This article recaps a live-streamed panel from Secoda’s inaugural Data Leaders Forum, where industry experts shared insights on implementing agile data governance frameworks without compromising control. Hosted by Secoda’s CEO, Etai Mizrahi, the panel featured:

• Kelly Burdine, Director of Data Science and Analytics at Wellthy
• Toby Mao, Co-Founder and CTO of Tobiko 
• Sreyashi Das, Senior Data Engineer at Netflix

Relive the rest of the panels:

• ‍Governance Reimagined: How Enterprise Leaders are Innovating
• Governance Reimagined: Rethinking Governance for The Future

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The discussion focused on balancing agility with governance, a challenge for rapidly growing and large teams. Below are highlights from their conversation on embedding governance practices that enhance both speed and control.

Defining the governance paradox: Balancing speed and control

As the panel noted, balancing the need for fast data access with the demand for robust governance is a core paradox many data teams face, especially as they work to keep up with the agility of modern software engineering. Each panellist offered their organization’s approach to addressing this challenge:

• Kelly described how Wellthy initially faced issues with inconsistent metrics, causing distrust in data. "Our solution was not more governance for its own sake but tailored solutions to specific problems,” she explained. Starting small and celebrating wins — like a test catching a data quality issue -  helped build trust and collaboration across teams.
• Sreyashi introduced Netflix’s unique data mesh framework, a decentralized model allowing producers of data to take ownership. "Data mesh enables domain-driven data ownership, reducing bottlenecks by empowering those closest to the data to manage it," she shared, noting that this model increased accessibility and streamlined governance.
• Toby highlighted how SQLMesh brings automation into governance workflows, allowing for seamless version control, testing, and lineage tracking. "With SQLMesh, governance becomes part of the process, ensuring that changes propagate naturally and safely.” By embedding governance, teams don’t need to choose between speed and control.

Embedding processes for agility and governance

Each speaker underscored the importance of embedding governance directly into workflows rather than treating it as a separate step:

• Toby shared that SQLMesh makes it easy for teams to manage data changes confidently. “Automating downstream impact tracking and testing as part of the workflow means teams can focus on business logic without worrying about governance,” he shared.
• Sreyashi elaborated on Netflix’s unified data model. "By creating a federated graph, we ensure data integrity from production to consumption,” she noted. This real-time model connects data points across teams, maintaining a single source of truth while supporting agile data flows.

The role of culture in data governance

A strong governance culture helps drive collaboration and trust. Each speaker highlighted the unique ways they foster buy-in across departments:

• Kelly emphasized the value of quick wins and recognition. “When stakeholders see the positive impact of governance, they’re more inclined to engage,” she shared. Recognizing team members who proactively address data quality issues helps reinforce the importance of governance and builds a collaborative culture.
• Toby and Sreyashi both discussed how larger organizations like Airbnb and Netflix establish a culture of governance through structured frameworks. Tools like SQLMesh make governance accessible to smaller teams, allowing them to establish strong practices early on.

Investing in data governance

The panellists also discussed how upfront investments in governance pay off over time:

• Kelly shared that Wellthy saw a return on governance efforts by targeting specific issues and addressing them incrementally. "We began with core models and processes, building a foundation that scales with the organization,” she explained.
• Sreyashi noted that Netflix’s semantic layer and federated graph structure required significant initial investment, but ultimately enabled data accessibility at scale. "These frameworks mean we can ensure accuracy across the board, creating a reliable and accessible data ecosystem," she said.

Measuring data governance success

A common challenge with data governance is measuring its success. Each panelist shared their metrics and methods:

• Sreyashi suggested using uptime and data health metrics, noting that Netflix tracks lineage health and consistency as indicators of success. "Visibility and transparency from end-to-end lineage give us a baseline to measure governance effectiveness," she explained.
• Kelly shared that Wellthy used stakeholder surveys and incident tracking to monitor governance adoption. “Tracking proactive vs. reactive tasks helps us see where time is spent and reduce firefighting over time,” she said.

Practical approaches for governance adoption

Implementing data governance at scale requires thoughtful change management strategies. Here’s how each organization encourages adoption:

• Toby recommended creating a “paved path” for users, making governance the default option. “By embedding governance requirements into CI/CD pipelines and version control, compliance becomes the norm,” he explained.
• Kelly highlighted the importance of visibility: “Constantly referencing documentation and showing real-time use cases helps reinforce governance as a time-saver,” she shared. At Wellthy, every new win reinforces governance as an empowering resource rather than a restrictive process.

Conclusion: Governance at full speed

The panel closed with actionable insights on governance: start small, embed governance within processes, and prioritize transparency and collaboration. Etai wrapped up by noting that, “Governance doesn’t have to slow us down. It’s about creating frameworks that grow with the organization and provide real value to teams.”

Thank you to everyone who joined us at the Data Leaders Forum. If you missed the live stream, we hope this recap provides valuable insights into balancing agility with robust governance. Visit our Data Leaders Forum website for additional resources and connections with our panellists.