Project planning
How to scope a managed data project
Define the sources, fields, refresh schedule and delivery requirements before collection begins.
Start with the decision
Write down who will use the data, what they need to decide and how often they need to decide it. A research team producing a monthly market brief has different requirements from an operations team responding to daily changes.
Define what belongs in a record
Identify the sources and specify which records to include. Separate required fields from optional ones and agree what to do when a required value is missing. Review a small sample that includes edge cases before fixing the schema.
Agree on delivery and acceptance
Record the format, destination, refresh schedule and expected checks. Agree how missing records, delayed runs and source changes will be reported.
Project brief checklist
Capture the business question, source list, inclusion rules, field definitions, record identifier, refresh cadence, delivery destination and acceptance checks. Assign someone to review the sample and approve changes to the brief.