In this presentation, I'll share Vanderlande's four-year journey in building an enterprise data platform and the pivot toward simplicity that's accelerating our progress today. Initially guided by textbook architectural principles of bronze-silver-gold layers and strict data mesh concepts, we discovered that theoretical purity can hinder practical implementation and scaling. I'll walk you through our evolution from rigid frameworks to pragmatic solutions that are transforming how we deliver value. You'll learn about our specific simplification strategies, including:

- Streamlining data layer architectures by eliminating unnecessary complexity
- Moving data quality implementation from code to governance tools
- Standardizing ingestion pipelines with YAML to reduce custom development
- Finding the right balance between atomic data products and practical, larger-scoped solutions

This talk is ideal for data leaders who have moved beyond the initial excitement of modern data architectures and are now facing the reality of scaling these concepts across an organization. Whether you're just starting your data platform journey or looking to refine your approach, you'll gain practical insights on how to balance architectural ideals with the pragmatic compromises that enable real progress. Drawing from both successes and failures, I'll share the organizational and technical perspectives that have shaped our current approach, helping you avoid common pitfalls while accelerating your own data platform maturity.