The Platform Navigator: Guiding your Data Mesh Journey using the Platform Engineering Maturity Model - Data Mesh Live 2026

The Platform Navigator: Guiding your Data Mesh Journey using the Platform Engineering Maturity Model

FormatData Mesh Live - Talk (25min)

The Platform Navigator: Guiding your Data Mesh Journey using the Platform Engineering Maturity Model

Building the "Self-Serve Data Mesh Platform" is often the most daunting principle of a Data Mesh implementation. Platform teams struggle to explain their progress, prioritize the right capabilities, or articulate the value of their investments to stakeholders. This lack of direction can turn a promising journey into a stalled initiative where the platform team becomes the very bottleneck they were designed to eliminate.

In this session, we will apply the CNCF Platform Engineering Maturity Model as a navigational compass for your Data Mesh Platform Journey. We will demonstrate how to adapt this framework to assess your current state, identify gaps, and plot a clear trajectory for the future. You will leave with a practical strategy to transform abstract architectural goals into a roadmap that tells you where you are and where you need to go next.

About Tom De Wolf

Tom De Wolf is an experienced hands-on architect and serves as the innovation lead, spearheading new innovative initiatives for ACA Group. His expertise lies in cloud native platform engineering and data mesh platform architectures, leveraging his background in software engineering and experience in designing various architectures, including software, microservices, data platforms, evolutionary architectures, among others.