1. Chris’s job-readiness framework:
   Pick an industry, compare 10 target job postings, assess skill gaps, then build end-to-end projects around industry pain points. Document the decisions, not just the output.

2. Governance needs maintained context:
   The discussion favoured creating and updating definitions as work happens, while keeping context portable and watching for stale documentation that can mislead AI.

3. AI reliability is an engineering problem:
   Break large tasks into chunks, tell the model which patterns matter, measure token use, and use evals when simplifying older AI skills.

Thank you to everyone who tuned into our latest AURA Ask Us Anything live session.

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Shane runs a 6 hour workshop on the Information Product Canvas, a repeatable way to gather data requirements in 30 minutes. The approach he actually uses with stakeholders, not a textbook version that falls apart on contact with messy data and vague requirements.

He runs it regularly.

Latest dates : Gather data requirements in 30 minutes using a shared language

Workshop details : https://maven.com/agiledataguides/info-prod

1. Junior data careers need breadth and hands-on practice.
   Tim suggested looking beyond tech companies, building small projects or businesses, and learning the fundamentals well enough to explain them.

2. AI-polished answers make genuine understanding harder to assess.
   Tim described using free-form data-modeling questions to screen applicants; the discussion also covered probing answers more deeply in interviews.

3. AI tools don’t remove the need for clear definitions and human judgment.
   The discussion returned to disagreements over terms such as “customer,” the limits of generated dashboards, and the risk of tying workflows too closely to one provider.

Thank you to everyone who tuned into our latest AURA Ask Us Anything live session.

Got a Question you want to ask and have answered in the next AURA session, leave a comment and we got you!

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Shane runs a 6 hour workshop on the Information Product Canvas, a repeatable way to gather data requirements in 30 minutes. The approach he actually uses with stakeholders, not a textbook version that falls apart on contact with messy data and vague requirements.

He runs it regularly.

Latest dates : Gather data requirements in 30 minutes using a shared language

Workshop details : https://maven.com/agiledataguides/info-prod

1. Helsinki Data Week’s format :
   a speaker-led Tuesday followed by clearly labelled partner sessions kept the event affordable while giving vendors space for substantive talks.

2. An ontology is more than AI-generated descriptions of existing data:
   Juha distinguished its content, format, and storage, and argued that an organisation’s unique concepts need to be worked out with the business.

3. AI is changing data work, but governance and usability lag:
   the conversation covered shadow AI, client-data boundaries, and the gap between tools useful to enthusiasts and tools that can scale across an organisation.

Got a Question you want to ask and have answered in the next AURA session, leave a comment and we got you!

Shane runs a 6 hour workshop on the Information Product Canvas, a repeatable way to gather data requirements in 30 minutes. The approach he actually uses with stakeholders, not a textbook version that falls apart on contact with messy data and vague requirements.

He runs it regularly.

Latest dates : Gather data requirements in 30 minutes using a shared language

Workshop details : https://maven.com/agiledataguides/info-prod

1. Get ahead of quarterly planning.
   Anna talked about the data team doing discovery before proposals reach the train meetings, so they arrive prepared rather than as surprise data requests.

2. Prototype quickly, then govern what persists.
   Anna sees value in scrappy, source-connected prototypes, but not in leaving them as lasting, ungoverned dashboards.

3. Keep AI agents behind explicit gates.
   The discussion highlighted agents missing small but critical instructions—including a child session bypassing Shane’s commit gate—and the need for tests, human checks, and coordination as parallel work scales.

Got a Question you want to ask and have answered in the next AURA session, leave a comment and we got you!

Shane runs a 6 hour workshop on the Information Product Canvas, a repeatable way to gather data requirements in 30 minutes. The approach he actually uses with stakeholders, not a textbook version that falls apart on contact with messy data and vague requirements.

He runs it regularly.

Latest dates : Gather data requirements in 30 minutes using a shared language

Workshop details : https://maven.com/agiledataguides/info-prod

1. How to evaluate new tools:
   Chris described a three-part approach: check whether a tool solves a real pain point, whether it has a community, and what a time-boxed trial reveals. He used Databricks serverless micro apps as an example of something worth revisiting later, rather than adopting now.

2. How to reduce vendor and migration risk:
   We discussed keeping business logic and context outside execution platforms, retaining access to data, and testing a fallback plan—not just assuming a migration will work.

3. AI-generated dashboards and their consequences:
   Faster creation could multiply duplicate reports. We discussed finding existing reports before making new ones, as well as the adoption, governance, and security challenges of switching BI tools.

Thank you to everyone who tuned into our latest AURA Ask Us Anything live session.

Got a Question you want to ask and have answered in the next AURA session, leave a comment and we got you!

Shane runs a 6 hour workshop on the Information Product Canvas, a repeatable way to gather data requirements in 30 minutes. The approach he actually uses with stakeholders, not a textbook version that falls apart on contact with messy data and vague requirements.

He runs it regularly.

Latest dates : Gather data requirements in 30 minutes using a shared language

Workshop details : https://maven.com/agiledataguides/info-prod

1. Evaluating new technology:
   Shane and Tim discussed starting with a real use case, making small bets, checking risk tolerance, and planning how to replace a tool if its vendor changes course.

2. Classification with Jive/Jev:
   Tim described using Gemini to extract image metadata, then Jive/Jev to make structured classification decisions at scale.

3. Where data and BI are heading:
   They covered the OSI metrics standard, DuckDB and MotherDuck, and whether simpler, “disposable” BI apps will take off.

Thank you to everyone who tuned into our latest AURA Ask Us Anything live session..

Got a Question you want to ask and have answered in the next AURA session, leave a comment and we got you!

Leave a comment

Shane runs a 6 hour workshop on the Information Product Canvas, a repeatable way to gather data requirements in 30 minutes. The approach he actually uses with stakeholders, not a textbook version that falls apart on contact with messy data and vague requirements.

He runs it regularly.

Latest dates : Gather data requirements in 30 minutes using a shared language

Workshop details : https://maven.com/agiledataguides/info-prod

1. Conference takeaways:
   Helsinki Data Week was nearly sold out. Juha said Big Data London felt less crowded than two years ago, with context, AI trust and governance, and data products prominent in the discussions.

2. The missing enterprise context layer:
   Catalogs focused on tables and metrics are too narrow. He envisaged a shared reference layer that helps agents find relevant data, documents, processes and APIs—but said he had not seen it working in production yet.

3. Making business meaning explicit:
   Definitions for the book and companion app, the distinction between a business glossary and a data dictionary, and why relationships such as “customer places order” and “customer cancels order” need their meaning captured.

Thank you to everyone who tuned into our latest AURA Ask Us Anything live session..

Join us for the next AURA session in the app

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Shane runs a 6 hour workshop on the Information Product Canvas, a repeatable way to gather data requirements in 30 minutes. The approach he actually uses with stakeholders, not a textbook version that falls apart on contact with messy data and vague requirements.

He runs it regularly.

Latest dates : Gather data requirements in 30 minutes using a shared language

Workshop details : https://maven.com/agiledataguides/info-prod

1. Personal OS / “Watson OS”
   a privacy-conscious household management system that filters emails, checks shared calendars, routes responsibilities, and sends daily/weekly digests rather than becoming another task manager.

2. Context layers and shared organisational memory
   AI summaries may be more useful for copilots to retrieve on demand than for people to read; the broader challenge is consent-based creation, sharing, retrieval, and curation of context.

3. Scaling innovation from individuals to the organisation
   power users need a path to turn useful experiments into trusted, governed products, while data teams may increasingly own mini-apps, write-back workflows, and source-system-like capabilities.

Thank you to everyone who tuned into our latest AURA Ask Us Anything live session..

Join us for the next AURA session in the app

Got a Question you want to ask and have answered in the next AURA session, leave a comment and we got you!

Leave a comment

Shane runs a 6 hour workshop on the Information Product Canvas, a repeatable way to gather data requirements in 30 minutes. The approach he actually uses with stakeholders, not a textbook version that falls apart on contact with messy data and vague requirements.

He runs it regularly.

Latest dates : Gather data requirements in 30 minutes using a shared language

Workshop details : https://maven.com/agiledataguides/info-prod

1. How to migrate legacy data platforms safely
   audit first, choose greenfield vs. lift-and-shift early, define the target architecture, and validate with a thin-slice POC rather than a big-bang migration.

2. Using AI in migration work, with human oversight
   LLMs can help translate code, create plans, surface outliers, and review alternatives, but edge cases, over-engineering, and validation mean people remain essential.

3. Preserving business context and governance
   retain raw migration conversations, document why decisions were made, separate logic/context from the execution platform, and establish governance, cost monitoring, and FinOps from day one.

Thank you to everyone who tuned into our latest AURA Ask Us Anything live session.

Join us for the next AURA session in the app

Got a Question you want to ask and have answered in the next AURA session, leave a comment and we got you!

Leave a comment

Shane runs a 6 hour workshop on the Information Product Canvas, a repeatable way to gather data requirements in 30 minutes. The approach he actually uses with stakeholders, not a textbook version that falls apart on contact with messy data and vague requirements.

He runs it regularly.

Latest dates : Gather data requirements in 30 minutes using a shared language

Workshop details : https://maven.com/agiledataguides/info-prod

• Data platform architecture and orchestration
  whether agent meshes can replace traditional DAG-based orchestration, and when platform-native tools are sufficient.

• Choosing platforms vs. best-of-breed tools
  integration gaps, feature parity, and using explicit principles to decide whether to adopt, lease, or build.

• AI tooling, privacy, and context ownership
  custom AI harnesses, model cost/visibility problems, multiplayer workflows, and the risks of organisational and personal data being exposed or sold.

Thank you to everyone who tuned into our latest AURA Ask Us Anything live session.

Join us for the next AURA session in the app.

Got a Question you want to ask and have answered in the next AURA session, leave a comment and we got you!

Leave a comment

Shane runs a 6 hour workshop on the Information Product Canvas, a repeatable way to gather data requirements in 30 minutes. The approach he actually uses with stakeholders, not a textbook version that falls apart on contact with messy data and vague requirements.

He runs it regularly.

Latest dates : Gather data requirements in 30 minutes using a shared language

Workshop details : https://maven.com/agiledataguides/info-prod

Join us for the next AURA session in the app

Agile Data N’ Info

AURA - Tim Frazer - Wednesday, 02 September 2026 - 12pm EDT / 5pm UK

Another AURA session is scheduled…

Read more

3 months ago · Shagility

Got a Question you want to ask and have answered in the next AURA session, leave a comment and we got you!

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Shane runs a 6 hour workshop on the Information Product Canvas, a repeatable way to gather data requirements in 30 minutes. The approach he actually uses with stakeholders, not a textbook version that falls apart on contact with messy data and vague requirements.

He runs it regularly.

Latest dates : Gather data requirements in 30 minutes using a shared language

Workshop details : https://maven.com/agiledataguides/info-prod

Join us for the next AURA session in the app

Got a Question you want to ask and have answered in the next AURA session, leave a comment and we got you!

Leave a comment

Shane runs a 6 hour workshop on the Information Product Canvas, a repeatable way to gather data requirements in 30 minutes. The approach he actually uses with stakeholders, not a textbook version that falls apart on contact with messy data and vague requirements.

He runs it regularly.

Latest dates : Gather data requirements in 30 minutes using a shared language

Workshop details : https://maven.com/agiledataguides/info-prod

Join us for the next AURA session in the app.

Got a Question you want to ask and have answered in the next AURA session, leave a comment and we got you!

Leave a comment

It will be quite the ride!

Shane runs a 6 hour workshop on the Information Product Canvas, a repeatable way to gather data requirements in 30 minutes. The approach he actually uses with stakeholders, not a textbook version that falls apart on contact with messy data and vague requirements.

He runs it regularly.

Latest dates : Gather data requirements in 30 minutes using a shared language

Workshop details : https://maven.com/agiledataguides/info-prod

1. Architecture and tests matter more than code generation.
   AI can build quickly, but sustainable work depends on clear outcomes, strong test coverage, and system-level judgment.

2. AI makes feature creep and context-switching easier.
   Both of you saw overbuilding, parallel sessions, and longer test cycles creating new delivery problems—so thin slices and simplicity still matter.

3. “Company brain” will be valuable only with usable context and privacy.
   Shared definitions, selective/high-quality source material, automated capture, and careful privacy boundaries are more important than simply dumping documents into an LLM.

Thank you to everyone who tuned into our latest AURA Ask Us Anything live session.

Join us for the next AURA session in the app.

Got a Question you want to ask and have answered in the next AURA session, leave a comment and we got you!

Leave a comment

Shane runs a 6 hour workshop on the Information Product Canvas, a repeatable way to gather data requirements in 30 minutes. The approach he actually uses with stakeholders, not a textbook version that falls apart on contact with messy data and vague requirements.

He runs it regularly.

Latest dates : Gather data requirements in 30 minutes using a shared language

Workshop details : https://maven.com/agiledataguides/info-prod

Join us for the next AURA session in the app

Got a Question you want to ask and have answered in the next AURA session, leave a comment and we got you!

Leave a comment

Shane runs a 6 hour workshop on the Information Product Canvas, a repeatable way to gather data requirements in 30 minutes. The approach he actually uses with stakeholders, not a textbook version that falls apart on contact with messy data and vague requirements.

He runs it regularly.

Latest dates : Gather data requirements in 30 minutes using a shared language

Workshop details : https://maven.com/agiledataguides/info-prod

Join us for the next AURA session in the app

Got a Question you want to ask and have answered in the next AURA session, leave a comment and we got you!

Leave a comment

Shane runs a 6 hour workshop on the Information Product Canvas, a repeatable way to gather data requirements in 30 minutes. The approach he actually uses with stakeholders, not a textbook version that falls apart on contact with messy data and vague requirements.

He runs it regularly.

Latest dates : Gather data requirements in 30 minutes using a shared language

Workshop details : https://maven.com/agiledataguides/info-prod

Join us for the next AURA session in the app

Got a Question you want to ask and have answered in the next AURA session, leave a comment and we got you!

Leave a comment

Shane runs a 6 hour workshop on the Information Product Canvas, a repeatable way to gather data requirements in 30 minutes. The approach he actually uses with stakeholders, not a textbook version that falls apart on contact with messy data and vague requirements.

He runs it regularly.

Latest dates : Gather data requirements in 30 minutes using a shared language

Workshop details : https://maven.com/agiledataguides/info-prod

Join us for the next AURA session in the app.

Agile Data N’ Info

AURA - Chris Gambill - Friday, 10 July 2026 - 1pm EST / 6pm GMT

Second AURA session is booked…

Read more

4 months ago · Shagility

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Shane runs a 6 hour workshop on the Information Product Canvas, a repeatable way to gather data requirements in 30 minutes. The approach he actually uses with stakeholders, not a textbook version that falls apart on contact with messy data and vague requirements.

He runs it regularly.

Latest dates : Gather data requirements in 30 minutes using a shared language

Workshop details : https://maven.com/agiledataguides/info-prod

Its been a while since I was back riding on the AgileData N’ Info podcast horse so to speak.

So decided time to mount up and this season I am trying something a little different.

I have been lucky enough to meet some awesome data experts over the years, and extra lucky to be able to chew the fat with them on a semi regular basis to discuss what we see happening in the data, product and AI domains.

Its also a great opportunity for me to ask them my latest burning questions.

So I thought what would happen if we had those chats in public and let the audience ask questions.

Me + one data expert, ~1 hour, fully live, audience drives it, published raw with no editing.

Then I thought you know what is better than 1 data expert, 4!

Four regular guests on a monthly rotation, one guest a week.

And so I asked four awesome data experts if they were up for it and they all said yes!

This is going to be an experiment.

• We will use Substack Live for it (first time I have used it)

• Who knows if anybody will turn up and ask questions (but if they dont that is ok, we will just chew the fat anyway)

First awesome data expert scheduled in for next Wednesday, 1st July.

If you want to see the schedule as we build it out, there is a new section for it here here:

agiledata.info/s/aura-a…

Come join us, it might be quite the ride!

Shane runs a 6 hour workshop on the Information Product Canvas, a repeatable way to gather data requirements in 30 minutes. The approach he actually uses with stakeholders, not a textbook version that falls apart on contact with messy data and vague requirements.

He runs it regularly.

Latest dates : Gather data requirements in 30 minutes using a shared language

Workshop details : https://maven.com/agiledataguides/info-prod

Another AURA session is booked!

and I will chat on Friday, 20th November 2026, 8am MDT / 3pm GMT.

You can join the Substack Live and ask your questions live here:

https://open.substack.com/live-stream/441925

If you cant make it, the recording will be published on the Agile Data N’ Info substack after the live session.

Feel free to ask any questions you have in the comments here and we will answer them in the live session.

While you wait for the session you can read Anna’s awesome content here:

When Data Met Product

A substack about how product management can help drive better outcomes with data - frameworks, case studies, and lessons learned from a product leader in data & AI platforms.

By Anna Bergevin

The AURA Session Format

AURA is aimed at working Data Practitioners who are tired of polished webinars and want the real, in-the-weeds conversation, where the live audience sets the agenda and the unedited recording gets published afterwards

Data Practitioners get to ask us questions and we will try to answer them.

There is no agenda, each of the AURA foursome have “a very particular set of skills, skills they have acquired over a very long career …”, the live audience will drive the focus of the conversations.

If the room goes quiet, we will just chat amongst ourselves about what we see is actually happening in the data world right now and what we each worked on and wrestled with last month.

Come join us

It will be quite the ride!

Shane runs a 6 hour workshop on the Information Product Canvas, a repeatable way to gather data requirements in 30 minutes. The approach he actually uses with stakeholders, not a textbook version that falls apart on contact with messy data and vague requirements.

He runs it regularly.

Latest dates : Gather data requirements in 30 minutes using a shared language

Workshop details : https://maven.com/agiledataguides/info-prod