Data Lead

You’ll be joining a well-established UK engineering and manufacturing business with global reach. The organisation designs, manufactures and supplies high-quality industrial products used in safety-critical applications across energy, utilities and infrastructure sectors, serving customers in more than 60 countries. The company has a heritage of precision, engineering excellence and strong customer service, and is now investing significantly in its internal technology and data capability.

The Role

This is the first senior, internal data leadership hire, reporting into the IT Director and working alongside Strategic Delivery and IT Operations.

You will take ownership of the company’s data function and transition it from largely vendor-supported reporting to a governed, scalable, internal data capability. This role is ideal for someone who enjoys hands‑on data work but also wants to shape strategy and standards.

What you’ll be doing

• Lead the development and delivery of a data roadmap aligned with business goals
• Establish data governance practices, quality standards and access frameworks
• Build and scale BI and reporting, with primary tools like Power BI
• Collaborate with business stakeholders to define metrics, dashboards and KPIs
• Work closely with an external data vendor to transition knowledge and uplift internal capability
• Act as the internal authority on structured data, analytics and reporting needs
• Lay the foundations for future AI and advanced analytics initiatives
• Partner with IT Operations to ensure data platform stability and scale

Requirements

We’re looking for someone who is pragmatic, technically credible and comfortable working as a senior individual contributor in a growing tech environment.

• Experience in a senior data, analytics or BI leadership role
• Strong hands‑on experience with SQL and Power BI (or equivalent BI tools)
• A background in structured data environments with real business impact
• Experience implementing data governance and best practices
• Comfort working with and managing external vendors on data delivery
• Ability to translate business needs into practical data solutions
• A grounded view on where AI fits into a data strategy without over‑promising
• Confidence working on‑site and engaging closely with cross‑functional teams

This is a fully onsite position so applicants will ideally be in the Lancashire/Greater Manchester area. Visa sponsorship is not available at this time.