Data Governance and Data Quality Insider 100th

I have reached my 100th post milestone.  I hope you won't mind if I get a little introspective here and tell you a little about my social media journey over these past three years.

How did I get started?  One day back in 2007, I disagreed with Vince McBurney’s post (topic unimportant now).  I responded and Vince politely told me to shut up and if I really wanted to have an opinion to write my own blog.  I did.  Thanks for the kick in the pants, Vince.

Some of my most popular posts over these past three years have been:

• Probabilistic Matching: Sounds like a good idea, but…
  Here, I take a swipe at the sanctity of probabilistic matching. I probably have received the most hate-mail from this post. My stance still is that a hybrid approach to matching, using both probabilistic and deterministic is key to getting match results. Probabilistic alone is not the solution.
  
• Data Governance and the Coke Machine Syndrome
  I recount a parable given to me by a well-respected boss in my past about meeting management. Meetings can take unexpected turns where huge issues can be settled in minutes, while insignificant ones can eat up the resources of your company. I probably wrote it just after a meeting.
  
• Data Quality Project Selection
  A posting about picking the right data quality projects to work on.
  
• The “Do Nothing” Option
  A posting the recounts a lesson I learned about selling the power of data quality to management.

Somewhere around my 50th post, I was contacted by a small publishing firm in the UK about publishing a book on data governance. They liked what they saw in the blog.  I published the Data Governance Imperative in 2009. I pulled upon my experiences with some of the people I met while working in the industry. It's thanks to some of you that the book is a reality.

Blogging has not always been easy. I’ve met some opposition to along the way. There were times when my blogging was perceived as somehow threatening to corporate. At the time, blogging was new and corporations didn't know how to handle it. More companies now have definitive blogging policies and realize the positive impact it has.

What about the people I’ve met? I’ve gained a lot of friendships along the way with people I’ve yet to meet face-to-face. We’re able to build a community here in cyberspace – a data geek community that I am very fond of.  I’m hesitant to write a list because I don’t want to leave anyone out, but you know who you are.

If you're thinking of blogging, please, find something you’re passionate about and write.  You’ll have a great time!