Data Consultant / Data Specialist in Manchester

Data Specialist / Data Consultant – Strategy, Governance & Transformation

Are you an experienced data professional who enjoys solving business problems, influencing stakeholders and turning data requirements into practical solutions?

We’re recruiting a

Data Consultant – Strategy, Governance & Transformation for an established international financial services organisation undergoing significant technology and data transformation.

This is a broad, highly visible role sitting at the intersection of data, technology and the business .

You’ll work with stakeholders across the organisation to understand their challenges, improve how data is governed and used, and help shape solutions that deliver measurable business value.

It would particularly suit someone with a strong data background who is equally comfortable discussing strategy with senior stakeholders, interrogating data using SQL, and working alongside technical teams to get solutions delivered.

The Role

As Data Consultant, you’ll act as a key link between business stakeholders, data teams, technology functions and external partners.

You’ll help translate business requirements into effective data and technology solutions, while supporting the organisation’s wider ambitions around data governance, application management and major transformation programmes.

Rather than being confined to either a purely technical or strategic remit, you’ll work across both.

One day you may be helping define the data requirements for a major project; the next you could be analysing data, working through an application or process issue, reviewing a supplier solution, or advising stakeholders on the best way forward.

Your focus throughout will be on making data more accessible, reliable and valuable to the organisation.

• What You’ll Be Doing
• Build trusted relationships with stakeholders across the business, becoming a key point of contact for data, application and technology-related requirements.
• Understand business challenges and translate them into scalable, sustainable data and technology solutions.
• Support the continued development of the organisation’s data strategy and governance framework.
• Help ensure data products, applications and services provided by internal teams, partners and third-party vendors meet appropriate governance standards and established best practice.
• Identify opportunities to improve the quality, accessibility and effective use of data across the organisation.
• Use data and analysis to provide insight that supports business reporting and decision-making.
• Work directly with data using

SQL , including extracting, investigating and analysing information when required.

• Develop a strong understanding of business applications, processes and the underlying data structures that support them.
• Help colleagues and business users understand how systems and data work together and resolve issues where appropriate.
• Work alongside Project Managers, business owners and technical teams on major projects and ongoing change initiatives.
• Help ensure solutions are delivered with the right balance of quality, cost, timescale and long-term business value.
• Collaborate closely with Data Governance colleagues to embed effective data management practices throughout the organisation.
• Work with external suppliers and technology partners, challenging constructively and identifying opportunities to improve services and solutions.
• Contribute to the continued development of the organisation’s Business Partner, Application Management and Data Governance capabilities.
• Bring structure and clarity to complex requirements while remaining pragmatic enough to keep projects and initiatives moving.
• What We’re Looking For

You’ll need to be someone who can comfortably bridge the gap between business requirements and technology .

You don't need to be a software engineer, but you will need enough technical depth to understand data, applications and architecture, ask the right questions and work credibly with technical specialists.

Equally, this isn't a purely technical position.

Strong stakeholder management, commercial awareness and the ability to understand the wider business context are fundamental to the role.

• At least

3 years' experience within financial services , including banking or a closely related environment.

• A degree or equivalent professional experience within data, applications, technology or architecture.
• Strong understanding of data and technology concepts, with the ability to communicate effectively with both technical and non-technical audiences.
• Practical

SQL experience, with the ability to extract, interrogate and analyse data.

• Experience contributing to data strategy, data governance or data management initiatives.
• Experience translating business requirements into practical data or technology solutions.
• A track record of supporting or driving organisational and technological change.
• Experience working with projects involving multiple business and technical stakeholders.
• Strong stakeholder management skills and the confidence to build effective relationships at different levels of seniority.
• Experience working with third-party suppliers, technology partners or external stakeholders would be highly valuable.
• The ability to understand both the strategic objective and the practical steps required to deliver it.
• Strong organisational and prioritisation skills, particularly when balancing multiple stakeholders, projects and competing requirements.
• A delivery-focused mindset with a commitment to quality, good governance and sustainable solutions.
• Genuine interest in technology, data and emerging developments across the industry.

Most importantly, you'll be comfortable operating in an environment where there isn't always a perfectly defined path forward.

You'll be someone who can take a complex problem, create structure around it, bring the right people together and help move it towards a workable solution.

About the Organisation

Our client is an established international financial services organisation with operations across multiple countries.

The organisation has a long-standing presence within the financial sector and a broader purpose centred around supporting a healthy and inclusive financial ecosystem.

This is an exciting period for the business, with significant investment and focus being placed on data, technology and the continued evolution of its operating model.

Why Join?

You’ll be joining an international environment where data and technology are increasingly central to how the organisation operates and develops.

The role offers

• Significant exposure to strategic data and technology initiatives.
• The opportunity to influence how data is managed and used across the organisation.
• Involvement in major IT and transformation projects.
• Regular interaction with stakeholders across different functions, seniority levels and countries.
• The chance to work with experienced internal teams and external technology partners.
• A role where you can combine strategic thinking with hands-on problem solving.
• A collaborative environment built around innovation, integrity and transparency.
• Salary & Benefits
• A competitive salary is available alongside a comprehensive benefits package, including:
• Hybrid working – typically
• 2 days per week in the office
• Flexible working arrangements
• Free onsite parking
• Electric car scheme
• Nursery benefit
• Company pension
• Private Medical Insurance
• Health cash plan
• Life assurance
• Retail, lifestyle and leisure discounts
• Enhanced maternity and paternity pay
• Regular social events and team activities
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