Senior Specialist, Data Governance

Role Description

We are seeking an experienced Data Governance professional to lead the development and implementation of enterprise-wide data governance programs. This role is critical in establishing and maintaining data policies, standards, and procedures that ensure our data assets are accurate, secure, compliant, and effectively managed across the organization.

You will collaborate with business stakeholders, data owners, IT teams, legal, compliance, and cybersecurity to build robust data governance frameworks that align with business objectives and regulatory requirements. As a Senior Specialist in Data Governance, you will drive data quality initiatives, establish accountability structures, and champion best practices in data stewardship across various business domains.

You are a strategic thinker with strong analytical and interpersonal skills, capable of partnering with cross-functional teams to implement governance controls, resolve data quality issues, and ensure compliance with regulatory standards. You thrive on creating order from complexity and are passionate about enabling data-driven decision-making through sound governance practices.

Essential Functions:

• Develop, maintain, and enforce comprehensive data governance policies, standards, and procedures across the enterprise.
• Define and document data ownership, stewardship, and accountability structures across business domains.
• Establish and manage data governance frameworks, councils, and working groups to drive governance maturity.
• Ensure data is accurate, consistent, complete, secure, and compliant with organizational standards and regulatory requirements.
• Monitor and improve data quality through systematic profiling, validation, and issue remediation processes.
• Partner with data owners and stewards to identify, analyze, and resolve data defects and root causes.
• Support master data management (MDM), metadata management, and reference data controls initiatives.
• Ensure compliance with regulatory, legal, privacy, and security requirements (GDPR, CCPA, ITAR, SOX, etc.).
• Help implement and monitor controls for sensitive data handling, data retention, classification, change management, and access management.
• Support internal and external audits, risk assessments, and remediation planning activities.
• Work closely with legal, compliance, cybersecurity, and IT teams to address data-related risks and vulnerabilities.
• Provide training and support to data owners, stewards, and end users to ensure successful adoption of governance practices.
• Create and maintain detailed documentation of governance frameworks, policies, procedures, and data lineage for future reference.
• Ability to handle complex problems and take initiative to research issues, engage in self-learning, problem solve, and implement solutions.
• Ability to translate data-related requirements into innovative governance solutions, drawing on prior education and experience, standard procedures, and analytical thinking.
• Stay updated with industry trends, emerging regulations, and best practices in data governance and data management.
• 10-20% travel required; may be expected to support onsite implementation of governance frameworks or enterprise solution integrations.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's Degree and minimum 6 years of prior relevant experience in data governance, data management, or related field.
• Graduate Degree and a minimum of 4 years of prior related experience.
• In lieu of a degree, minimum of 10 years of prior related experience.

Requirements

• Knowledge of regulatory frameworks (GDPR, CCPA, HIPAA, SOX, ITAR) and industry standards (DAMA-DMBOK, DCAM).
• Experience implementing data literacy programs.
• Master's degree in Information Management, Data Science, Computer Science, Business Administration (MBA), or a related field.
• Professional certifications in data governance (CDMP, DGSP, CIPP) or related compliance disciplines.
• Experience with various ERPs and enterprise software (SAP, PeopleSoft, Oracle, CostPoint, etc.).
• Strong understanding of data architecture, data modeling, systems integration, and data management best practices.
• Excellent communication skills, commitment to quality, customer focus, adaptability, and interpersonal skills.
• Strong attention to detail and a high degree of accuracy with minimal oversight.
• Experience working with cross-functional teams to influence outcomes in an agile environment.
• Experience with data quality tools, data profiling, and data lineage analysis.
• Understanding of cloud data platforms (AWS, Azure, GCP) and modern data architectures.

Benefits

• Health and disability insurance.
• 401(k) match.
• Flexible spending accounts.
• EAP (Employee Assistance Program).
• Education assistance.
• Parental leave.
• Paid time off.
• Company-paid holidays.