So You Want to Work With Data Contracts and Data Products?

Let’s be honest: data contracts and data products sound like something between legal paperwork and something you’d find in a warehouse.

However, in reality, they’re the backbone of modern data ecosystems. And once you understand how to create, version, evolve, and document them, you’ll never look at a CSV the same way again.

That’s why I created a short series of four hands-on tutorials to help you not just understand the concepts, but actually do the thing. No buzzwords. No 50-slide decks. No BS. Just real tools, APIs, YAML, curl, and progress.

The Four Tutorials at a Glance

Here’s the lifecycle we’ll walk through:

1. Experimenting with Data Contracts

We start with the basics: take some structured data (like a DDL schema) and create your first data contract based on the Open Data Contract Standard (ODCS). You’ll see how to validate, version, and store contracts — while realizing it’s easier than setting up your Wi-Fi printer (I just got one, so it’s really close to home).

“Being able to quickly turn a database structure into a data contract has got me thinking how I can better document and describe my data.”

— Craig Petch

2. Playing with Data Products

Here, we introduce the Open Data Product Standard (ODPS) and build a data product from scratch using contracts as building blocks. Think LEGO, but for data.

“[Bitol’s] ODPS allows you to start tying together data contracts into cohesive deployment units.”

— Arne Laponin

3. Controlling Schema Drift

Everything changes — including your schema. This tutorial helps you detect what changed, how bad it is, and what version bump it deserves. No guesswork, no regrets.

“This is going to change the way people look at managing data governance.”

— Alex Meadows

4. Making Pretty Documentation from Data Contracts

YAML is beautiful in its own way, but not to everyone. Learn how to generate polished, human-friendly PDFs from your contracts. Yes, with logos. Yes, with a table of contents. Yes, with fewer headaches.

“This tool is wonderful for facilitating a transition to data contracts and getting people to stop relying on manual editing of Confluence.”

— Arne Laponin

Why This Matters

Data contracts and products aren’t just about structure — they’re about trust, reuse, and clarity.

With open standards like ODCS and ODPS, you’re not locked into a vendor. You’re building a shared language between producers and consumers.

By the end of this series, you’ll be able to:

• Design contracts and products that actually work.
• Manage change without chaos.
• Automate documentation like a boss.

Get Started

This hands-on series is currently invite-only, designed for those who want to explore the power of open data standards in practice. If you’ve received this link, congratulations — you’re in. To join the program and unlock the tutorials, head over to:

https://jgp.ai/csreg

Registration is quick, free, and gives you access to the full experience — tutorials, tools, feedback forms, and your badge at the end.

Support will be limited from June 6th 2025 to June 24th 2025. Join Slack and this channel to get help. You can also raise issues on GitHub, as soon as you have access.

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So You Want to Work With Data Contracts and Data Products? was originally published in jgpai on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.