Sr. Director - Master Data Management & Data Governance

Specific Responsibilities

• Define and lead the enterprise Master Data Management strategy aligned to business and digital transformation priorities
• Establish a scalable, domain-driven MDM operating model with clearly defined roles and responsibilities cross-functionally across all domains
• Establish and document all standards, definitions, policies, and procedures for master data management across all domains
• Enable the execution of quality master data management through technology
• Oversee master data lifecycle management, golden record creation, hierarchies, and reference data management
• Enable and automate master data management where possible through technology, determining the right tech stack for the defined people and processes at Kohler

Data Governance Leadership

• Design and implement a pragmatic enterprise data governance framework
• Help establish data governance council in partnership with IT Data Leader and Business champion
• Define and enforce data standards, policies, and controls
• Ensure regulatory compliance (privacy, financial controls, industry-specific regulations)
• Enable and automate data governance where possible through technology, determining the right tech stack for the defined people and processes at Kohler

Data Quality & Controls

• Develop and operationalize enterprise data quality standards and KPIs
• Implement monitoring, issue management, and remediation processes
• Partner with security, internal audit, risk, and compliance teams to ensure strong data controls

Business Partnership & Enablement

• Partner with Supply Chain, Procurement, Engineering, Finance, Marketing, Commercial, Operations, and IT leaders to align master data priorities to business outcomes
• Translate business requirements into scalable data capabilities
• Enable analytics, AI, ERP modernization, and digital initiatives through trusted data foundations
• Evangelize the value of governed, high-quality master data across the enterprise

Organization & Talent Development

• Build and lead a high-performing IT MDM and Data Governance team
• Define clear roles for Data Owners, Data Stewards, and Domain Leads
• Build and lead a matrix environment of IT and Business leaders across domains
• Foster a culture of accountability, transparency, and data-driven decision-making

Skills/Requirements

• 12–15+ years of experience in Data Management, MDM, Data Governance, or Enterprise Data Leadership
• 5+ years in a senior leadership role managing enterprise-scale programs
• Proven experience implementing and/or managing MDM platforms (e.g., Informatica, Reltio, SAP MDG, Profisee, etc.)
• Experience building and operationalizing enterprise data governance frameworks cross-functionally across multiple MDM domains
• Demonstrated success leading large cross-functional teams to own master data domains and create governance standards, policies, procedures, definitions, etc.
• Strong executive communication and stakeholder management skills

Preferred Experience

• Experience in manufacturing, consumer products, retail, or supply chain-intensive industries
• ERP transformation experience (SAP S/4HANA, Oracle, etc.)
• Experience enabling advanced analytics and AI through governed data foundations
• Familiarity with data privacy regulations and compliance frameworks

Leadership Competencies

• Enterprise mindset with strong business acumen
• Ability to influence without authority across matrixed environments
• Strategic thinker with operational execution discipline
• Change agent comfortable driving cultural transformation

Key Performance Indicators

• Enterprise master data quality improvements (accuracy, completeness, consistency)
• Adept adoption of governance framework and stewardship model
• Reduction in data-related operational defects and rework
• Improved time-to-insight for analytics and AI initiatives