Glossary: terms we don&#x27;t just explain, we deliver them

Data strategy

A data strategy defines how a company uses data to improve decisions — from goals and responsibilities to data quality and the technical platform.

Data warehouse & lakehouse

A data warehouse is a central database optimized for analytics; a lakehouse combines the flexibility of a data lake with the structure of a warehouse.

Data modeling (Inmon, Kimball, Data Vault)

Methods for structuring a data warehouse: Inmon (normalized, top-down), Kimball (dimensional, bottom-up) and Data Vault (flexible, history-tracking).

Medallion architecture (bronze/silver/gold)

A layered model that refines raw data (bronze) through cleaned data (silver) into analysis-ready models (gold).

Data governance

Data governance covers the rules, roles and processes that keep data consistent, understandable, secure and trustworthy.

MLOps

MLOps applies DevOps principles to machine learning: reproducible training, automated deployment and monitoring of models in production.

Machine learning in Azure

Machine learning in Azure bundles services such as Azure Machine Learning and Azure Databricks to train, deploy and operate ML models.

Power BI

Power BI is Microsoft's business intelligence platform for connecting, modeling, analyzing and visualizing data from many sources in interactive dashboards.

Power Query

Power Query is the data preparation and transformation component in Power BI and Excel — often used for ETL processes.

DAX (Data Analysis Expressions)

DAX is the formula language of Power BI used to define measures and calculated columns for analysis.

Semantic model (Power BI dataset)

The semantic model, formerly the Power BI dataset, is the semantic data layer in Power BI: tables, relationships, measures and permissions.

Row-level security (RLS)

Row-level security restricts data access at the row level in Power BI, so users only see the data cleared for their role.

ETL / ELT

ETL and ELT describe processes for extracting, transforming and loading data — the difference lies in the order of transformation and loading.

Microsoft Fabric

Microsoft Fabric is an integrated data and analytics platform that unifies data engineering, warehousing, data science and Power BI in one SaaS service.

Azure Databricks

Azure Databricks is a cloud-based lakehouse platform for large-scale data processing, transformation and machine learning.

Platforms, apps & cloud

Digital platforms

A digital platform is a central, extensible system that connects users, data and processes — the foundation for SaaS products and connected workflows.

SaaS (Software as a Service)

SaaS is a delivery model where software runs centrally in the cloud and is used over the internet on a subscription basis — without local installation.

Multi-tenant architecture

In a multi-tenant architecture, several customers (tenants) share the same application and infrastructure while their data stays logically separated.

Cloud computing

Cloud computing is the delivery of IT resources such as compute, storage and software over the internet — flexible, scalable and billed by usage, instead of running your own hardware on-site.

Cloud infrastructure

Cloud infrastructure covers compute, storage and networking as scalable services — at smiit predominantly on Microsoft Azure.

Cloud governance

Cloud governance covers policies for cost, security, permissions and structure of a cloud environment, keeping it transparent and controllable.

SDLC (software development life cycle)

The SDLC describes the phases of software development — from analysis and design through build and test to operation and maintenance.

REST API / API integration

A REST API is a standardized interface through which applications exchange data and functions — the basis for integrating different systems.

MVP (minimum viable product)

An MVP is the first working version of a product with the core set of features needed to deliver real value and gather feedback.

Strategy, automation & security

Process optimization & automation

Process optimization makes workflows leaner and clearer; process automation handles repetitive steps technically — for less manual work and fewer errors.

Power Automate

Power Automate is the automation service of the Microsoft Power Platform for automating workflows across apps, services and files.

AI Builder (document extraction / OCR)

AI Builder is the AI component of the Power Platform and uses OCR and models to extract structured information from documents such as PDFs automatically.

Master data management (MDM)

Master data management keeps core data such as customers, suppliers and products consistent, correct and free of duplicates across systems.

DevOps

DevOps connects development and operations through automation, short feedback loops and shared responsibility — for faster, more stable releases.

CI/CD

CI/CD stands for continuous integration and continuous delivery/deployment: automated building, testing and shipping of software.

IaC (infrastructure as code)

Infrastructure as code describes cloud infrastructure in versionable code (e.g. Bicep or Terraform) instead of manual clicks — reproducible and traceable.

IT security

IT security protects systems, data and identities against unauthorised access, manipulation and outage — as a continuous discipline, not a single product.

IAM / Keycloak

Identity & access management (IAM) governs identities, roles and access; Keycloak is an established open-source solution for authentication and authorization.

Multi-factor authentication (MFA / 2FA)

MFA requires several independent proofs for login (e.g. password plus one-time code), making unauthorised access considerably harder.

Networking & security (VNet, zero trust)

Network security segments and controls traffic (e.g. via virtual networks and zero-trust principles) to minimize the attack surface.

GDPR / data protection in the cloud

The GDPR governs the protection of personal data in the EU; in the cloud this concerns location choice, data processing agreements and documented data flows.