Data platforms are the new crown jewel and require mature leadership

Almost every organization is currently investing in a modern data platform. The goals are clear: better management information, faster decision-making, more control over data and, above all, being ready for AI. Generous innovation budgets are available and expectations are high. 

Rightly so. Without a solid data platform , there are no reliable dashboards, no scalable analytics , and no AI that can go beyond a pilot. Data is the engine of digital transformation and the platform is the foundation on which that engine runs. What many organizations underestimate is that with these investments they not only create value, but also centralize risk. In a short time, the data platform has grown into a new crown jewel. And crown jewels attract attention. 

The question is therefore not only how to get maximum value from a data platform, but also how to keep it safe, responsible and resilient while it becomes increasingly central to business operations. 

The investment wave makes sense 

What we see is not a hype, but a structural development. The data platform is a strategic spearhead in almost every sector. 

Financial institutions use it for fraud detection and risk modeling. Retail organizations analyze customer behavior and optimize supply chains. Industrial companies connect IoT data for predictive maintenance. Healthcare institutions improve insight into patient flows. Governments are investing in data-driven policy and transparency. 

This development is driven by four forces: 

1. Cloud has come of age. Cloud is the standard. Scalability and managed services make it possible to organize data centrally and future-proof.

2. AI increases the urgency. Without reliable and structured data, AI is limited to experimentation. The data platform is a precondition for serious AI ambitions. 

3. Laws and regulations require control. GDPR, NIS2 and sector-specific guidelines require insight into data, access management and incident handling. 

4. The need for speed is growing. Directors expect real-time insight instead of monthly reports. 

So the wave of investment is logical. But value does not arise by itself. 

Value only arises with trust. A well-designed data platform provides visible benefits. Discussions about figures are decreasing because definitions are unambiguous. Reports are automated. Departments work from the same dataset instead of their own Excel versions. Decision-making accelerates. 

In addition, the platform opens the door to new services: personalization, predictive analytics and more efficient processes. AI applications are getting a solid foundation. 

But one condition is crucial: trust. 

As soon as doubts arise about data quality, access management or compliance, adoption drops. Business is becoming reluctant, security critical and innovation slows down. We regularly see technically strong platforms where governance and security have not grown sufficiently. The result: an environment that can do a lot, but on which people do not dare to fully build. 

That is perhaps the biggest risk: a strategic investment that is not fully exploited due to lack of maturity. 

Centralization means concentration of risk 

Modern data platforms contain not only operational data, but also customer data, financial figures, HR data and intellectual property. Where data used to be spread over dozens of systems, it is now being consolidated. This is efficient, but increases the impact of an incident. 

For attackers, a data platform is an attractive target. Many cyber incidents do not start with advanced hacks, but with abuse of identity: stolen credentials, excessive permissions or poorly managed service accounts. Security-by-design is therefore essential. Identity, access models, network isolation, logging and data classification must be part of the architecture from the start. But even that is not enough. 

From security to cyber resilience 

Cyber resilience goes beyond prevention. It revolves around three interrelated dimensions: prevention, detection and recovery. 

• Prevention starts with identity. Least privilege should be the standard. Multifactor authentication and Just-in-Time access mitigate risks. Development, test and production environments are strictly separated. Network isolation and controlled integrations prevent unnecessary exposure. Secrets don't belong in code and credentials don't belong in scripts. 
   
• Detection means that you recognize deviations in time. Unusual query patterns, mass exports, or sudden access to sensitive datasets are signs of potential exploitation. Integration with SIEM and SOC is crucial to correlate identity events and data access. AI on top of data platforms also creates new risks, such as unauthorized data extraction via AI endpoints. Monitoring AI use is thus becoming part of modern security. 
   
• Recovery ultimately determines the impact. How long is the platform down? Is recovery possible without data loss? Immutable backups, tested disaster recovery and a specific incident response plan for data environments are not technical details, but strategic preconditions. 

Governance is maturity 

Governance is sometimes seen as bureaucracy, but in essence it is clear ownership and clear agreements. Who owns a dataset? What does a KPI mean exactly? Who decides on granting access? How is data quality monitored? Without governance , fragmentation occurs. Governance  creates trust. And trust is the basis for adoption, innovation and sustainable value creation. 

The difference is in leadership 

Data platforms are not a one-off IT project, but an evolving ecosystem. New technology, changing regulations, and more sophisticated attack techniques mean that no organization is ever "done."

Organizations that see their data platform as a pure IT initiative get stuck. Organizations that approach it as a strategic asset make different choices. They invest not only in tooling, but also in governance, detection and recovery capabilities. 

The central question for IT leaders and boards is therefore not whether there is a modern platform, but whether it is resilient enough to carry the ambitions of tomorrow. 

The data platform is the new crown jewel. And crown jewels have actually been asking for adult protection for  decades.