaping this technology. In 2022, I had the privilege of joining the AWS team on stage at AWS Re:Invent to introduce their Clean Room and discuss our insights from the early trials.

modularity

What is the holy grail of software development? In my opinion, it is modularity and componentization. Although modularization as a framework has been widely discussed and debated for the past 30 years, unfortunately, we, as practicing software developers in big enterprises, still do not have the discipline to implement it. The biggest problem with code is that it rots. As the software community trailblazer with inventions and improvements, what is “new & innovative” today becomes “old & outdated” tomorrow. I have posted on Plato a more detailed take on how we tackled modular development at Annalect.

innovation lab