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Key Responsibilities and Required Skills for Governance Lead

💰 $140,000 - $190,000

Data GovernanceData ManagementLeadershipTechnologyAnalytics

🎯 Role Definition

This role requires a passionate and experienced Governance Lead to join our growing Data & Analytics organization. In this pivotal role, you will be the primary driver for establishing and maturing our enterprise-wide data governance capabilities. You will not just be creating rules; you will be fostering a data-driven culture where data is managed as a strategic asset. The ideal candidate is a master communicator and influencer, capable of bridging the gap between business strategy and technical execution. You will build the frameworks, processes, and relationships necessary to ensure our data is trustworthy, well-understood, secure, and ready to power critical business decisions and innovations.

📈 Career Progression

Typical Career Path

Entry Point From:

  • Senior Data Steward / Senior Data Analyst
  • Data Quality Manager
  • IT Audit or Compliance Manager with a data focus

Advancement To:

  • Director, Data Governance & Strategy
  • Head of Data Management
  • Senior Manager, Enterprise Data

Lateral Moves:

  • Enterprise Data Architect
  • Product Manager, Data Platforms

Core Responsibilities

Primary Functions

  • Develop and Implement Governance Framework: Spearhead the design, implementation, and continuous improvement of the enterprise-wide data governance framework, incorporating industry best practices like DAMA-DMBOK.
  • Establish Governance Council: Launch and chair the Data Governance Council, facilitating cross-functional collaboration between data owners, data stewards, and executive sponsors to drive consensus and resolve critical data issues.
  • Define Policies and Standards: Author, socialize, and enforce a comprehensive suite of data policies, standards, and procedures covering data quality, metadata, data lineage, security, and usage.
  • Lead Data Stewardship Program: Define, operationalize, and champion the data stewardship program by identifying and training data stewards across business domains, empowering them to take ownership of their data assets.
  • Drive Metadata Management Strategy: Oversee the strategy and execution for metadata management, including the development and curation of the enterprise business glossary, data dictionary, and data catalog.
  • Champion Data Quality Initiatives: Establish a robust data quality program by defining data quality rules, metrics, and dashboards, and leading the root-cause analysis and remediation of data quality issues.
  • Oversee Master Data Management (MDM): Partner with technical teams to define the strategy and govern the implementation of Master Data Management (MDM) and Reference Data Management solutions for critical data domains (e.g., Customer, Product).
  • Ensure Regulatory Compliance: Act as a subject matter expert on data governance, collaborating closely with Legal, Privacy, and Security teams to translate regulatory requirements (like GDPR, CCPA) into actionable data controls and policies.
  • Manage Governance Technology: Lead the evaluation, selection, and implementation of data governance technologies (e.g., Collibra, Alation, Informatica) and drive their adoption across the organization.
  • Promote Data Literacy: Develop and deliver targeted training and communication plans to foster a culture of data accountability, literacy, and responsible data usage across all levels of the organization.
  • Define and Track KPIs: Establish and monitor key performance indicators (KPIs) and metrics to measure the effectiveness, maturity, and business value of the data governance program, reporting progress to senior leadership.
  • Govern Critical Data Elements (CDEs): Lead the process of identifying and formally governing the organization's Critical Data Elements through documentation of definitions, lineage, and quality controls.

Secondary Functions

  • Lead Data Classification Efforts: Partner with Information Security to create and implement a data classification framework, ensuring sensitive data is properly identified, tagged, and protected.

  • Oversee Data Lineage Documentation: Champion the documentation of end-to-end data lineage to provide transparency into data flows from source systems to downstream consumption.

  • Facilitate Issue Resolution: Manage and arbitrate the resolution of complex data ownership, access, and quality disputes between different business units.

  • Provide Strategic Guidance: Serve as the go-to expert and thought leader, providing consultative guidance to business and technology projects on how to align with data governance principles.

  • Assess Program Maturity: Conduct periodic maturity assessments of the data governance program to identify gaps, celebrate successes, and create a roadmap for future enhancements.

  • Support Data Architecture Alignment: Collaborate with Enterprise and Data Architects to ensure that new data solutions and system designs are compliant with established data governance standards.

  • Drive Change Management: Develop and execute a change management strategy to ensure the smooth adoption of new data governance processes, roles, and technologies.

  • Translate Business Needs: Act as a key liaison between business stakeholders and technical teams, translating strategic business data needs into tangible governance requirements and initiatives.

  • Support ad-hoc data requests and exploratory data analysis.

  • Contribute to the organization's data strategy and roadmap.

  • Collaborate with business units to translate data needs into engineering requirements.

  • Participate in sprint planning and agile ceremonies within the data engineering team.

Required Skills & Competencies

Hard Skills (Technical)

  • Data Governance Frameworks: Deep expertise in industry-standard data governance frameworks, particularly DAMA-DMBOK, and proven experience in their practical application.
  • Data Governance Platforms: Hands-on experience implementing and administering leading data governance and catalog tools such as Collibra, Alation, Informatica Axon/EDC, or Atlan.
  • Data Quality & MDM: Strong understanding of Data Quality management principles and Master Data Management (MDM) concepts and architectures.
  • SQL & Data Analysis: Proficiency in SQL for data analysis, profiling, and validation to investigate data quality issues and understand data structures.
  • Data Modeling & Architecture: Solid knowledge of data modeling concepts, data warehousing, data lakes, and enterprise data architecture principles.
  • Regulatory Knowledge: Familiarity with major data privacy and protection regulations, including GDPR, CCPA, and industry-specific rules (e.g., HIPAA, BCBS 239).

Soft Skills

  • Leadership & Influence: Ability to lead through influence, build consensus across diverse teams, and champion initiatives without direct authority.
  • Stakeholder Management: Exceptional skill in identifying, managing, and communicating with stakeholders at all levels, from technical analysts to C-level executives.
  • Strategic Thinking: Capacity to think strategically, connecting data governance initiatives directly to business outcomes and long-term company goals.
  • Communication & Presentation: Outstanding verbal and written communication skills, with the ability to articulate complex technical and policy concepts to non-technical audiences.
  • Change Management: Proven ability to manage organizational change, overcome resistance, and drive the adoption of new processes and cultural norms.
  • Problem-Solving: A pragmatic and tenacious approach to problem-solving, capable of navigating ambiguity and resolving complex data-related conflicts.

Education & Experience

Educational Background

Minimum Education:

  • Bachelor's Degree in a relevant field.

Preferred Education:

  • Master's Degree (MBA, MS in Information Systems, etc.).
  • Certifications such as Certified Data Management Professional (CDMP).

Relevant Fields of Study:

  • Information Systems
  • Computer Science
  • Business Administration
  • Data Science or Analytics

Experience Requirements

Typical Experience Range: 8-12+ years of progressive experience in data management, with at least 5+ years in a dedicated data governance or data stewardship role.

Preferred:

  • Proven track record of establishing a data governance program from the ground up or significantly maturing an existing one.
  • Experience working within a complex, large-scale enterprise environment.
  • Experience in a regulated industry such as finance, healthcare, or insurance is highly desirable.
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