Trend-Setting Products in Data and Information Management for 2026

After a banner year for the "promise of progress" on AI ambitions, deepening CX fatigue, and ongoing economic volatility, Forrester is predicting 2026 will bring a year of reckoning. According to Sharyn Leaver, chief research officer at Forrester, "Navigating the coming year will take some mindset shifts: from lofty ambition to pragmatism, from experimentation to accountability, from surface-level engagement to meaningful connection." To help make the process of identifying useful products and services easier, each year, DBTA presents a list of Trend-Setting Products, highlighting a commitment to innovation and efforts to provide organizations with tools to address changing market requirements. Read More

Data Centers Face Calls for Environmental Regulations in 2026? 7 Predictions for the Data Center Space

One of the largest power grid operators in the U.S. is asking Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) to only allow large data centers to connect to the grid if there's enough capacity available to serve them reliably, according to Utility Dive. The infrastructure underlying big data processing, typically large-scale data centers, is starting to receive pushback as more residents in the U.S. see climbing energy costs. Read More

Introducing the AI Agent: The Newest Member of Your IT Team

The daily routine of an IT professional remains largely reactive. A lot of time and budget is spent responding to tickets, limiting the time that we spend creating systems that drive growth and improve business value. I've long said, "the tyranny of the urgent leaves little time for the truly important." Read More

Leveraging Unstructured Metadata to Lower Compliance Risks

Enterprise IT compliance needs are constantly evolving. New regulations pass every year, and internal policies change. Disruptive new technology trends, such as generative AI, create additional concerns and requirements. The risk of fines, legal exposure, or breaches from unmanaged unstructured data is massive and growing, and all hands across IT and the business need to help reduce the risks. Read More

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Database Elaborations

Todd Schraml

Differences Between Operational and Analytical Data Structures It is an unfortunate result of being human that we are biased by our first impressions. For example, we are often blinded when we encounter a subject area's data for the first time. The initial data structures we analyze and learn to understand set our internal paradigms. Once we understand that initial structure, we tend to believe that the way that structure is configured is the best, or the only way, that a specific data set of that kind of data should be presented.

DBA Corner

Craig S. Mullins

When the Cloud Comes Home: What DBAs Need to Know About Cloud Repatriation For the past decade, the industry mantra has been "move to the cloud." Vendors, analysts, and executives have pushed relentlessly toward cloud-first strategies, promising agility, elasticity, and cost savings. Many organizations followed suit—often quickly—migrating databases and applications out of their data centers. But it was never a sustainable goal to move everything to the cloud, even if industry pundits predicted that outcome.

SQL Server Drill Down

Kevin Kline

Introducing the AI Agent: The Newest Member of Your IT Team The daily routine of an IT professional remains largely reactive. A lot of time and budget is spent responding to tickets, limiting the time that we spend creating systems that drive growth and improve business value. I've long said, "the tyranny of the urgent leaves little time for the truly important."

Emerging Technologies

Career GPS: Ending the Year with Direction in an Unpredictable World As 2025 draws to a close, the modern workplace remains anything but predictable—but that doesn't mean you can't move forward with clarity and intention. For database professionals—especially those in leadership or management roles—the pressure to evolve is constant. From AI-driven automation to evolving compliance demands and growing data complexity, you're tasked with delivering results while navigating near-constant change.

Next-Gen Data Management

Will AI Become Our Friend or Foe? Technology Professionals Weigh In. Picture this: there's a new face in the IT department, ready to step in to help tackle the increasingly complex challenges caused by modern hybrid on-prem and multi-cloud environments. Overstretched technology teams always appreciate an extra set of helping hands, but what happens when this new team member isn't human—but artificial intelligence (AI)?