Data & AI Governance Lead

043 Damen Global Support B.V.; Gorinchem; On-site; EUR 73,000 - 94,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Pension

Bonus

Travel allowance

40+ days leave

Job summary

Damen Data Services in the Netherlands is seeking a Data & AI Governance Lead to design and lead a trusted governance foundation across the organisation. You will build and empower a team of data stewards and product owners to ensure value from governed data and AI use cases.

You will align governance with data models, lineage and security, driving adoption and practical implementation across complex business units. This is a senior, impact-driven role within a global maritime group.

Qualifications

• Strong experience in Data Governance, Master Data Management or Enterprise Data Management.
• Understanding data ownership, stewardship, data quality, metadata, lifecycle management.
• Experience building governance capabilities within complex organizations.
• Ability to connect business, IT, architecture, security, analytics and operations.
• Strong stakeholder management with influence at all levels.
• Hands-on mindset translating strategy into measurable results.
• Knowledge of AI data requirements: lineage, quality, access control and trusted sources.
• Experience driving adoption and communities of Data Owners and Data Stewards.

Responsibilities

• Lead and develop Damen’s Data & AI Governance capability and team.
• Strengthen ownership and stewardship across the organization.
• Drive adoption through communication, coaching and change management.
• Shape the Data & AI ecosystem with governance alignment to models, lineage and metadata.
• Support implementation of governance principles in modern data platforms.
• Ensure data is secure, governed and trusted for AI use cases.

Skills

Data governance

Master Data Management

Enterprise Data Management

Data ownership

Data stewardship

Data quality

Metadata management

Stakeholder management

Change management

AI governance

Tools

DAMA-DMBOK

Microsoft Purview

Microsoft Fabric

Azure

MDM tooling

SAP

Job description

We offer you an Ocean of Possibilities. Join our family. Shape the future of trusted data and responsible AI at Damen: Data is transforming the way we design, build and support vessels across the globe. As Data & AI Governance Lead, you will play a pivotal role in helping Damen unlock the full value of data and AI while ensuring trust, quality, security and compliance remain at the core of everything we do. This is your opportunity to build and lead a capability that enables smarter decisions, stronger business performance and responsible innovation across an international maritime organization.

What we’re made of: We’re made for ships. To design them, build them, finance them and care for them throughout their life. Defined by our values of stewardship, craftsmanship, fellowship and entrepreneurship, we’re everything ship. We’re on a mission to help our clients harvest the oceans of possibilities presented by our waters - for the generations to come. To achieve our goal, we need people who share our vision and drive.

The Role:

Build Damen’s Data & AI Foundation: Within Damen Data Services, we help the organization become more Human-Led and Data-Powered. We create value from data by improving how data is governed, managed, shared and used across the company. As Data & AI Governance Lead, you will lead the development of Damen’s data and AI governance capability. You will create the trusted foundation that enables reporting, analytics, automation and AI to deliver real business value. This is not a role focused solely on policies or frameworks. You will combine strategic leadership with practical execution, ensuring governance becomes embedded in the daily way of working across Damen.

Your Impact:

• Lead & Inspire Lead and develop Damen’s Data & AI Governance capability. Manage a team of Data Stewards, the Product Owner MDM, Project Manager and AI agent(s). Create an environment where ownership, accountability and continuous improvement thrive.
• Govern & Enable Further develop Damen’s data and AI governance framework, including roles, responsibilities, decision-making structures and standards.
• Strengthen Data Ownership and Data Stewardship Strengthen Data Ownership and Data Stewardship across the organization, ensuring governance is practical, clear and effective.
• Drive adoption Drive adoption through communication, coaching, stakeholder engagement and change management.
• Improve Data Quality Increase visibility of data quality issues and prioritize improvements based on business impact. Establish sustainable processes that continuously improve critical data domains. Ensure trusted data is available for business operations, reporting and analytics.
• Collaborate Across the Organization Partner closely with business stakeholders, IT, Security, Privacy, Analytics and AI teams. Govern critical master data domains together with the Data Shared Services Center. Build strong relationships that connect strategy, governance and business value.
• Shape the Data & AI Ecosystem Work alongside Data & AI Architecture teams to align governance with data models, metadata, lineage, definitions and data products.
• Support the implementation of governance principles within modern data platforms and business systems. Help establish scalable ways of working that support future growth.
• Drive Responsible & AI-Ready Data Ensure data is classified, governed, secured and trusted for AI use cases. Strengthen data lineage, ownership, access control and source reliability. Help shape responsible AI governance with a focus on transparency, compliance, security and human oversight.

Who We’re Looking For:

We’re looking for a pragmatic leader who combines vision with execution and understands that effective governance should enable business success rather than create bureaucracy. You bring:

• Strong experience in Data Governance, Master Data Management, Enterprise Data Management or a related discipline.
• A solid understanding of data ownership, stewardship, data quality, metadata, data definitions and lifecycle management.
• Experience building governance capabilities within complex organizations.
• The ability to connect business, IT, architecture, security, analytics and operational teams.
• Strong stakeholder management skills with the ability to influence at all levels of the organization.
• A hands-on mindset that translates strategy into measurable results.
• Knowledge of data requirements for AI, including lineage, quality, classification, access control and trusted sources.
• Experience driving adoption, organizational change and communities of Data Owners and Data Stewards.

Preferably experience in manufacturing, engineering, supply chain, ERP, PDM, CRM or similar complex business environments.

• Experience with DAMA-DMBOK, Microsoft Purview, Microsoft Fabric, Azure, MDM tooling, SAP and/or AI Governance is considered a strong advantage.

Why Damen?

A Global Family – Work alongside passionate professionals worldwide in a collaborative, inspiring workplace.

Career Growth Opportunities – Continuous learning and development in a global environment.

Extensive development opportunities via the Damen Academy Innovation at the Core – Be part of a team that drives digital transformation across the maritime industry.

Work-Life Balance – Flexible working options and a culture that values your well-being.

• 40+ days of leave and excellent employment conditions (pension, bonus, travel allowance).
• Purpose-Driven Work – Contribute to sustainable, future-focused solutions that matter.

The salary for this position ranges between € 6.500 and € 8.400 gross per month (based on a full-time contract), excluding holiday allowance. The exact salary will depend on your knowledge and experience. This position is part of the collective labour agreement Metalektro.

NB: We are looking for candidates who are already living and working in The Netherlands.

Due to GDPR reasons we cannot accept applications by email.

We are still growing and that gives you options. You contribute to this growth while benefitting from the diverse development and career opportunities that our company offers. We will continue to challenge you. With our extensive portfolio of products and solutions you will never get bored and never stop learning. We offer you a world of possibilities. Working at Damen means contributing to the highest quality in shipbuilding, with an eye to the future and future generations. We want to make the world a better place by becoming the most sustainable maritime solution provider. For that, we need you. Become part of our family. We are Damen. We’re a family company that has been building ships for almost 100 years. However, our focus is not on the past, however – we’re looking forward. Our ambition is to become the most sustainable and connected maritime solutions provider there is. To achieve this, we combine digital technology with our philosophy of standardised shipbuilding to offer a portfolio of services that takes care of vessels throughout the entire lifecycle. Working at Damen offers the best of several worlds. Active in more than 100 countries, with over 30 shipyards, we are internationally renowned for quality. And we are still growing, still innovating. Which means we will continue to challenge you. You will never stop learning, and you will never get bored – we promise you that. We offer you an ocean of possibilities. Join our family.