Data Practice Lead

Data Practice Lead | Permanent | South Auckland (Hybrid)
We are looking for an experienced Data Practice Lead to set the strategic direction and continue evolving this organisation's data capability.

This is a senior leadership role spanning data strategy, platform capability, architecture, governance and people leadership. You’ll be responsible for ensuring trusted, high-quality and accessible data is available across the organisation, while helping shift the business from reactive reporting towards more proactive, insight-led decision-making.

About the role

In this role, you’ll own the enterprise data platform strategy and roadmap, establish effective operating models and governance, and work closely with senior stakeholders to ensure data investment is aligned with wider business priorities. You’ll also play an important role in enabling the organisation’s AI ambitions, ensuring the right data foundations, governance and scalable capability are in place. You'll focus on:

• Setting and owning the enterprise data strategy, roadmap and target-state architecture.
• Establishing pragmatic data governance, ownership, stewardship and quality frameworks.
• Guiding the evolution of modern data platforms and cloud data services, and enabling high-value data products, analytics and improved data literacy across the business.
• Partnering with senior leaders to translate business needs into scalable data solutions. Leading change and embedding more consistent, data-driven ways of working.
• Providing leadership around data architecture, integration and technology direction.
• Supporting responsible AI adoption through strong data foundations and governance.

About you

You’ll be an experienced data leader who can operate comfortably across strategy, governance, technology and people leadership. This isn’t a hands-on engineering role; you’ll need enough technical depth to guide direction and challenge thinking, while being equally comfortable influencing senior stakeholders and driving change across a complex organisation. 

You’ll ideally bring:

• Significant experience across data-focused technology roles, including data governance or data management, as well as leading and evolving an enterprise data practice or capability
• Strong knowledge of modern data platforms, cloud data services and data architecture
• Experience establishing data governance frameworks, standards and ways of working
• Strong people leadership and capability development experience
• An understanding of data engineering, integration and analytics at a leadership level
• Experience working across delivery models, portfolio planning and competing priorities
• The ability to influence senior stakeholders and build engagement across both technical and non-technical teams

This is a great opportunity for someone who enjoys building capability at an enterprise level and wants to shape how data is governed, used and developed across a large and complex organisation. If this sounds like you, apply Today! Luisa Larios ([email protected]) or Paula Broussard ([email protected]) will be in touch,

*Please note that only applicants currently based in New Zealand with the appropriate work rights (a valid visa) will be considered.