Head of Data Operations and Governance
Department: COO (Chief Operating Office)
Salary: £90,000 - £98,000 per annum plus benefits
Contract: Permanent
Hours: Full-time (flexible working arrangements available)
Location: Stratford, London (office-based with high flexibility, typically 2 days per week in the office)
Closing date: 7 July 2026 at 23:59
Visa sponsorship: Must be eligible to work in the UK. Cancer Research UK is not able to offer visa sponsorship.
Main Responsibilities
- Lead the development and implementation of a data quality framework across CRUK's critical datasets to ensure data is accurate, consistent, and fit for purpose across all priority operational and analytical use cases.
- Define and govern enterprise data standards and integration guardrails to ensure consistency and scalability across CRUK's data and technology ecosystem, including MarTech platforms enabling audience engagement.
- Drive adoption of automation and AI-enabled approaches to proactively detect, diagnose, and resolve data quality issues at scale.
- Establish and embed a data ownership and stewardship model across the organisation to ensure clear accountability for the quality, integrity, and compliant management of data assets.
- Develop and maintain a Business Information Model (BIM) that defines CRUK's core data entities, their relationships, and agreed definitions, providing the semantic foundation for data discovery and catalogue metadata.
- Own data discovery and data observability capabilities (excluding data engineering pipeline build), ensuring CRUK's data assets are visible, understood, monitored for quality and health, findable and reusable across the organisation.
- Ensure data protection requirements are built into data systems, processes, and projects from the outset, working in close partnership with the Data Privacy team to embed privacy‑by‑design principles.
- Design and build the team structure, roles, and operating model within Data Operations and Governance to create a high‑performing function, whilst providing clear direction and leadership.
Skills and Experience
- Significant experience leading data governance, data quality, or data operations functions in a complex organisation.
- Relevant experience designing and implementing data quality frameworks, data catalogues, or master data management programmes at scale.
- Experience establishing data ownership and stewardship models, including engaging senior stakeholders to take on accountability for data assets.
- Strong working knowledge of UK GDPR, the Data Protection Act 2018, and the practical application of privacy‑by‑design principles.
- Experience managing and developing multidisciplinary data teams, including optimising organisational design to meet evolving organisational needs.
- Ability to translate complex data governance concepts into accessible language and practical action for non‑specialist audiences and executive stakeholders.
- Strong analytical and problem‑solving skills, with the ability to diagnose root causes of data quality issues and design sustainable remediation approaches, working with others across the organisation.
- Collaborative working style with the ability to influence both technical and non‑technical stakeholders without direct authority across a large, mission‑driven organisation.
Benefits
In return, you will be supported by a generous benefits package, a wide range of career and personal development opportunities, high‑quality tools, policies and processes to enable you to do your job well.
The benefits package includes a substantial retirement plan, a generous and flexible leave allowance, discounts on a broad range of products and services, gym membership and more.
The workplace promotes a flexible culture to support work–life balance.
Equality, Diversity and Inclusion
We actively encourage applications from people of all backgrounds and cultures, in particular those from ethnic minority backgrounds who are currently under‑represented. We want all candidates to perform at their best throughout the job application process and remain at work. Any concerns or adjustments needed should be communicated to recruitment@cancer.org.uk or 020 3469 8400.
Applicants must be 18 years of age or older. This policy protects young people from health, safety and safeguarding risks.
