Director, Data Governance

Grocery Outlet Career•Emeryville, CA

22h•$185,000 - $210,000

About The Position

As the Director, Data Governance, you will lead the development and execution of Grocery Outlet’s enterprise data governance framework. Your mission is to ensure that our most critical data is accurate, consistent, and trusted, enabling better decision-making, improving financial outcomes, and reducing operational risk. In this role, you will be critical to unlocking the full value of data across Grocery Outlet by strengthening data accuracy, consistency, and accountability, directly impacting financial performance, operational efficiency, and the company’s ability to scale. You will operate as a cross-functional leader, partnering closely with senior business stakeholders and IT to establish clear ownership, enforce standards, and embed governance into day-to-day workflows. This role requires both strategic leadership and hands-on execution to build and sustain a scalable governance model that supports our growing business. The Director, Data Governance will report to the EVP, Chief Financial Officer.

Requirements

8+ years of experience in data governance, data management, analytics, or related fields
Ability to thrive in a fast paced start up like environment
Proven experience leading cross-functional initiatives in complex, matrixed organizations
Strong understanding of enterprise data domains such as product, pricing, inventory, financial, and customer data
Experience establishing data standards, governance frameworks, and data quality programs
Ability to influence and drive alignment across senior business and technical stakeholders
Strong analytical and problem-solving skills with a focus on business impact

Nice To Haves

Experience working with data governance tools (MDM, data quality, cataloging) is a plus
Retail, grocery, or consumer industry experience preferred

Responsibilities

Data Governance Strategy & Framework Develop, implement, and evolve the enterprise data governance framework, aligned to business and financial priorities
Establish clear ownership, accountability, and processes across all critical data domains
Ensure governance is embedded into business workflows rather than operating as a standalone function
Drive adoption of guiding principles, including single source of truth, standardization, and business-owned data
Cross-Functional Leadership & Alignment Partner with senior leaders across Merchandising, Finance, Supply Chain, Store Operations, and IT to align on data priorities
Facilitate the Data Governance Council and support Executive Steering Committee engagement
Resolve cross-functional data issues and drive alignment on standards, definitions, and processes
Serve as the central point of coordination across data domains
Data Quality & Performance Management Define and track data quality KPIs tied to business impact (e.g., margin accuracy, inventory accuracy, vendor funding capture)
Establish processes to monitor, report, and improve data quality across the organization
Drive accountability with Data Owners and Data Stewards to meet defined performance thresholds
Lead root cause analysis and resolution of systemic data issues
Standards, Policies & Controls Define and enforce enterprise data standards, including business definitions, data entry requirements, and validation workflows
Ensure clear system-of-record designation for each data domain
Partner with stakeholders to approve and implement changes to data definitions and policies
Support financial integrity by prioritizing governance of data impacting reporting and margin
Issue Management & Escalation Establish and manage a structured process for logging, tracking, and resolving data quality issues
Ensure timely resolution through Data Stewards and escalation to Data Owners when needed
Escalate critical issues impacting financial results to executive leadership
Technology & Enablement Partner with IT and Data teams to support governance through tools such as MDM, data quality monitoring, and data catalog solutions
Ensure technology enables governance processes without replacing business accountability
Identify opportunities to improve efficiency, automation, and visibility across data management processes