Data Mesh is an emerging architectural paradigm for big data that addresses the challenges inherent in the data lake and data warehouse approaches. Rather than centralising data, data meshes connect distributed datasets. And data ownership and governance are federated, with data quality maintained by the domain owners who understand the data best. It is a self-service paradigm, with data shared as a product for others to self-serve and consume.

Sounds like a panacea, doesn’t it? But how easy will it be for government departments to adopt it?

In this talk, I define exactly what a data mesh is, illustrates its vast potential but also offers a candid explanation of the challenges you will face in adopting this emerging paradigm. To bring this to life in a departmental context, Charlie Boundy, DWP Deputy Director and Head of Data Science, sets out the department’s technology and data vision and the central place of the data mesh within it. I conclude by recommending an agile, incremental approach your department can take to prepare your technology and ways of working while the paradigm matures.