Intent
Produce clean CSV exports as a stable interchange format.
When to use
- You need a portable export for vendors or stakeholders.
- Reports must be auditable and repeatable.
- Downstream systems consume CSV files.
Core mechanics
- Define canonical columns and ordering.
- Normalize formatting, encoding, and quoting.
- Emit an export with metadata and timestamps.
Implementation checklist
- Document column definitions and ownership.
- Implement consistent ordering and quoting.
- Include headers and timestamps.
- Validate row counts and required fields.
- Store exports in a predictable location.
Failure modes and mitigations
- Schema drift -> version columns and document changes.
- Encoding issues -> enforce UTF-8 and consistent quoting.
- Missing records -> compare counts with source.
Observability and validation
- Row count and file size per export.
- Export timestamp and checksum.
Artifacts
- Data dictionary.
- Sample CSV export.
- Export logs.