Data Governance Expert

We are seeking a seasoned professional to manage the development and execution of enterprise-wide data governance initiatives. This role will oversee the strategic planning and implementation of data management best practices, ensuring data accuracy, accessibility, consistency, and security across the organization.

The ideal candidate will have a strong background in data governance, data quality, and compliance. They will be responsible for defining and enforcing data ownership and stewardship, driving data quality and integrity initiatives, contributing to data classification and protection efforts, developing and maintaining governance policies and compliance frameworks, and guiding the implementation of data governance technology systems and processes.

• Define clear roles and responsibilities for data owners and stewards across business units, collaborating with extended teams and leadership to create awareness and drive issue resolution/escalation.
• Foster cross-functional stewardship programs and councils to ensure accountability for authoritative data sources, data quality, accuracy, lineage, privacy, and compliance; maintain and enhance associated KPIs.

The successful candidate will possess a Bachelor's degree in a related field, minimum 5 years of experience in data governance or a related field, foundational technical expertise, and the ability to multitask effectively and deal with change and ambiguity in a diverse environment.

Key Responsibilities:

• Data Ownership & Stewardship: Define clear roles and responsibilities for data owners and stewards, collaborate with extended teams and leadership to create awareness and drive issue resolution/escalation.
• Data Quality & Integrity Initiatives: Develop and implement data quality standards, validation rules, and monitoring processes, collaborate with data engineering and analytics teams to remediate data issues and improve trust in enterprise data assets.
• Data Classification & Protection Efforts: Direct the classification of data assets based on sensitivity, regulatory impact, and business value, partner with Privacy, Security, and Legal teams to ensure appropriate controls are applied to sensitive and regulated data.
• Governance Policies & Compliance Frameworks: Author and maintain data governance policies, standards, and procedures aligned with privacy regulations, ensure governance practices support audit readiness and regulatory compliance across jurisdictions.
• Data Governance Technology Systems & Processes: Guide the implementation of metadata management, data lineage, and monitoring tools, include considerations for scalability, reliability, and performance.

Required Qualifications:

• Bachelor's degree in a related field (e.g., Information Management, Data Science, etc.)
• Minimum of 5 years of experience in data governance or a related field
• Foundational technical expertise, including both business acumen and strategic thinking, as well as the ability to identify issues and contribute to problem-solving solutions
• The ability to multitask effectively and deal with change and ambiguity in a diverse and constantly evolving environment
• Working understanding of the financial services industry, products, and services
• Ability to foster healthy working relationships and communicate effectively

Preferred Qualifications:

• Some experience in Data Governance, Privacy, Cybersecurity, Risk, Compliance, or IT Audit
• Basic knowledge of industry-leading data governance principles, practices, and technologies, including an understanding of significant related regulations (e.g., GDPR, CCPA/CPRA, etc.)
• Experience with data governance tools and metadata management
• Demonstrated ability to understand major data governance (DAMA) and cybersecurity frameworks (NIST/ISO)
• Willingness to pursue a related professional certification(s): CDPM, CIPM, CIPT, CDPSE, CISA, CRISC, CISM, and/or CISSP