We must learn to think about data in an entirely different way—data as a service that is accessed, processed, analyzed, and reported by everyone who has a need for information. With data services presented through a “storefront” interface where users can shop for best-fit data to meet their needs, we can make the shift from the enterprise data warehouse (EDW) to the enterprise data marketplace (EDM).

Imagine the power and impact of a curated marketplace that serves a community of analysts “shopping” for data. Finding the right data quickly is essential in the age of self-service analytics. With ever-increasing numbers of people who analyze data, many of today’s business and data analysts depend on tribal knowledge and word of mouth to find the data they need. They don’t have visibility into the data sets that exist, their contents, or the quality and usefulness of each. As a result, they spend too much time finding data, evaluating data, and recreating datasets that already exist. 

EDM can change all of this, empowering data seekers to find datasets, evaluate their fit for purpose, read reviews from others who have used the data, get immediate access, and prepare data for use. Recent technology innovations provide advanced capabilities for data cataloging, data preparation, data curation, and collaboration. These tools place the EDM within the reach of data-dependent organizations everywhere.