189: Customer Data Modeling, The Data Warehouse, Reverse ETL, and Data Activation with Ryan McCrary of RudderStack
May 16, 2024
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Data expert Ryan McCrary discusses customer data modeling, data activation, and product management. Topics covered include challenges with data projects, entity management, reverse ETL, ML and AI use cases, future product features, ETL evolution, and industry trends.
Data activation improves decision-making by aligning insights with operational tools.
Customer interaction shapes effective product management by focusing on user needs and use cases.
Profiles product enhances data visibility and empowers users with SQL output for practical applications.
Deep dives
Addressing the Need for Data Activation
Data activation is crucial as seen in the frustration around static dashboards not translating into actionable insights in downstream tools. Aligning data insights with tools where users operate like marketing and product teams is vital for effective decision-making. Moving beyond traditional BI views, effective solutions cater to how data can be utilized in various operational tools.
The Evolution of Ryan McCreary's Customer-Facing Journey
Ryan McCreary's transition from customer success engineering to product management showcases the importance of customer interactions. Working across different customer touchpoints has equipped him to understand common use cases shared by customers, shaping his approach as a product manager. He emphasizes the need to align features with customer needs and solidify data solutions based on practical business applications.
Unpacking the Significance of Identity Graphs and Profiles
Identity graphs serve as the foundation for generating computed user data required for effective business operations. RutterStack's Profiles product integrates the identity graph to offer insights into comprehensive user behaviors across various platforms. The product's ability to output SQL directly from the warehouse enhances visibility and management of data solutions, enabling technical and non-technical users to leverage data effectively.
Building on the Foundation for ML
The podcast discusses evolving the concept of identity graphs, profiles, and entity features to lay a strong foundation for machine learning applications. By capturing historical snapshots of data and implementing ML predictions based on feature evolution, users can define and refine conversion actions. Additionally, introducing real-time features provides quicker access to aggregated data for immediate insights and decision-making.
Future Trends: Transforming Traditional ETL
Looking ahead, the podcast anticipates the transformation of traditional ETL processes, hinting at cloud tools integrating native data writing capabilities with warehouses. This shift mirrors the trend towards bundling services as cloud providers potentially offer zero ETL solutions, simplifying data sharing across various platforms and reducing dependence on standalone ETL tools.
Customer-Facing Experience and Product Management (3:40)
Profiles Product Overview (5:10)
Use Cases for Profiles (6:44)
Challenges with Data Projects (9:19)
Entity Management and Account Views (15:33)
Handling Entities and Duplicates (17:55)
Challenges in Entity Management (22:18)
Product Management and Data Solutions (26:08)
Reverse ETL and Data Movement (31:58)
Accessibility of Data Warehouses (36:14)
Profiles and Entity Features (37:47)
Cohorts Creation and Use Cases (41:17)
Customer Data and Targeting (43:09)
Activations and Reverse ETL (45:57)
ML and AI Use Cases (55:53)
Data Activation and ML Predictions (57:02)
Spicy Take and Future Product Features (59:47)
ETL Evolution and Cloud Tools (1:00:50)
Unbundling and Future Trends (1:02:10)
The Data Stack Show is a weekly podcast powered by RudderStack, the CDP for developers. Each week we’ll talk to data engineers, analysts, and data scientists about their experience around building and maintaining data infrastructure, delivering data and data products, and driving better outcomes across their businesses with data.
RudderStack helps businesses make the most out of their customer data while ensuring data privacy and security. To learn more about RudderStack visit rudderstack.com.
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