Director Data Governance

Netherlands, Switzerland, Spain | Hybrid (minimum on-site presence required

**Role Overview**:
The Director Data Operations & Governance will lead the enterprise-wide strategy and execution of data governance, data quality, technical data stewardship, and compliance, ensuring data is trusted, standardized, secure, and high-quality across the organization. This role is accountable for establishing policies, standards, and practices that improve transparency, accessibility, responsible use of data, and responsible for the delivery of Data Quality solutions, while also serving as the leader of the Data Office

A side aspect of the role is its integration with ERP transformation initiatives. As a member of the ERP Transformation workstream that includes Data governance, the manager will embed governance, stewardship, and quality accountabilities into ERP design, legacy data migration, and ongoing ERP operations.

**Your Key Responsibilities**

**Strategy & Governance**
- Define and execute a roadmap for governance, stewardship, and quality, tightly aligned with enterprise data strategy and ERP transformation.
- Establish data ownership, policies, and standards balancing global consistency with business needs.
- Develop frameworks for data quality, cataloguing, security, and compliance with clear KPIs.
- Govern data across all levels (Group & Business Units) with clear accountability models.

**Operating Model & Tools**
- Lead and scale a federated stewardship model across all business platforms.
- Embed governance, quality, and security across the data lifecycle: ingestion, harmonization, storage, cataloguing, and consumption in full alignment with the D&T operating model.
- Accountable for the e2e Data quality delivery, by developing the data quality rules, ensure on-going data quality monitoring of data assets, create dashboards/scorecards to ensure business function accountability of executing these standards
- Drive adoption of enabling technologies (data catalogue, MDM, metadata, lineage, quality monitoring).

**Data governance and Data quality within the ERP Transformation**
- Participate in a workstream on data governance for the ERP Transformation, embedding governance, stewardship, and quality into ERP design, configuration, and data migration.
- Ensure the mapping of data domains and data families to E2E processes, ensuring clear ownership via RACI models and alignment with business functions.
- Ensure Data Stewards are formally assigned to domains (Finance, Supply Chain, People, Manufacturing, Research, etc.).
- Ensure ERP master data harmonization and ensure high-quality migration from legacy systems.
- Monitor ERP-related data quality and compliance through dashboards and SLAs.

**Leadership & Engagement**
- Lead, coach, and develop a global team of Governance Leads, Technical Data Stewards, and Quality Experts.
- Partner with Data owners, Data stewards, BU sponsors, Business platform leads and Data platform leads to ensure compliance, data is trusted, standardized, secure, and high-quality across the organization
- Partner with ERP transformation, Compliance, Security, and business platform leads to embed policies into systems of record, data platform, and master data management.
- Drive enterprise-wide alignment by leading the Data Council—animating its agenda, steering critical decisions, and championing data governance priorities across senior leadership, ERP steering committees, and cross-functional design authorities.

**Risk, Compliance & Value**
- Ensure adherence to privacy, security, and regulatory requirements (GDPR, SOX, AI regulations).
- Define and enforce SLAs and KPIs for ERP master data domains (Customer, Supplier, Product, Finance).
- Quantify enterprise value from improved data quality (faster closing, fewer reconciliations, better visibility).

**We offer**:

- A rich history and a promising future of bold scientific innovation and passionate creation with our customers
- A flexible work environment that empowers people to take accountability for their work and own the outcome
- A firm belief that working together with our customers is the key to achieving great things.
- An eagerness to be one team and learn from each other to bring progress to life and create a better future.

**You bring**:

- 12+ years in data governance, management, or enterprise data leadership.
- Experience leading federated stewardship and cross-functional alignment.
- Strong knowledge of data governance and quality frameworks, cataloguing, metadata, and MDM technologies.
- Experience leading change management and embedding data practices into large transformation programs.
- Strong executive presence and ability to influence across business and IT leadership.
- Experience in regulated industries (e.g., pharma, healthcare, financial services).
- Master’s degree in information management, Business, or related field.
- External engagement in data governance or ERP best-practice forums.
- Track record as a