Role Title

Data Governance Lead

Job family group

Strategy and Improvement

Job family/ies

Operational Delivery / Strategy and Improvement

Grade

G7

Status

For internal use

Role Purpose

(250 words max)

In 2021 HMCTS published its Data Strategy, setting out its ambitions to become a truly data-driven organisation. The Strategy, Analysis and Change (SA&C) directorate supports this strategy by enabling senior leaders to make strategic, data driven business decisions. The Data Governance Lead is a key leadership and management role reporting to the Head of Data Strategy and Data Governance Delivery in the Data Analysis and Insight (DAI) function within SA&C.

The Data Governance Lead will manage and optimise HMCTS’s data assets, establishing expectations for data governance through governance principles to ensure that data serves as a valuable resource that HMCTS can use to deliver justice. They will apply their data governance expertise and technological understanding to enhance decision-making regarding the collection, storage, use, and sharing of data to meet strategic objectives, while maintaining data integrity, security, and compliance.

This role will collaborate closely with senior stakeholders within HMCTS and across the Ministry of Justice (MoJ) to develop a comprehensive understanding of data usage in government, and to identify ways in which HMCTS can drive improvement in this domain. The individual in this role will be responsible for leading the Data Governance Office, ensuring the effective and ongoing governance of data within HMCTS.

Key Accountabilities (600 words max)

Accountable to the Head of Data Strategy and Data Governance Delivery for:

Shaping the strategic agenda for data governance improvement at HMCTS by:

• Defining, implementing, and managing data governance frameworks, policies and standards in HMCTS. Including the design and implementation of practical data governance solutions to support organisational needs and reduce data risks.

• Providing authoritative advice and updates to the Data Governance Committee (DGC) on plans to improve key aspects of data governance at HMCTS, including drafting high-quality papers and recommendations on implementing relevant policy guidance.

• Leading on the establishment and management of Data Ownership responsibilities within HMCTS and establishing wider data governance competencies within the organisation (such as governance of metadata and data standards).

• Leading on the governance for Master and Reference Data (MRD) maintenance and improvement, including the development and upkeep of documentation related to MRD processes, ensuring it is current and accessible to relevant users.

• Collaborate with the HMCTS Data Quality team to develop an enhanced data quality structure and framework, ensuring that data quality aspects are integrated into decision-making processes about data and take responsibility for incorporating them into data governance frameworks.

• Championing best practice approaches to data governance across HMCTS boundaries, to develop and maintain a wide stakeholder network and awareness of emerging best practices and understanding of the changing landscape. Utilise external engagement to stay abreast of evolving best practices, ensuring HMCTS remains at the forefront of data governance excellence.

• Provide expert advice and drive the effective use of appropriate governance routes and boards to optimise the safety and value of data throughout the data life cycle.

Providing leadership to the Data Governance team by:

• Drive a culture of service excellence within the team by providing leadership coaching, career development opportunities, and ensuring the team’s continuous professional development to maintain business and technical expertise.

• Working creatively with the Head of Data Strategy and Data Governance Delivery to improve the data governance framework and initiatives.

• Driving and managing the implementation of processes to maintain and evolve data governance across the organisation over time.

• Communicating the work of the Data Governance team to internal and external audiences to ensure the work is visible and understood.

• Embed organisational values and behaviours within the team, ensuring wellbeing, inclusion, diversity and equality is at the forefront of all people activities. Ensuring staff understand how their performance contributes to the achievement of organisational objectives

• Performing any other duties to support business needs in line with this grade and deputising for the Head of Data Strategy and Data Governance Delivery when required.

Knowledge, Skills and Experience (500 words max)

• Data Governance. Demonstrable experience and knowledge of up-to-date data governance approaches, standard methodologies and practical considerations facing public sector organisations in the use of data. The ability to develop an end-to-end data governance framework, including processes, operational policies, and standards to support data management. Experience of working effectively with technical teams and other stakeholders to implement a data governance framework and providing recommendations to ensure compliance.

• Data Management: Ability to follow organisational data governance, including policies on data access, sharing, dissemination and protection. Participate in or deliver data management across services or products and use appropriate data management tools, procedures, and methods with some support.

• Data standards: Ability to use data policies, processes, and standards effectively, monitoring compliance with policies and standards in a team and act if needed to analyse the impact if a standard is breached.

• Data Policy Development: Experience of working with subject matter experts to draft and develop standards, policies, and guidance to protect data.

• Strong stakeholder management skills: Excellent interpersonal skills and ability to build and maintain strong working relationships with partners and stakeholders at senior levels, including the ability to work across boundaries to influence and gain confidence of senior project delivery leaders and sponsors to mutually agree solutions that manage competing priorities.

• Excellent leadership skills: Experience of building and leading a team, including building capability data governance management functions. Ability to provide clear direction to staff, including staff outside your immediate reporting change, to ensure staff deliver complex outcomes on time and to specification.

• Communication: Excellent oral and written communication skills, adaptable for different audiences. Capable of engaging confidently with senior officials to explain complex issues simply and clearly communicating processes to collaborators. Able to present complex issues concisely to the Head of Data Strategy and Data Governance Delivery, Data Strategy Delivery Groups, the Data Governance Committee and other senior leadership teams.

• Delivering at Pace and in Ambiguity: Experience in making effective decisions quickly, delivering quality outcomes within tight deadlines, adapting to changing circumstances, managing competing priorities, and ensuring the delivery of high-quality products and advice. Experience of working with colleagues both internally and externally, to secure support and commitments to action from colleagues outside formal management hierarchy.

Problem Solving and Decision Making (300 words max)

The Data Governance Lead will;

• Lead the development and implementation of a Data Governance Framework across HMCTS to optimise data utilisation by enhancing its reliability and ensuring authoritative and accountable governance. Responsible for regularly reviewing the Data Governance framework and make informed decisions regarding necessary modifications in response to evolving contexts.

• Ensure effectiveness by developing and maintaining a broad stakeholder network, staying abreast of emerging best practices and advancements in data governance practices and technologies, and understanding the evolving landscape. Leverage this knowledge to enhance the data governance framework within HMCTS.

• Lead work to solve the problem of how to implement and embed Data Ownership responsibilities within HMCTS and establish wider data governance competencies within the organisation and develop innovative approaches to ensure the effective inclusion of these into HMCTS practices and processes.

• Identify data governance challenges, propose solutions and options, and offer compelling recommendations for the Data Governance Committee to consider.

• Need to understand how to foster a culture of continuous improvement to address emerging data risks and issues and be responsible for shaping the direction of the Data Governance function including by promoting best practices and encouraging a proactive approach to identifying and mitigating data-related risks.

• Be an active contributor to the wider Data, Analysis and Insight leadership team, identifying and taking forward opportunities to improve culture, ways of working, cross-cutting efficiency etc.

Management of Resources (250 words max)

The role holder will lead the Data Governance function and be responsible for implementing elements of the SA&C and DAI business plans and includes designing and overseeing the data governance required for HMCTS to manage its data effectively and securely. Reporting to the Head of Data Strategy and Data Governance Delivery and the Deputy Director of Data Analysis and Insight (as budget holder) the post-holders will be responsible for managing 2 x Data Governance Managers (SEOs) within the Data Governance Team.

This is a key leadership role within SA&C and DAI and will involve collaboration across services, operations, DTS and DAI. The role holder will provide expert and authoritative direction, guidance and support to colleagues from across these areas to achieve shared objectives aligned to the HMCTS Data Strategy.

The role holder will have responsibility for providing clear direction to their staff and supporting their staff to deliver outcomes. They are responsible for interacting with their staff regularly and utilising them effectively to enhance Data Governance objectives. The post-holder will need to be aware of changing organisational and wider external contexts and regularly review the effective use and deployment of resources to ensure the function is able to react and adapt as necessary. Management is expected to be on a hybrid basis in line with team member base locations and flexible working arrangements.

Autonomy (250 words max)

The role holder will operate in a fast paced and rapidly changing environment with autonomy to assess and respond to emerging risks and issues. They are expected to take independent action and exercise judgement in determining and agreeing the priorities and requirements to deliver their data governance objectives. This requires a balance of strategic thinking and practical implementation, ensuring that the data governance framework adapts to the evolving needs of HMCTS and contributes to broader organisational goals. The role holder will use their data governance expertise, and technological understanding to help HMCTS make better decisions about how it collects, stores, uses and shares its data to achieve its strategic objectives, while ensuring data integrity, security, and compliance are maintained.

They will be expected to think innovatively, make effective decisions quickly, and adopt flexible approaches to deal with changing circumstances and managing competing priorities, to ensure the delivery of high-quality products and advice.

They will be expected to assess situations critically and escalate to the Head of Data Strategy and Data Governance Delivery only those issues which have wider repercussions, or which might be particularly sensitive. When escalations are made the post-holder will provide options, solutions and recommendations to any issues. The post-holder will also be responsible for establishing clear communication channels within the team and with other departments to ensure alignment and collaboration on data governance initiatives.

Key Relationships and Contacts (300 words max)

The postholder will be a vital member of the DAI team, proactively engaging with senior colleagues within DAI and partners across HMCTS and MoJ. A significant aspect of this role involves establishing, nurturing, influencing and sustaining relationships with at senior levels and with key stakeholders to provide advice, make informed recommendations, and speak authoritatively to influence future actions concerning data governance initiatives. This role will provide high quality data governance advice and direction to data strategy project delivery teams and steering groups, the HMCTS Data Governance Committee, and the HMCTS Service Boards. Key stakeholders include:

• HMCTS Service Owners and Heads of Operations (and their teams) - work with senior stakeholders to implement and embed Data Ownership responsibilities within HMCTS and establish wider data governance competencies within the organisation. Develop innovative approaches to ensure the effective inclusion of these into HMCTS promoting best practice and facilitating upcoming initiatives in the wider organisation.

• HMCTS Data Quality Programme - Work with the HMCTS Data Quality team to develop an improved data quality structure and framework, ensuring that data quality components are integrated into decision-making processes regarding data and incorporated into data governance procedures.

• MoJ Data Improvement Team - Collaborating closely with senior stakeholders within the MoJ to facilitate information exchange, develop a thorough understanding of data utilisation in governmental operations, and identify strategies for HMCTS to enhance improvements in this area.