cross-system-analysis-patterns

name	cross-system-analysis-patterns
description	Reference for analyzing issues spanning multiple systems (dbt, Snowflake, Orchestra, Tableau) with agent coordination strategies Use when this capability is needed.
metadata	{"author":"dylpickledev"}

Cross-System Issue Analysis & Coordination Patterns

Common Issue Categories (Multi-Tool)

1. Schema/Column Reference Errors

Symptom: Tests referencing incorrect column names vs actual model schemas

Analysis Pattern:

• Check dbt model schemas against test definitions
• Verify column name case sensitivity
• Look for renamed columns in recent changes
• Cross-reference with source system schemas

Priority: CRITICAL if blocking compilation

2. Data Quality Issues

Symptom: Uniqueness constraint violations, null constraint failures, massive duplications

Analysis Pattern:

• Check upstream data sources for quality
• Review recent ETL/ELT pipeline changes
• Validate data freshness and completeness
• Look for source system changes

Priority: HIGH if indicating upstream pipeline problems

3. Cross-System Validation Failures

Symptom: Mismatches between source systems and dbt model expectations

Analysis Pattern:

• Compare source schema with dbt expectations
• Check for API/integration changes
• Validate data type mismatches
• Review ingestion pipeline logs

Priority: MEDIUM to HIGH depending on impact

4. Business Logic Validation

Symptom: Failed reconciliation tests, metric validation errors

Analysis Pattern:

• Review business rules implementation
• Validate calculation logic
• Check for edge cases in data
• Consult stakeholders on expectations

Priority: MEDIUM unless affecting critical reports

Architecture-Aware Analysis Approach

Data Flow Context

Issues often span multiple layers in the data stack:

Orchestra (Orchestrator)
    ↓
[Prefect, dbt, Airbyte, Snowflake] (Execution Layer)
    ↓
Snowflake (Data Warehouse)
    ↓
Semantic Layer (Business Logic)
    ↓
Tableau (Visualization)

Orchestra-Centric Thinking

PATTERN: Orchestra kicks off everything

• Prefect flows
• dbt jobs
• Airbyte syncs
• Direct Snowflake operations

Analysis Strategy:

1. Start with Orchestra logs to understand what triggered
2. Trace execution through triggered systems
3. Identify failure point in the chain
4. Work backwards to root cause

Model Layer Impact

PATTERN: Problems cascade through layers

Source System Issue
    ↓
stg_* (Staging Models) - First failure point
    ↓
dm_* (Data Marts) - Downstream failures
    ↓
rpt_* (Reports) - User-facing impact

Analysis Strategy:

• Start at earliest failure point (usually staging)
• Understand cascade effects downstream
• Fix root cause, not symptoms
• Validate entire chain after fix

Source System Dependencies

PATTERN: Different source systems create different data patterns

ERP Systems:

• Structured, transactional data
• Strong referential integrity expected
• Frequent schema changes with updates

Customer Systems:

• Variable data quality
• Missing/inconsistent data common
• Requires robust null handling

Operations Systems:

• Real-time data with lag considerations
• High volume, time-series patterns
• Deduplication often needed

Safety Systems:

• Regulatory compliance requirements
• Strict data retention rules
• Audit trail critical

Tableau Data Pipeline:

• Parse TFL flows for published extracts
• Parse TWB workbooks to validate connections
• Trace data flow issues through XML/JSON analysis
• Validate extract refresh schedules

Cross-Tool Prioritization Framework

CRITICAL Priority

Schema compilation errors that block other work

Lead Agent: dbt-expert

Response Pattern:

1. Drop everything and address immediately
2. Identify blocking compilation issues
3. Fix schema problems first
4. Validate compilation succeeds
5. Then move to data quality

HIGH Priority

Large-scale data quality issues indicating upstream pipeline problems

Lead Agents: orchestra-expert + dlthub-expert

Response Pattern:

1. Check Orchestra logs for pipeline status
2. Validate source data quality with dlthub
3. Identify if pipeline or source issue
4. Coordinate fix across systems
5. Re-run pipeline to validate

MEDIUM Priority

Business logic and validation failures

Lead Agents: dbt-expert + business-context

Response Pattern:

1. Review business requirements
2. Validate logic implementation
3. Check for edge cases
4. Test with sample data
5. Update tests if requirements changed

LOW Priority

Warning-level issues that don't break functionality

Response Pattern:

1. Document for future sprint
2. Create backlog item
3. Monitor for pattern escalation
4. Address during refactoring

Agent Coordination Strategy

Role-Based Primary Agents

data-engineer-role: Pipeline & Orchestration Lead

Role: LEADS all workflow and pipeline analysis Scope: Orchestra, Prefect, dbt pipelines, Airbyte, source integrations Consolidates: orchestra-expert + dlthub-expert + prefect-expert

When to Invoke:

• Pipeline failures or timing issues
• Multi-system coordination problems
• Workflow dependency analysis
• Scheduling and orchestration questions
• Source system integration issues

analytics-engineer-role: Transformation Layer Owner

Role: Owns all data modeling and transformation work Scope: dbt models, SQL optimization, business logic, semantic layer Consolidates: dbt-expert + snowflake-expert (SQL) + tableau-expert (data layer)

When to Invoke:

• Model compilation errors
• Performance optimization
• Business logic implementation
• Data quality testing
• Metric definitions

bi-developer-role: Consumption Layer & Documentation

Role: Dashboard development and end-user documentation Scope: Tableau visualizations, UX design, user guides Consolidates: tableau-expert (viz) + ui-ux-expert + documentation-expert (end-user)

When to Invoke:

• Dashboard development
• Performance optimization for BI
• User training materials
• Visualization best practices

qa-engineer-role: Comprehensive Testing

Role: Enterprise-grade testing and validation Scope: All user-facing changes, data quality validation

When to Invoke:

• After UI/UX changes
• Before marking work complete
• API/backend changes
• Data quality validation

Tool Specialists (Consultation Layer - 20% of cases)

Available for complex edge cases requiring deep tool expertise:

• dbt-expert, snowflake-expert, tableau-expert
• dlthub-expert, orchestra-expert, prefect-expert
• documentation-expert (platform-wide standards)

When to consult: Role agents automatically invoke for complex scenarios

Specialist Consultation Examples

Example 1: Complex dbt Macro Development

analytics-engineer-role handles most transformations
→ Consults dbt-expert for advanced macro patterns
→ Implements solution with expert guidance

Example 2: Advanced Prefect Flow Patterns

data-engineer-role sets up most pipelines
→ Consults prefect-expert for complex flow patterns
→ Implements with specialist input

Example 3: Deep Snowflake Cost Optimization

analytics-engineer-role handles query optimization
→ Consults snowflake-expert for warehouse-level cost analysis
→ Applies recommendations

business-analyst-role: Requirements & Stakeholder Alignment

Role: Business logic validation, stakeholder communication Scope: Requirements gathering, metric definitions, business rules

When to Invoke:

• Unclear business requirements
• Metric definition questions
• Stakeholder alignment needed
• Business rule validation

data-architect-role: System Design & Strategy

Role: System design, data flow analysis, strategic platform decisions Scope: Entire data stack architecture

When to Invoke:

• Cross-system design decisions
• Architecture pattern questions
• Strategic platform choices
• Complex integration design

Multi-Agent Coordination Patterns

Sequential Coordination

Pattern: One agent's output feeds next agent's analysis

orchestra-expert (identify workflow issue)
    ↓
dlthub-expert (check source data quality)
    ↓
dbt-expert (fix model logic)
    ↓
qa-coordinator (validate fix)

Parallel Investigation

Pattern: Multiple agents investigate different aspects simultaneously

                    Issue Detected
                          |
        +-----------------+-----------------+
        |                 |                 |
    dbt-expert      snowflake-expert   tableau-expert
    (check models)  (check queries)    (check dashboards)
        |                 |                 |
        +-----------------+-----------------+
                          |
                   Synthesize Findings

Iterative Refinement

Pattern: Agent collaboration with feedback loops

business-context (gather requirements)
    ↓
dbt-expert (implement logic)
    ↓
qa-coordinator (test functionality)
    ↓
business-context (validate with stakeholders)
    ↓ (if changes needed)
dbt-expert (refine implementation)

Pattern Markers for Memory Extraction

When documenting cross-system discoveries:

• PATTERN: Reusable analysis approaches
• SOLUTION: Specific multi-system fixes
• ERROR-FIX: Cross-system errors and resolutions
• ARCHITECTURE: System integration patterns
• INTEGRATION: Cross-system coordination approaches

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