Sandra Halling, The Data Mavens founder and principal consultant.

Photo credit: Sarah Zollo.

Senior Systems Strategist & Operations Architect

Hi, I'm Sandra Halling. I build human-centered systems that refine and elevate how you operate.

I work with growing organizations to install the structure and strengthen the decision-making required to move smoothly when scaling — without losing sight of the culture they want to keep — and then design and implement the systems to support it.

If you’re ready to drop scattered workflows, fuzzy ownership, and ten different “sources of truth,” you’re in the right place.

Ready to elevate your operations?

Let’s create the system that supports your goals and your culture.

I don’t just clean up messy systems — I eliminate the operational drama and chaos that’s bottlenecking your organization.

I design cohesive operating systems built on decision clarity and real operational structure. Then we layer in tools and workflows your team can actually use, so the whole thing sticks.

With human-centered governance and data provenance leading the workflow design and tooling, you end up with a system that is both as usable as it is scalable.

If you need a title to give me, the closest might be Fractional Operations Architect.

Functionally, a Governance & Systems Officer (CGSO) would be a better fit. I legit may have just made that title up! I joke but accuracy and precision matter when it comes to taxonomy.

This is a role that consolidates fucntions that most organizations require. Mst organizations do not have good name or description for it:

The person who designs the operating environment in a way that reflects reality.

Authority, decisions rights, workflows, systems, and people actually have come together for the system to stick.

And I mean actual reality — not an idealized version of workflow that won't hold under load.

Operational governance goes hand-in-hand with data provenance — regardless of how complex or simple your data is — and it's what's required for a system to become the way you operate.

Your systems are producing results — but the way they’re working is signaling issues.

  • Decisions do not have clear pathways.
  • Data lives in too many places.
  • Keeping everything on track takes vigilance — and too many disconnected, bloated spreadsheets.

Maybe the work is getting done.

But complexity in operations is increasing. Your systems won't handle your next chapter — and you know it.

The question is not "what are you going to do about that?"

The question is when.

Addressing it is not optional.

(My clients are the people for whom that last sentence was extra.)

When decision-making, ownership, and workflows aren’t aligned, even good teams end up compensating with effort instead of structure.

Most organizations I work with are moving fast.

They're expanding, scaling, acquiring, and refining how they operate to meet those demands.

Meanwhile, their systems evolved organically and no longer map to how they actually operate, and the pace of change adds weight and strains resources.

High effort, chaos, drama, whatever you want to call it, is a sign that scaffolding is missing. That structure is what makes growth smooth.

I offer strategic (and compassionate) support for organizations moving from ad-hoc, early-stage systems to coordinated, scalable operations.

We start with discovery to define the real challenges—mapping what’s functional, what’s creating friction, and where the structural gaps live.

Then we build systems that reflect your actual processes, support your culture, and grow with you.

No bloated tools, generic templates, or cookie-cutter solutions. Just calm, thoughtful, infrastructure that fits—so you can be ready for what's next.

Sandra, smiling wearing a gold colored shirt and gold earrings.
The work is serious, but I'm friendly.

I'm the least obnoxious technical person you will ever meet.

I realize that's not a high bar, and it is worth mentioning for precisely that reason.

Implementing systems takes patience and grit. Even the smoothest projects have frustrating moments. When those moments happen, you want someone who’s easy to work with and genuinely on your side.

A collaborative straight-shooter who is mildly amused but unfazed by chaos? That's me.

Read more about me & how I think about systems »