Data Governance Program Lead

We are looking for an experienced Data Governance Program lead to guide and strengthen enterprise data governance practices for a public-sector environment. This contract position will focus on turning an established governance strategy into practical, repeatable operating routines that improve accountability, consistency, and cross-department collaboration. The role is ideal for someone who can bring structure to a decentralized data landscape, support governance adoption across varied stakeholders, and provide clear direction that helps leadership manage risk and improve data stewardship.

Responsibilities:

• Direct daily governance and data management activities for a small team, setting priorities and providing guidance that keeps work aligned with organizational goals.
• Coordinate governance forums and work closely with departmental representatives to improve decision-making, accountability, and participation across the organization.
• Convert the existing governance strategy into actionable phases, defined deliverables, and achievable timelines that support steady progress.
• Build and standardize governance procedures that can be applied consistently across departments without relying on the rollout of new enterprise platforms.
• Clarify and document responsibilities for data owners, stewards, and other designated stakeholders so governance expectations are well understood.
• Collaborate with leaders to ensure governance practices reflect compliance, records management, and risk requirements.
• Lead communication and change adoption efforts that help teams understand governance objectives and embed them into day-to-day operations.
• Design and launch organization-wide governance training to establish a common understanding of policies, standards, and responsibilities.
• Define practical standards for data retention, disposal, and lifecycle oversight while improving consistency across shared systems, files, and legacy records.
• Report on governance progress, participation levels, emerging risks, and maturity trends to provide leadership with clear operational visibility.

Please submit resumes to sally.lander@roberthalf.(com) for immediate consideration.