Lead Data Governance Analyst (Enterprise Program Build Focus)

Lead Data Governance Analyst (Enterprise Program Build Focus)

The Lead Data Governance Analyst (Enterprise Program Build Focus) is responsible for establishing and operationalizing an enterprise data governance program within a maturing healthcare environment. This role will lead the design and implementation of governance frameworks, policies, and standards, with a strong emphasis on building foundational capabilities rather than maintaining existing structures.

This role serves as the bridge between IT, clinical and business operations, compliance, and leadership to promote data integrity, enable analytics, and support regulatory compliance (HIPAA, HITECH, CMS, Joint Commission). The Lead Data Governance Analyst will champion a culture of data stewardship, define governance operating models, and drive cross-functional alignment to improve the quality, trust, and usability of enterprise healthcare data.

This role is not focused on reporting, analytics, or data engineering, but rather on establishing governance structures, policies, and accountability models across the enterprise.

Responsibilities

Data Governance & Strategy

• Lead the design, development, and implementation of an enterprise data governance program, including frameworks, policies, standards, and operating models
• Establish foundational governance structures, including data ownership models, stewardship frameworks, and governance forums in a partially defined environment
• Partner with stakeholders across clinical, research, financial, and operational areas to establish data ownership and stewardship responsibilities
• Define and monitor key data governance metrics, ensuring continuous improvement in data quality and usability
• Promote data culture and data literacy through structured enablement and engagement initiatives

Data Quality & Integrity

• Establish standards and enforce procedures for data validation, lineage tracking, and quality monitoring
• Collaborate with data owners to resolve issues related to accuracy, consistency, and timeliness
• Implement tools and processes to track master data management (MDM) and reference data to ensure single sources of truth across systems

Compliance & Security

• Ensure that all data governance processes are aligned with healthcare regulations (HIPAA, HITECH, GDPR, CMS)
• Work with Information Security and Compliance teams to ensure data access, use, and sharing meet all institutional and legal requirements
• Lead and support audit readiness efforts, including identifying governance-related gaps and contributing to remediation of audit findings

Stakeholder Engagement & Leadership

• Serve as the primary liaison for enterprise data governance activities, engaging clinical leaders, research teams, IT, and business stakeholders
• Influence cross-functional stakeholders without direct authority to drive adoption of governance practices and standards
• Actively participate in and support the Data Governance Council or related workgroups
• Provide guidance and training to business units, promoting data stewardship and governance best practices

Analytics & Decision Support

• Collaborate with data engineers, BI analysts, and clinical researchers to ensure governance policies enable effective reporting and analytics
• Support enterprise analytics initiatives by aligning data definitions, standardization, and single source of truth practices

Project Leadership

• Lead cross-functional projects to implement new data standards, metadata repositories, and governance tools
• Provide mentorship to analysts and serve as a subject matter expert in data governance practices

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Healthcare Informatics, Data Science, Information Systems, Health Information Management, or related field
• 7+ years of progressive experience in data governance, data management, healthcare analytics, or enterprise data strategy
• Demonstrated experience designing and implementing (not solely supporting) enterprise data governance frameworks, policies, and standards—preferably in environments where governance capabilities were being built or matured
• Strong knowledge of healthcare data standards and biomedical terminologies (HL7, X12, FHIR, DICOM, ICD, CPT, LOINC, SNOMED)
• Experience working with EHR platforms and clinical/research data environments (e.g., Epic, Oracle/Cerner, Meditech, Athena)
• Working knowledge of healthcare regulatory and compliance frameworks (HIPAA, HITECH, CMS, NIST, Joint Commission)
• Proven ability to lead cross-functional initiatives and influence stakeholders across clinical, operational, IT, compliance, and research domains without direct authority
• Experience establishing data stewardship models, ownership structures, and governance councils
• Relevant education and experience may be substituted as appropriate

Preferred Qualifications

• Master's degree in Healthcare Informatics, Information Management, Data Science, or related field

Professional certification in data governance, data management, or health data, such as:

• CDMP (DAMA) – Certified Data Management Professional
• DGSP or DGIQ (DGI) – Data Governance & Stewardship Professional / Certified Data Governance Professional
• CHDA (AHIMA) – Certified Health Data Analyst
• CHPS (AHIMA) – Certified in Healthcare Privacy and Security
• Experience leading enterprise-level data governance councils or healthcare transformation initiatives
• Experience with enterprise data governance and catalog tools (e.g., Microsoft Purview, Collibra, Informatica, Alation)

Skills & Competencies

• Strategic thinker with ability to balance long-term governance needs with immediate business requirements
• Excellent communication and facilitation skills; capable of engaging stakeholders across clinical, IT, business, information security, compliance, and research domains
• Strong analytical and problem-solving abilities with a focus on process improvement
• Ability to operate effectively in ambiguous or evolving environments while building structure and alignment
• Passion for data-driven healthcare transformation and improving patient outcomes

Salary Range

$115,000+ depending on qualifications

Working Conditions

Standard office conditions

Required Materials

• Resume/CV
• 3 work references with their contact information; at least one reference should be from a supervisor
• Letter of interest