⏳ When designing your next (data) system, you often have two choices: "𝐍𝐞𝐱𝐭 𝐭𝐢𝐦𝐞 𝐈'𝐥𝐥 𝐝𝐨 𝐛𝐞𝐭𝐭𝐞𝐫" versus "𝐍𝐞𝐱𝐭 𝐭𝐢𝐦𝐞, 𝐈 𝐰𝐢𝐥𝐥 𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐫-𝐞𝐧𝐠𝐢𝐧𝐞𝐞𝐫".
In this debate we find ourselves confronting the notorious '𝐒𝐞𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐝 𝐒𝐲𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐦 𝐄𝐟𝐟𝐞𝐜𝐭.' This phenomenon arises when the limitations and compromises of an initial project pave the way for an excessively intricate and costly follow-up. Notably, this trend seems to persist in the world of data projects, does it not?
🎓 𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐞𝐱𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐥𝐲 𝐢𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐬𝐞𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐝 𝐬𝐲𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐦 𝐞𝐟𝐟𝐞𝐜𝐭? It's the pattern where sleek, efficient, and successful projects are often followed by successors that are unnecessarily complex and cumbersome, a result of increased expectations and a surplus of confidence.
💡 𝐇𝐨𝐰 𝐝𝐨𝐞𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐦𝐚𝐧𝐢𝐟𝐞𝐬𝐭 𝐢𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐃𝐚𝐭𝐚 𝐖𝐨𝐫𝐥𝐝? Reflect on the transition from BI systems to elaborate, all-encompassing data platforms. Such platforms ambitiously seek to embed state-of-the-art functionalities, including real-time analytics, AI capabilities, and data marketplaces, often without a clear or compelling value driver for these advancements. The primary motivator in these scenarios is technological innovation itself, which frequently leads to disappointing returns on investment and numerous unforeseen challenges.
📦 𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭'𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐬𝐨𝐥𝐮𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧? Start by clearly defining your goals ('Why') and employ impartial, vendor-agnostic criteria to select your technology ('How'). This approach helps mitigate the risk of over-engineering.
This discussion marks the second installment of my LinkedIn mini-series titled "The Mythical Man Month: Revisited." As a Computer Science student, Frederic P. Brooks' essays in "The Mythical Man Month" captured my imagination. Initially, they seemed like distant echoes from the past, unlikely to reflect any future experiences I might encounter. However, my observations suggest that the same issues Brooks described in 1975 are still relevant today, especially within data project methodologies.
👉 Stay tuned for the next post, where we'll explore '𝐂𝐨𝐧𝐜𝐞𝐩𝐭𝐮𝐚𝐥 𝐈𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐠𝐫𝐢𝐭𝐲.'
𝘍𝘰𝘭𝘭𝘰𝘸 𝘰𝘳 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘯𝘦𝘤𝘵 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘮𝘰𝘳𝘦 𝘪𝘯𝘴𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵𝘴 𝘰𝘯 𝘥𝘢𝘵𝘢 𝘴𝘵𝘳𝘢𝘵𝘦𝘨𝘺! 𝘐𝘧 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘧𝘦𝘦𝘥𝘣𝘢𝘤𝘬 𝘰𝘳 𝘲𝘶𝘦𝘴𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘴, 𝘧𝘦𝘦𝘭 𝘧𝘳𝘦𝘦 𝘵𝘰 𝘴𝘦𝘯𝘥 𝘮𝘦 𝘢 𝘮𝘦𝘴𝘴𝘢𝘨𝘦!
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Platform Product Design Cofounder at Boundaryless | Cofounder at Scuter | Driving Collaborative Growth in Venture Capital
3moNabil Abdullah still not on AI business cases, but it will come soon!