Staff Data & AI Governance Manager

Michels Corporation; Neenah (WI); On-site; USD 120,000 - 180,000; Full time

Job summary

Michels Corporation is seeking an experienced Staff Data & AI Governance Manager in Wisconsin to build and lead enterprise governance practices. You will establish policies, standards, and accountability to make data trusted and usable while enabling controlled AI experimentation.

You will partner with business, operations, and IT to define ownership, governance scope, and risk-based review processes, with a path to growing a dedicated governance team over time.

Qualifications

• 7+ years of experience in data governance, data management, or risk at enterprise scale.
• Bachelor’s degree or equivalent practical experience in a quantitative field.
• Familiarity with modern data platforms and governance tooling; strong communication and stakeholder skills.

Responsibilities

• Build and operationalize Michels' data and AI governance framework with policies, standards, and roles.
• Establish foundational data governance across ownership, stewardship, quality, metadata, lineage, and retention.
• Partner with business, operations, and IT teams to share governance responsibilities across data and AI work.
• Create practical AI governance for use-case intake, risk classification, responsible AI review, and oversight.
• Facilitate governance forums and cross-functional decisions with clear accountability.
• Develop metrics and reporting on data quality, governance maturity, AI adoption, and risk.
• Grow the function from hands-on to leading future governance capabilities and teams.

Skills

Data governance

Stakeholder management

Communication

Risk management

Governance program

Education

Bachelor's degree in CS / IS / BA or related field

Tools

Microsoft Fabric

Databricks

Snowflake

Collibra

Alation

Atlan

Job description

Improving America’s infrastructure isn’t for the weak. It takes grit, determination, and hard work to execute high impact projects. Michels Corporation engages 10,000 people and 18,000 pieces of heavy equipment in our insatiable drive to be the best. Our work improves lives. Find out how a career as an Staff Data & AI Governance Manager can change yours.

The Staff Data & AI Governance Manager will help build Michels' enterprise governance function from the ground up. As a founding member of the Enterprise Intelligence team, this role will shape the policies, standards, operating routines, and accountability model that make data trusted, discoverable, and usable across the business. The role will also establish practical, risk-based governance for AI so Michels can move quickly on experimentation while applying stronger oversight where use cases require durability, transparency, or compliance. This role starts hands-on, laying the groundwork that lets Michels move with speed and confidence , with a clear path to build and lead the governance team as the function matures.

• We are consistently ranked among the top 10% of Engineering News-Record’s Top 400 Contractors
• Our steady, strategic growth revolves around a commitment to quality
• We are family owned and operated
• We invest an average of $5,000 per employee on training each year
• We reward hard work and dedication with limitless opportunities
• We believe it is everyone’s responsibility to promote safety, regardless of job titles.
• We offer a comprehensive benefits program including (depending on your positions and location you may participate in a different benefit plan):
  • Health, Dental, Life, Flexible Spending Accounts, Health Savings Account, Short Term and Long-Term Disability Insurance, 401(k) plan, Legal Plan, and Identity Theft and Monitoring Plan

Why you?

• You thrive in fast-paced environments under tight deadlines
• You enjoy collaborating and communicating with your teammates
• You like to know your efforts are noticed and appreciated
• You have strong time management, verbal, and written communication skills

Key Responsibilities:

• Build and operationalize Michels' data and AI governance framework: policies, standards, roles, decision rights, and operating processes.
• Establish foundational data governance across ownership, stewardship, quality, metadata, lineage, classification, and retention.
• Partner with business, operations, and IT teams to build shared ownership of governance across data and AI work.
• Create practical AI governance for use-case intake, risk classification, responsible AI review, vendor and embedded AI oversight, and monitoring.
• Facilitate the governance forums, stewardship routines, and cross-functional decisions that clarify accountability and make governance actionable.
• Develop metrics and reporting that give leadership visibility into data quality, governance maturity, AI adoption, and emerging risks.
• Grow the function over time, evolving from hands-on builder into the leader of future governance capabilities, communities, and team.

Qualifications:

• Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Information Systems, Business Administration, or a related quantitative field, or equivalent practical experience.
• 7+ years of experience in data governance, data management, technology risk, or a related discipline at enterprise scale.
• Strong command of core governance disciplines, with demonstrated ability to build and mature governance programs.
• Familiarity with modern data platforms and governance tooling such as Microsoft Fabric, Databricks, Snowflake, Collibra, Alation, Atlan, or similar technologies.
• Working knowledge of generative and agentic AI, responsible AI, and risk-based AI governance.
• Strong communication and stakeholder skills, with the ability to influence without authority, facilitate cross-functional decisions, and explain governance and risk concepts to technical, business, and executive audiences.

AA/EOE/M/W/Vet/Disability