A coherent target state
Reference architecture and patterns that make boundaries, responsibilities, and evolution paths explicit.
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Data architecture consulting
Build foundations that will not collapse under the next priority.
Shape platform architecture, data models, integration patterns, governance, and delivery standards around the way your enterprise actually operates.
Discuss your situationAt a glance
Know what the engagement is before the first call.
Scope is confirmed on the strategy call, but the working boundaries stay visible from the start.
- Best fit
- Organizations modernizing a data estate, reviewing a consequential platform choice, or correcting inconsistent architecture across teams.
- Review scope
- Platforms, pipelines, models, integrations, access, governance, reliability, cost, delivery standards, and operating boundaries.
- Deliverables
- Risk register, decision records, reference architecture, target-state patterns, standards, and a sequenced transition plan.
- Typical timeline
- Focused audits usually take 2-3 weeks; blueprints usually take 3-4 weeks.
- Pricing
- Architecture audits begin at $15,000 and modern platform blueprints at $20,000; broader scopes are confirmed before work begins.
- Not included
- Managed operations, on-call coverage, and full implementation ownership are separately defined when needed.
The tension
A modern platform can still produce old problems: brittle pipelines, unclear ownership, duplicated logic, runaway costs, and data nobody trusts.
What changes
Outcomes your organization can feel.
Clear evidence of progress, not a binder that becomes shelf decor.
Lower delivery friction
Standards that reduce reinvention without turning architecture into a ticket queue or a theological debate.
Resilience by design
Practical decisions for scale, reliability, interoperability, security, cost, and vendor change.
Ways to engage
Start where the pressure is highest.
Architecture audit
A focused assessment of platform, pipelines, models, governance, costs, risks, and team practices.
Target-state architecture
Decision records, reference architecture, integration patterns, standards, and a sequenced transition plan.
Fractional architecture retainer
Ongoing decision support, design reviews, coaching, architecture guidance, and defined implementation support.
Good fit
This work is built for leaders who...
- Are modernizing Databricks, Azure, Fabric, Snowflake, or a hybrid estate.
- Need an independent review before committing to a major platform direction.
- Have architecture diagrams but inconsistent implementation across teams.
- Need to reduce technical debt without stopping delivery.
Common questions
Answers before you schedule.
The questions leaders usually ask before booking a call, answered the same way they would be on the call.
Can you work alongside our existing team and vendors?
Yes. Architecture work is designed to support internal teams, implementation partners, and leaders without replacing the people already doing the work.
Is this advisory only, or can it include implementation?
Audits and blueprints are advisory: a risk register, decision records, reference architecture, and a sequenced transition plan. Bounded implementation support can be defined separately when the findings identify a clear, agreed scope.
Do you need access to our production systems?
Most audit and blueprint work is assessment-based and does not require production access. Where a platform-specific review calls for deeper access, that is scoped and agreed in advance rather than assumed.
What does an architecture engagement cost?
Architecture audits begin at $15,000 and modern platform blueprints at $20,000. A fractional architecture retainer runs $3,000-$15,000 per month with a three-month minimum. Broader scopes are confirmed before work begins.
Which platforms do you cover, and is the advice independent?
Databricks, Azure, Microsoft Fabric, Snowflake, and hybrid estates. Gambill Data holds Databricks and Microsoft partner relationships, and the review still starts from your workloads, constraints, and costs rather than a preferred product.
Decision support
Review the evidence before you schedule.
Use the proof, pricing, and engagement boundaries to decide whether a conversation is worth your time.
Next step
Get an architecture your team can build and live with.
Bring the messy version. We will figure out where the leverage actually is.
30-Minute Strategy and Architecture Fit Call