Speed has become the default metric for success in data programs. Agile sprints. Rapid releases. Faster pipelines.
But here’s the reality I’ve experienced leading data products & initiatives:
Moving fast without a strategy doesn’t scale value it scales rework.
When teams focus solely on delivering “something” quickly, they often overlook the foundational elements that make data products resilient, reusable, and trusted. And eventually, those shortcuts catch up.
What Rushed Data Products Actually Cost
Delivery speed outpaces governance and alignment:
- Duplicate logic in different pipelines for the same metric
- Inconsistent KPIs across dashboards and reports, triggering stakeholder mistrust
- Hardcoded transformations that break when upstream changes go unannounced
- Silos disguised as self-service! each team builds their own truth
Projects may require to be re-architected mid-flight not because of the technology stack, but because foundational decisions (like source-of-truth hierarchies and reference data ownership) were skipped in favor of “just getting something out".
Velocity Without Vision = Technical Debt
Speed becomes a liability when it:
- Ignores long-term data product lifecycle
- Avoids metadata management and governance for the sake of “agility”
- Pushes unfinished models into production to meet deadlines
Agile frameworks were designed to enable change, not to bypass planning.
Going fast without clarity creates teams that are busy, but not effective.
How to Scale Without Sacrificing Integrity
Here’s what’s worked for me to ensure data product velocity is matched with sustainability:
- Anchor delivery to trusted dimensions and reference data
- Embed governance into delivery not as a checkpoint, but as a driver
- Think in terms of platforms, not just pipelines
- Design for reuse and domain abstraction
- Measure quality alongside speed
Final Thought
In data delivery, speed can be a competitive edge but only when it’s built on alignment, trust, and strategic thinking.
"Fast is good. Scalable is better. Trusted is best."
