Assistant Vice President Data Governance

Job Summary

The Assistant Vice President (AVP), Data Governance, plays a critical role in establishing and executing an QNB wide data governance framework aligned with Qatar Central Bank (QCB) guidelines, Qatar’s National Data Classification Policy (NDCP), and the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). This role ensures strong data accountability, ownership, and stewardship practices, while fostering a culture of data responsibility and ethical data usage across the organization. The AVP, Data Governance will define policies, set up governance bodies, collaborate with business and technical stakeholders, and ensure that data across the bank is discoverable, secure, classified, and used in compliance with regulatory and business standards.

Main Responsibilities

A. Shareholder & Financial:

• Implement QNB’s data governance framework in alignment with strategic data initiatives and compliance requirements.
• Ensure adherence to QCB mandates on data sovereignty, classification, and protection.
• Support efficient and compliant use of data assets to optimize business outcomes and mitigate risk exposure.
• Contribute to cost efficiency through data reusability, accurate reporting, and effective data lifecycle management.
• Ensure accountability for data policies and frameworks by operationalizing stewardship and ownership structures.
• Develop and maintain key performance indicators to measure the effectiveness of data governance initiatives.
• Collaborate with the IT department to integrate data governance requirements into the data architecture.
• Promote a data-driven culture by advocating for data governance best practices across all levels of the organization.
• Conduct regular audits and assessments to ensure compliance with internal and external data governance standards.
• Facilitate communication and coordination among data governance stakeholders to align objectives and resolve conflicts.
• Implements KPI’s and best practices for Assistant Vice President, Data Governance
• Promote cost consciousness and efficiency and enhance productivity, to minimise cost, avoid waste, and optimise benefits for the bank

B. Customer (Internal & External):

• Collaborate with business, risk, compliance, and IT teams to embed data governance responsibilities across functions. This includes facilitating cross-functional workshops, establishing data stewardship councils, and ensuring alignment with organizational goals and regulatory requirements.
• Lead engagement with internal stakeholders to identify, document, and classify critical data elements. This involves creating detailed data inventories, defining data lineage, and ensuring proper data documentation to promote transparency and data quality.
• Develop and deliver comprehensive training programs on data governance practices, QCB and GDPR compliance, and ethical data use. These programs should cater to different levels of the organization and include practical exercises, case studies, and regular updates to keep pace with evolving standards and regulations.
• Support customer-centric data policies by enabling trusted, accurate, and compliant data exchange across channels. This includes implementing robust data-sharing agreements, establishing data privacy measures, and continuously monitoring data exchange processes to ensure they meet customer needs and regulatory standards.
• To assist customers in all their queries on Bank’s product and seek solution to their requests.
• Maintain activities in accordance with Service Level Agreements (SLAs) with internal departments/units to achieve improvements in turn-around time.
• Build and maintain strong/effective relationships with related departments/units to achieve the Group’s objectives.
• Provide timely/accurate data to external/internal Auditors, Compliance, Financial Control and Risk when required.

C. Internal (Processes, Products, Regulatory):

• Define and manage metadata standards, business glossaries, and data dictionaries for key data domains.
• Set up and facilitate Data Governance Councils and Stewardship Committees.
• Support implementation of data governance tools for cataloguing, lineage tracking, and policy enforcement.
• Ensure governance checkpoints in data integration, reporting, and transformation programs across the bank.
• Monitor compliance with data governance policies through regular audits and assessments.
• Develop and maintain a data issue management process to address data quality and governance issues promptly.
• Foster a data-driven culture by promoting the value of good data governance practices across the organization.
• Collaborate with IT to ensure data security measures are integrated into all governance frameworks.
• Establish metrics and KPIs to measure the effectiveness of data governance initiatives.
• Regularly update governance documentation to reflect changes in regulatory requirements and organizational policies.

D. Learning & Knowledge:

• Maintain up-to-date knowledge of local (QCB, NDCP) and global (GDPR) regulatory developments related to data governance.
• Ensure regular training sessions and workshops are conducted to keep the team informed about the latest regulatory changes and industry best practices.
• Foster internal knowledge-sharing to ensure consistent understanding of governance standards.
• Develop comprehensive training materials and resources to support continuous learning and improvement in data governance practices.
• Engage with external experts and consultants to gain insights into emerging trends and technologies in data governance.
• Contribute to QNB’s data literacy initiatives by supporting the development of learning resources and awareness campaigns.
• Establish a robust feedback mechanism to gather input from stakeholders and continuously refine governance policies and procedures.
• Promote a culture of transparency and accountability by regularly communicating the importance of data governance to all employees.
• Proactively identify areas for professional development of self and undertake development activities.
• Seek out opportunities to remain current with all developments in professional field.

E. Legal, Regulatory, and Risk Framework Responsibilities:

• Ensure full compliance with QCB regulations on data management, including mandatory classification, localization, and retention policies.
• Support the Group’s adherence to NDCP, including proper tagging and categorization of sensitive data.
• Enforce data protection and usage rules under GDPR and internal security guidelines.
• Maintain audit trails, ownership logs, and compliance dashboards to support external audit, risk, and regulatory reviews.
• Conduct regular risk assessments and audits to identify potential vulnerabilities and ensure mitigation measures are in place.
• Collaborate with legal and compliance teams to stay updated on regulatory changes and ensure timely implementation of necessary adjustments.
• Develop and implement robust data governance policies that align with legal and regulatory requirements.
• Provide training and awareness programs to ensure all employees understand their roles and responsibilities in maintaining compliance.
• Establish clear procedures for incident reporting and response to ensure swift action in case of data breaches or regulatory violations.
• Engage with external auditors and regulators during inspections to demonstrate the organization’s commitment to data governance and compliance.
• Conduct regular reviews and updates of data governance frameworks to ensure they remain effective and relevant in the face of evolving regulations.
• Monitor and report on key compliance metrics to senior management to ensure continuous improvement and accountability in data governance practices.

F. Other:

• Ensure high standards of data confidentiality and integrity across governance processes.
• Support investigations and root cause analysis of data management failures and define corrective measures.
• Handle ad hoc data governance requests from internal committees, regulators, and executive management.
• Maintaining utmost confidentiality concerning customer and internal bank information obtained during the course of business and provide such information on a need to know basis only to Senior Management of QNB, Audit and Compliance functions, and relevant Regulators.
• Maintain high professional standards to uphold QNB's reputation and to strengthen its market leadership position.
• All other ad hoc duties/activities related to QNB that management might request from time to time.

Education and Experience Requirements

• Bachelor or master degree in information management, Data Governance, Risk, or a related field.
• Minimum 10 years of total experience, with at least 5 years in data governance roles within banking or regulated sectors.
• Hands-on experience designing and operationalizing data governance frameworks, metadata management, and business glossaries.
• Strong knowledge of QCB data governance directives, NDCP guidelines, and GDPR compliance requirements.
• Excellent interpersonal and stakeholder engagement skills with a proven ability to work across business and technical teams.
• Ability to develop and deliver training programs on data governance practices.
• Experience in conducting data audits and ensuring compliance with data governance standards.
• Proven track record of managing data governance projects from inception to completion.

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