Throughout his career as a solution architect, Dom Orsini has witnessed significant transformations in the data integration industry, evolving from labor-intensive on-premise systems to the agile, fully-managed SaaS solutions of today. Initially, data projects were cumbersome, requiring manual coding and constant supervision, with traditional ETL processes relying heavily on engineering and IT. The advent of big data and infrastructure-as-a-service (IaaS) brought more speed but also complexity and challenges in maintaining interdependent technologies. The current era, marked by the rise of SaaS applications and automated data pipelines, has revolutionized data integration, allowing companies to extract and utilize data efficiently with minimal configuration. Tools like Fivetran and dbt have streamlined data processes, enabling analysts to focus on insights rather than technical hurdles, thus making the field more accessible and dynamic for data professionals.