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Data Management Strategy at Microsoft
Data Management Strategy at Microsoft

Data Management Strategy at Microsoft: Best practices from a tech giant's decade-long data transformation journey

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Profile Icon Aleksejs Plotnikovs
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Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon 5 (4 Ratings)
Paperback Jul 2024 270 pages 1st Edition
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Arrow left icon
Profile Icon Aleksejs Plotnikovs
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€18.99 per month
Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon 5 (4 Ratings)
Paperback Jul 2024 270 pages 1st Edition
eBook
€8.99 €23.99
Paperback
€29.99
Subscription
Free Trial
Renews at €18.99p/m
eBook
€8.99 €23.99
Paperback
€29.99
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Free Trial
Renews at €18.99p/m

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Data Management Strategy at Microsoft

Where’s My Data and Who’s in Charge?

This first chapter delves into common business challenges stemming from the necessity of maintaining data quality and effective data management within a company. Often, there is either a complete absence of these practices or, at the very least, a partial implementation. This challenge typically impacts the end users of data the most, including sales, marketing, pre-sales, go-to-market, and finance teams. Meanwhile, the IT team tends to lag behind and might not even fully comprehend the issue until they are confronted with urgent user concerns.

This was notably the case for Microsoft in its early years of data enablement. The IT division had limited exposure to data-related problems as its focus was primarily on engineering and developing long-term solutions within a specific ecosystem. Consequently, there was no single global team responsible for overseeing data, ensuring data quality, and managing data across key Tier 1 Line of...

The journey begins

As I settled into my seat on the plane bound for Prague, Czech Republic, I couldn’t contain my excitement. This journey was unlike any other; it was the first time I would meet the individuals who represented the virtual data organization within our company face to face. Previously, our interactions had been limited to countless email exchanges and phone calls.

These individuals came from diverse backgrounds and hailed from various countries in Central and Eastern Europe. We were all part of something in its infancy, something that held the promise of significant transformation. The prospect of meeting them in person and learning from their experiences filled me with a lot of anticipation!

At the same time, I found myself wondering what we could offer them to enhance their daily work and address the unique challenges they faced. Our shared mission was clear: to improve data quality within the company. However, our path to achieving this goal was far...

Unveiling the ownership

The question of who was in charge became increasingly pressing as businesses encountered persistent data quality issues hindering their operations. Business leaders were eager to pinpoint responsibility for particular systems, processes, and data-related problems. Dealing with Tier 1 systems and applications as such posed no challenge; corporate engineering teams owned and managed them, and handled developments, change requests, and fixes. However, when delving into the intricacies of data collection and processing, things got complicated.

One issue was the lack of data education among business units. A disconnect existed between various teams, each focused on its immediate needs. However, data was the common thread that connected them all.

It became evident that educating stakeholders about data issues, their root causes, and potential solutions was crucial. We aimed to instill a sense of data ownership within these business stewards, clarifying what...

The birth of MAL

MAL was a crucial concept within Microsoft’s business framework, and was particularly relevant for businesses dealing with many business-to-business customers. It aimed to segment customers, focusing primarily on the most valuable ones.

This list was a hierarchy consisting of parent accounts and child accounts, with each geographical area initially developing its own list to emphasize important local customers. These local lists gradually evolved into a more global approach.

MAL served as a powerful tool for Microsoft’s sales and marketing teams. It helped them concentrate their effort on the most valuable accounts and track various activities related to them, including marketing campaigns, sales promotions, and significant deals.

From a data management perspective, a significant challenge was maintaining the connections between branches (child accounts) and well-established top (parent) accounts. Ensuring that child accounts were correctly related...

Summary and key takeaways

By telling you the story of our initial data journey, I’ve unfolded three invaluable insights. These insights not only guided our path but transformed the way we perceived data within our organization. Even more importantly, they helped to address immediate issues with the data, win the trust of the business stakeholders, and set the foundation for future growth.

Takeaway 1 – becoming the change agent

Imagine a scenario where business units in your organization feel like islands, disconnected and isolated. This was our reality. My first insight is about becoming a catalyst for change – a change agent who bridges these disconnected units using data as a common language.

You don’t need a formal mandate for this; all you need is the determination to influence and advise.

Over time, this influence will earn your trust, making you a trusted advisor. By raising awareness about the importance of data, you will ignite a spark...

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Key benefits

  • Learn strategies to create a data-driven culture and align data initiatives with business goals
  • Navigate the ever-evolving business landscape with a modern data platform and unique Data IP
  • Surpass competitors by harnessing the true value of data and fostering data literacy in your organization
  • Purchase of the print or Kindle book includes a free PDF eBook

Description

Microsoft pioneered data innovation and investment ahead of many in the industry, setting a remarkable standard for data maturity. Written by a data leader with over 15 years of experience following Microsoft’s data journey, this book delves into every crucial aspect of this journey, including change management, aligning with business needs, enhancing data value, and cultivating a data-driven culture. This book emphasizes that success in a data-driven enterprise goes beyond relying solely on modern technology and highlights the importance of prioritizing genuine business needs to propel necessary modernizations through change management practices. You’ll see how data-driven innovation does not solely reside within central IT engineering teams but also among the data's business owners who rely on data daily for their operational needs. This guide empower these professionals with clean, easily discoverable, and business-ready data, marking a significant breakthrough in how data is perceived and utilized throughout an enterprise. You’ll also discover advanced techniques to nurture the value of data as unique intellectual property, and differentiate your organization with the power of data. Its storytelling approach and summary of essential insights at the end of each chapter make this book invaluable for business and data leaders to advocate for crucial data investments.

Who is this book for?

This book is for data leaders, CDOs, CDAOs, data practitioners, data stewards, and enthusiasts, as well as modern business leaders intrigued by the transformative potential of data. While a technical background isn't essential, a basic understanding of data management and quality concepts will be helpful. The book avoids twisted technical, engineering, or data science aspects, making it accessible and insightful for data engineers and data scientists to gain a wider understanding of enterprise data needs and challenges.

What you will learn

  • Develop a data-driven roadmap to achieve significant and quantifiable business goals
  • Discover the ties between data management and change management
  • Explore the data maturity curve with essential technology investments
  • Build, safeguard, and amplify your organization's unique Data Intellectual Property
  • Equip business leaders with trustworthy and high value data for informed decision-making
  • Unleash the value of data management and data governance to uplift your data investments

Product Details

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Publication date, Length, Edition, Language, ISBN-13
Publication date : Jul 19, 2024
Length: 270 pages
Edition : 1st
Language : English
ISBN-13 : 9781835469187
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Product Details

Publication date : Jul 19, 2024
Length: 270 pages
Edition : 1st
Language : English
ISBN-13 : 9781835469187
Category :

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Table of Contents

18 Chapters
Part 1:Thinking Local, Acting Global Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
Chapter 1: Where’s My Data and Who’s in Charge? Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
Chapter 2: We Make Data Business Ready Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
Chapter 3: Thousands to One – From Locally Siloed to Globally Centralized Processes Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
Chapter 4: “Reactive! Proactive? Predictive” Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
Part 2: Build Insights to Global Capabilities Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
Chapter 5: Mastering Your Data Domains and Business Ownership Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
Chapter 6: Navigating the Strategic Data Dilemma Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
Chapter 7: Unique Data IP Is Your Magic Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
Chapter 8: The Pareto Principle in Action Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
Part 3: Intelligent Future Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
Chapter 9: Data Mastering and MDM Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
Chapter 10: Data Mesh and Data Governance Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
Chapter 11: Data Assets or Data Products? Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
Chapter 12: Data Value, Literacy, and Culture Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
Chapter 13: Getting Ready for GenAI Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
Index Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
Other Books You May Enjoy Chevron down icon Chevron up icon

Customer reviews

Rating distribution
Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon 5
(4 Ratings)
5 star 100%
4 star 0%
3 star 0%
2 star 0%
1 star 0%
Tom Redman Sep 30, 2024
Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon 5
Anyone who has ever participated in anything truly transformative knows that it is all about people: Inspired leadership; leaps of faith; tough negotiations; hard work to understand the most important needs of the most important customers; the soaring victories, the crushing defeats; and on and on. Further, those who are serious about data know that it is past time for true transformation.That’s why Alex’s book is so important. It describes all of the above through the author’s eyes for over a decade at Microsoft. It is a must read for anyone hoping to provide real leadership! I’m casting a wide net here–for example, you can’t be serious about AI without getting very serious about data.
Amazon Verified review Amazon
Sunil Soares Jul 19, 2024
Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon 5
Nice work by Aleksejs Plotnikovs to curate all his tremendous experience into a well-written book on data management at Microsoft. Definitely a must-read for data management practitioners. Well done Aleksejs, your tremendous knowledge and experience shines through!
Amazon Verified review Amazon
Francesca Oct 22, 2024
Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon 5
I really enjoyed reading this book. What makes this book stand out is its focus on real business needs over just technology. It shows how true data-driven success involves empowering business owners with accessible, valuable data, not just relying on central IT teams. This approach transforms how data is perceived and used across the enterprise. With its engaging storytelling and concise chapter summaries, this book is a treasure trove of insights for business and data leaders looking to drive meaningful change.
Amazon Verified review Amazon
Om S Aug 26, 2024
Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon 5
This book reveals how Microsoft mastered data management over the years, transforming it into a powerful business tool. It focuses on making data easy to use and aligning it with business goals. The content is accessible to both technical and non-technical readers, offering strategies to turn data into a competitive advantage. Perfect for business leaders/managers looking to drive performance through smart data practices.
Amazon Verified review Amazon
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