Lead Data Steward

ExxonMobil India Careers; Bengaluru; On-site; INR 2,500,000 - 4,000,000; Full time

Job summary

ExxonMobil India Careers is seeking a Lead Data Specialist to protect, manage, and enhance data assets. You will collaborate with data governance, business teams, and technology partners to ensure data is trustworthy, defined, and used effectively.

You will lead a Data Stewardship team, review governance artifacts, and drive remediation, ensuring alignment with enterprise data governance programs and policy updates.

Qualifications

• Strong experience with data governance practices and data steward activities.

Responsibilities

• Act as delegate of Data Owner to safeguard, manage, and optimize critical data assets in accordance with governance policies.

Skills

Data governance

Stakeholder management

Leadership

Data quality

Root cause analysis

Data definitions

Metadata management

Communication

Education

Bachelor’s degree in Information Systems/CS/Analytics or related

Tools

Collibra

Job description

Job Summary

Lead Data Specialist act as delegates of the Data Owner and are responsible for protecting, managing, and enhancing the data assets under their domain. They collaborate closely with cross‑functional data stakeholders including business teams, data governance, data quality, and technology partners to ensure data is trustworthy, well‑defined, and effectively used. Lead Data Specialist proactively identify data issues, drive root‑cause resolution, and champion data standards and governance practices across the organization.

What You Will Do

• Act as the delegate of the Data Owner to safeguard, manage, and optimize critical data assets, ensuring adherence to data governance policies, business rules, and regulatory requirements.
• Provide strategic direction and expert guidance to Data Product Managers and Data Stewards, influencing the design, implementation, and maintenance of high‑quality, trusted data products.
• Review, validate, and approve data governance artifacts—including business rules, data definitions, data quality requirements, and metadata standards—and hand over endorsed rules to the Data Quality team for operationalization.
• Lead and mentor the Data Stewardship team, offering tactical guidance, monitoring execution, and ensuring consistent adoption of data governance practices across business functions.
• Drive data quality improvements and master data integrity, partnering with cross‑functional teams to identify data issues, assess current‑state maturity, and prioritize remediation and sustainment activities.
• Report data governance and stewardship progress to the Data Governance Council, including key metrics, risk implications, adoption challenges, and proposals for policy updates or enhancements.
• Evaluate cost, benefits, and business value for governance initiatives, supporting decision‑making, resource planning, and long‑term sustainability of data governance programs.

About You – Skills And Qualifications

Essential Qualifications

• Strong experience in Business Capability frameworks and understanding how data supports end‑to‑end business processes.
• Hands‑on experience with Data Governance practices, including data quality, metadata, and stewardship activities.
• Working knowledge of Collibra or similar data governance platforms.

Preferred Qualifications / Experience

• Bachelor’s degree in Information Systems, Computer Science, Data Analytics, Business Administration, or a related field.
• 6+ years of experience in Data Governance, Data Management, Data Quality, or related functions.
• Proven track record working as a Data Coordinator or Lead Data Steward, Data Governance Lead, or similar role.
• Experience collaborating with Data Owners, Data Product Managers, and enterprise governance bodies.
• Demonstrated success implementing or enhancing enterprise data governance programs.
• Prior experience leading data stewardship teams or cross‑functional workgroups.
• Strong leadership and stakeholder management skills ability to influence without authority.
• Excellent analytical and problem‑solving abilities, particularly in identifying data quality issues and root‑cause analysis.
• Skilled in creating, reviewing, and validating data governance artifacts (business rules, definitions, DQ metrics, lineage).
• Exceptional communication skills to articulate data governance principles to both business and technical audiences.
• Ability to drive alignment across diverse teams and lead change management for governance adoption.
• Self‑driven, with the ability to proactively identify priorities and move initiatives forward with minimal direction.
• Comfortable creating clarity in ambiguous situations by breaking down complex problems, defining structure, and driving actionable outcomes.

Certifications (Nice to Have)

• Certified Data Management Professional (CDMP – DAMA)
• Collibra Ranger / Steward / Data Governance Certification
• SAP Master Data Governance (MDG) certification
• Any relevant Data Governance, Data Quality, or Analytics certifications