Data Governance & Quality Manager

The Role: At Canopius, our delivery teams are responsible for ensuring that business users can effectively harness data insights to drive strategic decision making. Our data strategy is centred around an enterprise Lakehouse platform on Databricks, avoiding fragmented, ungoverned silos on legacy technologies that hamper creativity and scalability. We are building a governed, interoperable data estate that enables self-service for our business teams and provides the trusted foundation for advanced analytics, machine learning and AI to accelerate change across our industry. This role is an opportunity to apply your expertise in data governance and data quality to uphold and enhance processes, policies and standards that drive ongoing improvement in the management and quality of data across the organisation. You will work closely with business stakeholders to implement and operate robust data governance and data quality frameworks, contributing to key business transformation initiatives as required. The role includes line management responsibility of a 5-person team, with the opportunity to expand over time subject to business needs. As a senior member of the team, you will also act as a role model and mentor to others, providing guidance and support. The ideal candidate is an experienced data governance professional looking for a new challenge, focused on ensuring that business teams are empowered with data of trusted quality with defined lineage and definitions to make informed business decisions. With the support of Data Owners across the organisation, you will play an influential role in embedding, maturing and integrating data governance capabilities in collaboration with existing governance functions to make Canopius a truly data-led organisation. You should be comfortable collaborating and working as part of a dynamic, multi-disciplinary team. This role is central to ensuring data governance policies and quality standards are defined and adopted, communicating progress and maturity assessments of data domains. Alongside hands-on delivery, you will be a champion for effective data governance and maintain oversight of data quality management across the organisation, ensuring that associated processes and monitoring metrics are in place to actively manage the quality of data. This is a hybrid role, working 2-3 days per week from our Manchester office. Responsibilities will include: Own the Data Governance and Data Quality frameworks and ensure that these are embedded across the organisation, including the supporting policies, standards, controls, operating model and adoption plan. Manage and maintain data policies, principles and standards in conjunction with Data Owners and other stakeholders. Maintain and evolve the organisation’s data ownership and stewardship model, ensuring data domains, Data Owners, Data Stewards, and associated accountabilities are defined and embedded. Own and operate the Data Quality risk and control framework, including control assessment, evidence collation, attestation, coordination of issue remediation, and reporting. Define and maintain Data Governance and Data Quality maturity assessments, KPIs, thresholds and SLAs. Oversee Data Quality management, including the recording of data quality incidents, root-cause analysis, business impact assessment, communication, remediation planning and resolution in conjunction with Data Owners and other stakeholders. Escalate significant or overdue risks through appropriate governance forums. Support the Data Governance Forum and Data Quality working groups, setting agendas, coordinating papers, documenting decisions and actions, and ensuring agreed actions are progressed and escalated appropriately. Embed Data Governance by design into projects and technology changes, ensuring ownership, lineage, standards, controls, metadata and data quality requirements are addressed from design through implementation. Work closely with the Head of IT Governance to define and manage the Data Governance and Data Quality roadmap, including regulatory, risk, strategic and business-led demands, identifying dependencies and delivery risks. Act as business owner for Data Governance and Data Quality applications, overseeing requirements, design, testing, release acceptance, support and adoption. Embed organisational awareness of Data Governance and Data Quality, including enterprise training, role-based guidance, onboarding, communities of practice and targeted interventions to strengthen accountability and data culture. Lead the response to Data Governance and Data Quality audits, regulatory reviews and assurance activity, ensuring evidence is complete, and that findings are remediated and closed within agreed timeframes. Oversee governance of master and reference data, including ownership, approval, change control, quality monitoring, communication, and periodic review. Lead and develop the Data Governance and Data Quality team members, setting objectives and priorities, managing performance and capacity, supporting career development, and ensuring appropriate capability, succession and operational resilience. Keep abreast of developments and trends in Data Governance and Data Quality Management. Undertake other ad-hoc duties as required. Skills and Experience: Proven track record of owning and embedding enterprise data governance and data quality frameworks, including policies, standards, controls, classifications, operating models and adoption plans. Team management experience, including objective setting, performance and capacity management, coaching, career development and succession planning. Experience of establishing data quality controls, dimensions, thresholds, and SLAs, as well as root-cause analysis and remediation processes. Experience of embedding data ownership and stewardship models, including domains, role accountabilities, governance ceremonies, training and engagement. Experience of managing and acting as product owner for solutions that hold business terms, data definitions, metadata, lineage, glossary, data dictionary, master data and reference data assets. Adept at embedding data governance by design into business and technology change. Experience of embedding data risk controls and assurance frameworks, including evidence standards, periodic assessment and attestation. Strong understanding of the regulatory and compliance landscape relating to data, including GDPR. Excellent communication, stakeholder engagement and influencing skills, including governance forums, executive buy-in, data literacy, adoption and culture change. Strong analytical and problem-solving capability, with a keen eye for detail. Familiarity with specialty (re)insurance or Lloyd’s market data such as delegated authority, underwriting and claims is advantageous. Experience of working with Azure DevOps is beneficial.