Job description

We currently have an opportunity for an Enterprise Data Architect to join our IT team in London.  

The Enterprise Data Architect will ensure A&O has focus on and maintains an enterprise data governance framework for data policies, standards, process and practices, across A&O, to achieve the required level of consistency and quality to meet A&O business needs. The role will be the custodian of data, setting the vision for A&O’s use of data and will manage A&Os data catalogue to improve the quality and value of core data assets, respond to regulatory requirements as well as support strategic functional requirements. The role will manage the way that people and programs engage with data, ensuring that data can be turned into valuable insights that inform business decisions. The role holder will consistently communicate the business benefit of data standards and will champion and govern those standards across the firm. The role holder will ensure internal procedures keep pace with evolving data regulation and compliance.   

Role and responsibilities

• Manage and govern a unified view of A&O data, its data linage and provenance
• Govern and manage the A&O data catalogue across all data assets. Ensure data is discoverable, well understood, and trusted
• Drive innovation and growth through the use of data, unlocking data for insightful business decisions
• Help establish best practice, rules and ownership of A&Os taxonomy and ontology
• Build and maintain good working-relationships across A&Os Data Stewards to ensure internal stakeholders and leaders are informed and aligned
• Create a Data Governance and Quality function, including processes and tools to achieve A&Os data objectives
• Define a proactive approach to the management of data models, definitions, data governance, ethics and data processing rules to provide timely, appropriate, accurate and up-to-date information at the point of need
• Actively use the trends in data quality and data governance to drive positive change in people, process, technology and governance
• Develop and be responsible for the standards, policies and procedures for the on-going implementation of data governance
• Ensure alignment between data governance best practice, Data Privacy procedures and requirements and the IT Information Security strategy
• Work closely with and set direction for the Trusted Data Platform team, staying close to opportunities and challenges that exist within A&O, provide guidance on new products, approaches and supplier relationships that could impact data collection, processing and analytics

Key requirements
Business Competencies

• Aptitude for and experience of creating, managing, motivating and developing teams
• Commercial acumen including an understanding of the overall picture of how the IT service costs and value add to the business
• Excellent communication, interpersonal and influencing skills, including the ability to communicate both on technical and business levels.
• Excellent customer-facing skills with a good grasp of key drivers and requirements within the Business.
• High level of personal credibility, impact and influence with proven ability to work effectively and persuasively at all levels of the business

Knowledge & Experience

• Knowledge and awareness of business and technology issues related to the management of enterprise wide data
• Expert level data modelling experience. Including a deep understanding of relational, taxonomical and ontological modelling approaches
• Strong recent experience of developing and managing an enterprise data catalogue
• Proven experience of developing and implementing a Data Governance Framework and a Data Quality Management service
• Keen eye for detail with a genuine interest in understanding the journey data takes throughout A&O
• Demonstrable experience in building, delivering and managing detailed data quality measurement frameworks
• Comfortable presenting complex data models, flows and relationships to non-data peers and colleagues
• An expert in information management practices including information lifecycle management, data profiling, master data management, data audits and requirements gathering
• Clear knowledge and experience relating to the application of data governance, data privacy and data ethics principles to support and drive data strategy
• Evidence of establishing governance processes, with engaged teams, leading and implementing enterprise-wide data governance and demonstrable improvements in data quality
• Preferable: Knowledge and experience relating to MLOps, testing and quality management
• Preferable: Experienced in managing, versioning and automating data and systems
• Preferable: Experience of unstructured and semi-structured data and associated processing approaches. NLP and Machine learning experience a distinct advantage.
• Preferable: Experienced at using relevant frameworks such as GDPR and other data privacy regulations to drive data governance ethics
• Preferable: Experience using automated approaches to manage and support data privacy compliance
• Is a collaborative team player fostering strong working relationships, with strong culture awareness
• Strong leadership and influencing skills; interacting with senior stakeholders; highly personable
• Strong ability to extract information by questioning, active listening and interviewing
• Results orientated to ensure change and delivery project metrics are meaningful and supported with robust business data
• Analytical with strong numeracy and good statistical skills
• Experience of working in Agile project environments
• Ability to work with technical, (developers, data engineers, data scientists) and nontechnical staff

Allen & Overy LLP is committed to being an inclusive employer and we are happy to consider flexible working arrangements.

Additional information - External

It’s Time
Allen & Overy is a leading global law firm operating in over thirty countries. By turning our insight, technology and talent into ground-breaking solutions, we’ve earned a place at the forefront of our industry. Our lawyers are leaders in their field – and the same goes for our support teams. Ambitious, driven and open to fresh perspectives, we find innovative new ways to deliver our services and maintain our reputation for excellence, in all that we do.

The nature of law is changing and with that change brings unique opportunities. With our collaborative working culture, flexibility, and a commitment to your progress, we build rewarding careers. By joining our global team, you are supported by colleagues from around the world. If you’re ready for a new challenge, it’s time to seize the opportunity.