From NOC and SOC to DOC: The New Standard for Enterprise Data Operations

Imagine running a business without a Network Operations Center or a Security Operations Center. Unthinkable, right? Yet every day, organizations operate without an equally important function; the Data Operations Center (DOC)—the very thing that could ensure their most valuable asset, data, is always reliable, visible, and ready to fuel growth. The DOC isn’t a “nice-to-have,” it’s the next frontier—and it’s here.

A Familiar Foundation: The Evolution of NOC and SOC

I’ve spent my career watching how Network Operations Centers (NOCs) and Security Operations Centers (SOCs) became critical pillars of enterprise governance. 

NOC first emerged in the 1960s with AT&T opening a “Network Control Center” in New York in 1962 to monitor its toll switches. This center is widely recognised as one of the first network operations centers to ensure network uptime and NOC has become even more important as enterprises expanded their IT footprints. 

Modern SOCs didn’t spring up overnight, they evolved from several earlier efforts to coordinate and defend networks. Managed security service providers appeared in the late 1990s and early 2000s, offering outsourced SOC‑type services. Banks and other large enterprises began building their own SOCs around this time, initially focusing on intrusion detection and incident response. Over the 2000s, these centers matured into the SOCs we know today, using centralized tools and processes to monitor, detect, and respond to cyber threats.

Both NOC and SOC have become non-negotiable because they solved existential risks: downtime and breaches. Enterprises don’t question whether they need them because the cost of going without is catastrophic. Yet, when it comes to data, the lifeblood of decision-making, we’re still in a reactive era. That’s where the concept of a Data Operations Center becomes not just useful, but overdue and required.

Why a DOC Is Overdue

Enterprises today rely on data for everything, from analytics to AI-powered strategies. But growing data volumes bring complexity and fragility. Without proactive oversight and end-to-end visibility, teams waste time manually reverse engineering, risk compliance, and struggle to scale with confidence. The costs of bad data are often hidden, but always real: missed opportunities, flawed decisions, and wasted resources. At Pantomath, it’s our vision to provide a future where humans and AI rely on trusted data; and the Pantomath DOC brings this vision to reality. 

What a DOC Delivers

A true Data Operations Center brings together capabilities that no point solution or siloed platform can match. With Pantomath, that means:

1. Cross-platform interoperable data fabric (including data in motion) – Full lineage and monitoring across every tool in the modern data ecosystem (Snowflake, Databricks, dbt, Tableau, Fivetran, and more).
2. Autonomous resolution in production - Purpose-built AI agents handle the full incident lifecycle, they detect the issue, trace the single root cause, and apply containment and mitigation in real time. 
3. Bring Your Own Catalog (BYOC) – Leverage existing metadata catalogs and fold them seamlessly into a unified operational view.
4. One tool for all teams - Pantomath spans cloud, on-prem, and hybrid stacks, giving you a single control center for all data operations.
5. Bi-directional integrations with ServiceNow and Jira - This two-way sync lets you manage tickets your way and work directly in Pantomath or stay in your ticketing tool environment. 

This isn’t just about monitoring pipelines—it’s about orchestrating trust, visibility, and reliability across the entire data ecosystem.

Pantomath: Making the DOC a Reality

Pantomath’s Data Operations Center isn’t just technology, it’s a force multiplier for your teams. Data Reliability Engineers, Data Operations Managers, Data Engineers, Data Platform Engineers, Data Stewards, and other stakeholders gain a clear view of all data flows across every tool in your data stack. The platform automatically builds a living map of upstream and downstream dependencies, so your teams understand how their work affects the business. 

When an issue appears, Pantomath creates a ticket, fills it with context, and routes it to the right person. Our AI‑driven Data Reliability Engineer (DRE) agents handle the diagnosis and generate a detailed resolution plan, then pause downstream jobs and orchestrate reruns to restore trust without human intervention. 

This shift means Data Reliability Engineers focus on high‑value improvements instead of tedious manual triage; Data Operations Managers get real‑time transparency into service levels; and Data Consumers receive on‑time, accurate data they can trust. Issues are resolved before they ripple downstream, recovery times shrink, and operations scale without the constant need for added headcount. The DOC is more than another dashboard, it’s a people‑centric operating system that empowers every role to deliver trusted data.

Impactful Results

The ROI of a DOC isn’t theoretical—it’s measurable across industries.  In our work with global financial institutions, healthcare providers, and logistics leaders, we consistently see the same results: six-figure savings from reduced troubleshooting, a 30% return of engineering time back to strategic projects, and a dramatic drop in “data downtime.” Whether it’s streamlining BI environments, unifying complex health data systems, or reducing risk in highly regulated industries, the DOC has proven its value across every sector.

The Bigger Vision: Pantomath as the Foundation for Autonomous DOC

Our recent $30 million Series B raise, led by General Catalyst, positions Pantomath to go beyond monitoring and cement autonomous issue resolution via AI‑driven Data Reliability Engineer (DRE) agents. We’re building the future of data operations today.

Call to Action: Elevate Your Data Operations

The DOC is the inevitable third pillar of enterprise operations and Pantomath is the only solution delivering autonomous resolution today. Don’t wait for the next data crisis to prove its value; the time for your DOC is now (request a demo).

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