Senior Specialist, Master Data Quality Management, Hybrid

Merck • Upper Gwynedd Township, PA

5d • $117,000 - $184,200 • Hybrid

About The Position

As part of the Global Clinical Supplies (GCS) Organization, the Sr. Specialist, Master Data Quality Management is responsible for driving data quality, governance, stewardship, and operational excellence across critical master data domains supporting Global Clinical Supply Operations (GCSO). This role helps ensure that master data is accurate, complete, compliant, and fit-for-purpose to support planning, manufacturing, packaging, distribution, regulatory compliance, and business decision-making. The individual partners with Data Owners, Process Stewards, IT, Business Operations, and Analytics teams to establish data quality controls, monitor performance through dashboards and Key Performance Indicators (KPIs), facilitate remediation, and support continuous improvement initiatives. The role is a key contributor to our Company's Data Governance program and digital transformation strategy.

Requirements

• Bachelor's degree in Supply Chain Management, Information Systems, Data Management, Engineering, Life Sciences, Business Administration, or a related discipline.
• 5+ years in Master Data Management, Data Governance, Data Quality Management, or ERP business processes.
• 3+ years working with SAP ECC and/or SAP S/4HANA, data stewardship, and reporting or analytics.
• SAP ECC / SAP S/4HANA, MDM principles, data quality methodologies, data governance frameworks, Power BI, Databricks, Streamlit, Tableau preferred, Microsoft Office, advanced Excel, data analysis, and visualization.
• Strong analytical and problem-solving skills.
• Excellent stakeholder management and cross-functional collaboration capabilities.
• Effective written, verbal, and presentation communication skills.
• Ability to influence without authority in a global matrixed environment.
• Continuous improvement mindset with pragmatic execution discipline.
• Strong organizational and prioritization skills.
• Ability to work effectively with global, regional, site-based, technical, and business teams.
• Adaptability
• Business Management
• Change Management
• Clinical Supply Chain Management
• Cross-Functional Leadership
• Data Analysis
• Data Governance
• Data Quality
• Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP)
• Interpersonal Relationships
• Key Performance Indicators (KPI)
• Project Management
• Reporting Tools
• Standards Compliance

Nice To Haves

• Experience with SAP MDG, Informatica IDQ, Syniti, or SimpleMDG; or equivalent; DAMA/CDMP or comparable data governance certification; regulated and pharma (life sciences) industry experience.
• Continuous Improvement
• Leadership

Responsibilities

• Executes quality monitoring, reviews rule compliance.
• Investigates exceptions, supports root cause analysis.
• Coordinates issue remediation.
• Participates in governance forums, supports standards and metadata, promotes accountability, and works with data owners and process stewards.
• Maintains dashboards, scorecards, KPI reporting, trend analysis, and leadership-ready insights on data quality performance.
• Supports Good (anything) Practices (GxP) compliant data processes, Attributable, Legible, Contemporaneous, Original, Accurate, Complete, Consistent, Enduring and Available (ALCOA+) data integrity expectations, audit readiness, documentation, escalation, and Corrective And Prevention Action (CAPA) related follow-up.
• Identify opportunities to improve point-of-entry controls, reduce manual work, standardize workflows, and support Master Data Management (MDM) tool and (Systems Applications and Products In Data Processing) SAP transformation initiatives.
• Execute and maintain data quality monitoring processes for material master and related master data domains.
• Monitor adherence to approved data quality rules, standards, and governance requirements.
• Identify, investigate, and resolve data quality exceptions through root cause analysis.
• Coordinate remediation activities with Data Owners and Business Stakeholders.
• Maintain data quality thresholds, scorecards, and performance metrics.
• Support periodic review and optimization of data validation rules and controls.
• Serve as a Master Data Steward for assigned data domains.
• Ensure compliance with enterprise Data Governance standards and operating procedures.
• Participate in Data Governance Councils, Community of Practice forums, and stewardship meetings.
• Facilitate ownership assignment and accountability for data quality issues.
• Assist with development and maintenance of business definitions, metadata, and data standards.
• Promote adoption of governance policies across global teams.
• Develop and maintain operational dashboards and KPI reports.
• Analyze trends, recurring issues, and compliance risks.
• Provide actionable insights and recommendations to stakeholders.
• Support executive reporting related to data quality performance, remediation progress, and governance effectiveness.
• Partner with analytics teams to enhance automated monitoring and reporting capabilities.
• Support GxP-compliant master data processes and controls.
• Ensure adherence to ALCOA+, data integrity, and audit readiness requirements.
• Assist with internal and external audits related to master data management.
• Document investigations, corrective actions, and preventive actions associated with data quality issues.
• Monitor compliance risks and escalate issues appropriately.
• Identify opportunities to reduce manual effort and improve data quality at the point of entry.
• Support implementation and enhancement of Master Data Management tools and workflow solutions.
• Participate in data governance transformation initiatives.
• Drive automation and standardization opportunities within master data processes.
• Contribute to SAP Enterprise Core Component (ECC) and SAP S/4HANA master data improvement initiatives.

Benefits

• medical, dental, vision healthcare and other insurance benefits (for employee and family)
• retirement benefits, including 401(k)
• paid holidays, vacation, and compassionate and sick days

What This Job Offers

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