Data Catalog: A Self-Service Data Platform

A data catalog is a portal that brings metadata on collected data sets together within the enterprise. This classified and organized information lets data users re(find) relevant data sets for their work.

A new wave of data catalogs has appeared on the market. Their purpose is to sign up an enterprise in a data-driven approach. Any authorized person in the enterprise must have the capability to access, understand, and contribute to data documentation without technical skills. What we are talking about is self-service data.

There are 4 characteristics that the new generation of a data catalog must respect. It must be:

An Enterprise’s Data Catalog. A data catalog must be connected to all of the enterprise’s data sources to collect and regroup all metadata in a single centralized location to avoid the multiplication of tools.
A Catalog of Connected Data. We believe that a data catalog must always be up to date and accurate in the information it provides to be useful for its users. By being connected to data sources, the data catalog can import the documentation from storage systems and ensure an automatic update of metadata in both structures (storage and data catalog).
A Collaborative Data Catalog. In a user-centric approach, a data catalog must be the reference data tool of an enterprise. By involving employees through collaborative features, the enterprise benefits from collective intelligence. To share, to assign, to comment, and to qualify within the same data catalog, increasing productivity and knowledge among all of your collaborators.
An Intelligent Data Catalog. Choosing a data catalog equipped with artificial intelligence for the auto-population of metadata, for example, it allows your data managers to become more efficient.