19.13 BDC Architect Playbook
Platform
- BDC scope is defined.
- Datasphere role is explicit.
- BW modernization strategy is explicit.
- External platform strategy is explicit.
Data products
- Product owner assigned.
- Business definition documented.
- Grain documented.
- Quality rules defined.
- Freshness defined.
- Security defined.
- Lifecycle defined.
Content
- SAP-managed content identified.
- Compatibility checked.
- Installation runbook defined.
- Extension boundaries respected.
- Update testing defined.
Integration
- Federation evaluated.
- Replication evaluated.
- Zero-copy evaluated.
- Duplicate persistence challenged.
- Failure boundaries documented.
BW modernization
- Inventory complete.
- Objects classified.
- Migration waves defined.
- Parallel validation defined.
- Retirement criteria defined.
Governance
- Catalog ownership defined.
- Data stewardship defined.
- Access model defined.
- Product certification defined.
- Deprecation policy defined.
Architect interview framework
When asked "What is SAP Business Data Cloud?", answer in this order:
- It is broader than Datasphere.
- Datasphere is a key component and knowledge core.
- BDC unifies governed SAP and third-party data around business context.
- Data products create reusable consumption contracts.
- Intelligent content accelerates packaged business use cases.
- BW modernization provides a path for existing BW investments.
- BDC Connect enables an open ecosystem and zero-copy patterns where supported.
- The architect still owns security, semantics, operating model, cost and lifecycle.
Final architect test
You should be able to defend:
- BDC versus Datasphere,
- data product versus table,
- SAP-managed versus customer-managed content,
- when to use BW Bridge,
- when to redesign BW,
- when zero-copy is appropriate,
- when a physical copy is justified,
- how governance crosses platforms,
- how content updates are controlled,
- how the enterprise operating model works.
The goal is not to adopt every BDC capability.
The goal is to create a governed business data fabric that preserves context while minimizing unnecessary duplication and operational complexity.