Data Intelligence

Data Catalog: A Self-Service Data Platform

Actian Corporation

February 19, 2019

self service data catalog

A data catalog is a portal that brings metadata on collected data sets together by the enterprise. This classified and organized information lets data users to 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 of accessing, understanding, and contributing to data documentation without technical skills. What we are talking about is self-service data.

Zeenea identified the 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 on 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 the two 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.
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About Actian Corporation

Actian makes data easy. Our data platform simplifies how people connect, manage, and analyze data across cloud, hybrid, and on-premises environments. With decades of experience in data management and analytics, Actian delivers high-performance solutions that empower businesses to make data-driven decisions. Actian is recognized by leading analysts and has received industry awards for performance and innovation. Our teams share proven use cases at conferences (e.g., Strata Data) and contribute to open-source projects. On the Actian blog, we cover topics ranging from real-time data ingestion, data analytics, data governance, data management, data quality, data intelligence to AI-driven analytics.