Data Governance Lead

Valiant Technologies LLC; Dallas (TX); On-site; USD 120,000 - 190,000; Full time

Job summary

Valiant Technologies LLC in Dallas seeks a senior data governance leader to own the enterprise governance program across cloud and analytics platforms. You will shape policies, standards, metadata strategy, and data stewardship processes to improve trust and usability.

You will work with Databricks and Unity Catalog as primary platforms, implement metadata management, lineage, and data quality controls, and drive cross-functional alignment on privacy and regulatory requirements.

Qualifications

• 7+ years in data governance, data management, or enterprise data architecture.
• Hands-on with Databricks and Unity Catalog as primary platform.
• Experience with AWS data services (S3, Glue, Redshift, IAM).
• Knowledge of MDM, metadata management, and data quality frameworks.
• Experience governing data across fragmented systems and multi-cloud environments.
• Familiarity with data privacy regulations (PII, HIPAA, GDPR).

Responsibilities

• Develop and own the enterprise data governance framework.
• Lead governance across cloud and analytics platforms.
• Define catalog structure, tagging, and access rules.
• Implement metadata management and lineage tracking.
• Drive data unification across systems with scalable models.
• Partner with teams to ensure data privacy and regulatory compliance.
• Oversee data access controls and policy enforcement.
• Mentor data stewards and support adoption of standards.
• Support platform modernization enabling analytics and AI.

Skills

Databricks

Unity Catalog

AWS data services

MDM

Metadata management

Data quality

Regulatory compliance

Cross-functional collaboration

Communication skills

Tools

Collibra

Alation

Jira

Confluence

Job description

• Develop and own the enterprise data governance framework, including policies, standards, metadata strategy, and data stewardship processes.
• Lead governance across cloud and analytics platforms with priority on Databricks and Unity Catalog, followed by AWS data services and Dataiku.
• Define catalog structure, classification models, tagging, and access rules across multiple business domains.
• Implement metadata management, lineage tracking, and data quality controls to improve trust and usability.
• Drive unification of data across fragmented systems by designing scalable models, harmonized definitions, and reusable governance patterns.
• Partner with cross-functional teams to ensure data privacy, security, and regulatory compliance (e.g., PII, GxP, HIPAA where applicable).
• Oversee data access controls, entitlements, and policy enforcement across analytic environments.
• Establish processes for issue management, remediation, and continuous improvement.
• Mentor data stewards and support adoption of governance standards across business teams.
• Support platform modernization and enable analytics, AI/ML, automation, and self-service use cases.

Required Skills & Experience

• 7+ years in data governance, data management, or enterprise data architecture.
• Hands-on expertise with Databricks and Unity Catalog (catalog design, access policies, lineage, classification/tagging) as the primary platform requirement.
• Experience with AWS data services (e.g., S3, Glue, Lake Formation, Redshift, IAM).
• Experience with data governance workflows, tooling, and model management.
• Strong understanding of MDM, metadata management, and data quality frameworks.
• Proven success governing data across fragmented systems, complex pipelines, and multi-cloud or hybrid environments.
• Familiarity with data privacy and compliance (PII, PHI, GxP, GDPR, etc.).
• Ability to work across business and technical teams, influence without authority, and build alignment.
• Excellent communication skills, with ability to translate governance concepts for non-technical audiences.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience in life sciences, healthcare, or regulated industries.
• Background with product-oriented data platforms or customer-facing data services.
• Knowledge of workflow tools (Jira, Confluence) and governance platforms (Collibra, Alation, data.world preferred but not required).
• Certifications in Databricks, AWS, or data governance frameworks

VALIANT TECHNOLOGIES LLC is an equal opportunity employer inclusive of female, minority, disability and veterans, (M/F/D/V). Hiring, promotion, transfer, compensation, benefits, discipline, termination and all other employment decisions are made without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, age, disability, national origin, citizenship/immigration status, veteran status or any other protected status. VALIANT TECHNOLOGIES LLC will not make any posting or employment decision that does not comply with applicable laws relating to labor and employment, equal opportunity, employment eligibility requirements or related matters. Nor will VALIANT TECHNOLOGIES LLC require in a posting or otherwise U.S. citizenship or lawful permanent residency in the U.S. as a condition of employment except as necessary to comply with law, regulation, executive order, or federal, state, or local government contract