Principal Data Governance Specialist

OpenDataJobs • Washington, DC

7h

About The Position

Peregrine Advisors Benefit Inc. is looking for a Principal Data Governance Specialist to lead data governance engagements for clients in regulated, data-intensive environments. This is a senior practitioner role. You will own governance programs end to end, from framework design through technical implementation, and serve as the primary governance authority in client relationships. The right person has enough technical depth to do the implementation work and enough presence to lead executive conversations about it.
Why Peregrine
Peregrine is a Benefit corporation, legally committed to creating measurable social value alongside business performance. The work here is technically demanding and mission-oriented. Our clients include regulated enterprises, oversight bodies, and public sector organizations, and the data infrastructure you help build has real downstream consequences. Engagements change scope, clients shift priorities, and no two projects look exactly alike. The people who do well here are genuinely curious, comfortable with ambiguity, and willing to apply their expertise in whatever direction the work actually needs.
Who You Are
Your starting point on governance is the question of whether it actually works in practice. A well-designed classification framework that never makes it into the tooling is just a document. A data catalog that no one trusts or uses is just overhead. You've worked in environments where the regulatory stakes are serious, and you know the difference between governance that holds up under scrutiny and governance that looks good on paper. You're comfortable configuring Purview or working through a catalog schema, and equally comfortable presenting a governance roadmap to a CDO or walking a CISO through an access control model. You don't need the engagement to be fully defined before you can add value. When scope shifts or a client's priorities change, you reorient and keep moving.
Responsibilities
The work will vary by engagement and change over time. The following describes the range of responsibilities you can expect to own across the practice.
Governance Framework Design and Implementation
Design data governance frameworks suited to each client's regulatory environment, risk profile, and organizational maturity, including data classification models, access policy structures, and stewardship operating models
Own the technical implementation of those frameworks through relevant platform tooling, making sure that policy is actually enforced rather than just documented
Define user access profiles that tie organizational roles to data access rights in a way that is consistent and auditable, and that scales as organizations grow
Build data quality and governance monitoring into client environments so that leadership has ongoing visibility into the health of their data assets
Data Catalog and Discoverability
Lead the design, implementation, and adoption of enterprise data catalog programs, with the goal of making the catalog the place people actually go when they need to find and understand data
Develop data asset documentation, curation frameworks, and quality scoring approaches that are useful to both technical teams and business stakeholders
Build training and onboarding programs that get users into the catalog and keep them there, not just launch materials that go unread
Work with data engineering and analytics teams to make sure governed, cataloged data flows appropriately into analytical and AI-enabled workflows
Client Engagement and Program Leadership
Serve as the senior governance lead on client engagements, working directly with CDOs, CISOs, data leaders, and executive stakeholders
Lead discovery and requirements sessions, and translate what you learn into governance roadmaps that are grounded in what the client can actually deliver
Own the delivery side of governance workstreams: scoping, planning, execution, stakeholder communication, and getting work to production readiness
Handle shifting priorities without losing momentum, and help clients do the same when their needs or constraints change mid-engagement
Practice Development
Build reusable frameworks, implementation playbooks, and other materials that make future governance engagements faster and more consistent
Mentor junior and mid-level practitioners in governance methods, platform configuration, and working with clients
Stay current on governance tooling, evolving standards, and regulatory developments, and bring relevant findings back to the practice

Requirements

• Meaningful experience designing and implementing enterprise data governance programs in regulated or compliance-sensitive environments, including data classification frameworks, access governance models, and data quality programs
• Hands-on experience implementing governance through technical tooling; Microsoft Purview strongly preferred, including sensitivity label configuration, policy enforcement, and integration with enterprise identity management
• Experience designing role-based access control frameworks integrated with enterprise identity platforms such as Microsoft Active Directory and Entra ID
• Experience with enterprise data catalog platforms; Informatica Cloud Data Governance and Catalog strongly preferred; Collibra, Alation, or comparable platforms acceptable
• Working proficiency across Microsoft Azure data and governance services, with meaningful depth in Purview and Entra ID; familiarity with Azure SQL, Azure DevOps, and related services
• Familiarity with Databricks as an analytics platform; enough working knowledge to collaborate productively with engineering teams building in Databricks
• Ability to pick up new tooling and platform configurations as client environments vary; adaptability matters here as much as any specific platform credential
• Experience working in Agile delivery environments using Jira or comparable work management tools
• Track record of engaging senior client stakeholders as a credible governance authority, including facilitating decisions and communicating clearly about complex trade-offs
• Experience leading engagements in federal, regulated, or oversight-oriented environments; familiarity with financial services, public sector, or compliance-driven regulatory contexts preferred
• Strong written and verbal communication skills across a range of formats and audiences, from technical documentation to executive briefings
• Comfortable operating in engagements that are not fully defined, and in organizations where the governance function is still maturing
• Bachelor's required; Information Management, Data Science, Computer Science, or a related field strongly preferred
• 8+ years of experience in data governance, information management, or a closely related discipline; candidates who came up through technical implementation and moved into governance leadership are strongly encouraged to apply
• Prior consulting or professional services experience strongly preferred; client-facing delivery experience required

Nice To Haves

• Microsoft certifications preferred: SC-400 (Information Protection Administrator), DP-900 (Azure Data Fundamentals), or Microsoft Purview-aligned credentials
• Informatica certifications or demonstrated hands-on Informatica CDGC experience strongly preferred

Responsibilities

• Design data governance frameworks suited to each client's regulatory environment, risk profile, and organizational maturity, including data classification models, access policy structures, and stewardship operating models
• Own the technical implementation of those frameworks through relevant platform tooling, making sure that policy is actually enforced rather than just documented
• Define user access profiles that tie organizational roles to data access rights in a way that is consistent and auditable, and that scales as organizations grow
• Build data quality and governance monitoring into client environments so that leadership has ongoing visibility into the health of their data assets
• Lead the design, implementation, and adoption of enterprise data catalog programs, with the goal of making the catalog the place people actually go when they need to find and understand data
• Develop data asset documentation, curation frameworks, and quality scoring approaches that are useful to both technical teams and business stakeholders
• Build training and onboarding programs that get users into the catalog and keep them there, not just launch materials that go unread
• Work with data engineering and analytics teams to make sure governed, cataloged data flows appropriately into analytical and AI-enabled workflows
• Serve as the senior governance lead on client engagements, working directly with CDOs, CISOs, data leaders, and executive stakeholders
• Lead discovery and requirements sessions, and translate what you learn into governance roadmaps that are grounded in what the client can actually deliver
• Own the delivery side of governance workstreams: scoping, planning, execution, stakeholder communication, and getting work to production readiness
• Handle shifting priorities without losing momentum, and help clients do the same when their needs or constraints change mid-engagement
• Build reusable frameworks, implementation playbooks, and other materials that make future governance engagements faster and more consistent
• Mentor junior and mid-level practitioners in governance methods, platform configuration, and working with clients
• Stay current on governance tooling, evolving standards, and regulatory developments, and bring relevant findings back to the practice

Benefits

• Full health coverage (medical, dental, and vision) with 100% of employee premiums covered
• Life and disability insurance, fully covered by the company
• 401(k) retirement plan with 100% match on contributions up to 4% of salary with immediate vesting
• Unlimited Paid Time Off (PTO) to encourage work-life balance
• Sponsored Azure certification training

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Senior