The way we manage data in B2B is changing fast. At the B2B Summit, Forrester Principal Analyst Katie Linford made it clear: the Single Source of Truth no longer fits today’s marketing reality—and it’s time to embrace something more flexible.
Here’s Why It No Longer Works
The Single Source of Truth—or SSoT—was once the gold standard. It promised a consistent, unified view by mastering all data in one place. Every model, schema, and input was structured around a single system of record—no matter how many sources fed into it.
But as Katie pointed out in her session, that model was built for a different time. Data was simpler. Inputs were limited. Storage was expensive. And most teams didn’t need real-time access to power buyer engagement.
That’s no longer the case. Buyer expectations have shifted, tech stacks have expanded, and personalization is now table stakes. Today’s marketing and sales teams need flexibility—not bottlenecks. And forcing everything through one system? It’s slowing them down.
How things have changed.
Today, firms are grappling with massive volumes of structured and unstructured data. Tech stacks and data inputs are constantly evolving, and while cloud storage has made data more accessible, but more scattered too.
Layer in internal issues—siloed data, limited funding, unclear ownership, and integration gaps—and the result is a data environment that’s too fragmented for a single source of truth to keep up.
Marketers Are Feeling the Pressure
The top challenge marketers have faced over the past two years? Integrating multiple sources of customer data.
According to Forrester’s latest surveys, stakeholders say they often don’t know what data exists, where it lives, or how to activate it across platforms. Many also don’t trust its quality or consistency.
Meanwhile, buyer expectations keep rising. In fact, 82% of B2B buyers expect experiences personalized to their needs and preferences. And with buying groups growing in size and complexity, marketers are under increasing pressure to deliver.
The path forward? Distributed data unification.
As Katie Linford explained, it’s a connected, dynamic approach that allows data to flow between tools as needed—without requiring everything to be mastered in a single platform.
This model prioritizes accessibility over centralization. It gets the right data to the right place at the right time—without slowing teams down or forcing a one-size-fits-all structure.
It’s a shift in mindset, and one that’s better suited to the realities of modern marketing and sales.
What to Do Next
The Single Source of Truth was built for a different era. Today’s buyer expectations, evolving tech stacks, and fragmented data environments demand a more flexible approach.
Distributed data unification offers that flexibility—an outcome-driven model that prioritizes accessibility over perfection.
Start small. Evaluate your current data infrastructure and pain points. Identify where data needs to move, who needs access, and what’s standing in the way. Invest in tools that support integration and unified governance—and align leadership around the need for flow, not just control.
Summing Up
SSoT is yesterday’s model. It can’t meet the expectations of today’s buyers, and it doesn’t fit the demands of modern tech.
The answer is to move away from rigid centralization toward agile, distributed unification—where data flows wherever it’s needed, rather than going through a single faucet.
The future isn’t about forcing everything into one system—it’s about making data work across all your systems, for everyone who needs it, in real time.
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It’s a timely shift—especially as AI takes on a bigger role in the buying process. Forrester explored this in the opening keynote with Barry Vasudevan, Principal Analyst, on When AI Becomes the Buyer.