AVP, Data Strategy and Knowledge Management

MSD • North Wales, PA

1d • Hybrid

About The Position

The Head of Data Strategy, Governance and Knowledge Management is a pivotal leadership role that is accountable for the enterprise-wide data strategy, driving it’s execution in strong partnership with business units/division IT to align functional data needs. The leader is accountable for master data, data quality, metadata, reference data, governance and knowledge management frameworks, ensuring enterprise-wide compliance and integrity. They work closely with senior leaders across the enterprise, particularly in BU-aligned IT divisions, to embed governance and quality practices into business-critical systems. They also oversee the governance of procured datasets and enterprise information architecture.

Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree in Information Systems, Computer Science, Business, or related field required; Master’s degree preferred (MBA, Information Management, or related)
• Ability to set and drive enterprise adoption of governance standards in complex, global environments
• Strong influencing skills to engage both senior business executives and technical leaders
• Attention to detail while balancing enterprise-level strategy, risk, and regulatory obligations
• Collaborative leadership style, building partnerships across BU CIO/CDO teams and corporate function
• Expertise in data governance, metadata management, and reference data at enterprise scale
• Strong knowledge of compliance frameworks (GxP, GDPR, HIPAA) and ability to ensure audit readiness
• Experience leading implementation of enterprise data quality frameworks, not just participating in them
• Familiarity with enterprise information architecture practices, including integration with business-critical IT systems
• 12–15+ years of experience in defining and implementing said data strategies, data governance, metadata management, and enterprise information architecture with at least 5 years in senior leadership roles
• Proven success developing and implementing enterprise data strategies, frameworks, and standards
• Business Analysis
• Compliance Frameworks
• Data Governance
• Data Quality Control
• Data Science
• Data Strategies
• Demand Management
• Encryption
• Enterprise Architecture
• Enterprise Architecture Management
• Enterprise Data
• Innovation
• IT Systems Integration
• Leadership
• Leadership Training and Development
• Metadata Management
• Microsoft Office
• Reference Architectures
• Requirements Management
• Risk Assessments
• Sourcing and Procurement
• Stakeholder Relationship Management
• Strategic Planning

Responsibilities

• Enterprise Data Strategy & Executive Leadership Defines, socializes and drives the enterprise data strategy in close partnership with business and IT leadership, aligning data initiatives with core business objectives and scientific innovation Acts as a senior liaison to business units and divisional IT function leadership, advocating for and securing buy in on data governance initiatives and master data principles. Defines principles and policies for enterprise data governance by domain, ensuring accountability and ownership across the business Partners with senior leaders from BU ITs, data stewards, and domain leads to embed data literacy and fluency into the culture
• Enterprise Data Domains, Metadata & Taxonomy Management Establishes and leads the enterprise-wide data governance and master data management (MDM) functions, including the definition of roles, responsibilities, and a clear operating model. Accountable for the quality, integrity, and lifecycle management of critical enterprise data domains (e.g., Customer, Product, Supplier, Patient, IT etc.) and their associated metadata, taxonomies, and hierarchies. Builds and maintains metadata catalogs (e.g., lineage, ontologies, controlled vocabularies) to standardize classification and enable enterprise search/discovery Directs the implementation of modern MDM platforms, tools and practice, defining authoritative data sources and golden record management to ensure a single source of truth.
• Data Quality Frameworks Establishes and enforces frameworks for data quality, standards, monitoring, remediation, and compliance across the enterprise Defines and implements enterprise-wide data quality rules, reference architectures, and observability (pipelines, DQ scores, trust indicators) Embeds connectivity with AI governing body to ensure responsible and auditable data consumption
• Governance of External Datasets Oversees governance of procured and external datasets, ensuring appropriate use, compliance, licensing, and retention policies Embeds risk assessment, vendor evaluation, and audit readiness into dataset procurement and use
• Information Architecture & Governance Owns and collaborated closely with Enterprise Architecture function on enterprise information architecture practices, ensuring scalability, interoperability, and fit-for-purpose design Embeds access and security enablement policies (RBAC/ABAC, encryption, data residency, privacy-by-design) into enterprise data architecture Partners with IT and Security to ensure compliance with global regulatory frameworks and organizational risk posture
• Knowledge Management & Reuse Establishes enterprise KM strategy to capture, curate, and reuse institutional knowledge, best practices, and playbooks Enables flow of both explicit (documented) and tacit (know-how) knowledge through standardized governance, platforms, and communities of practice
• Enterprise Collaboration across IT Partners with senior leaders across BU-aligned IT divisions to embed governance, quality, and compliance practices into business-critical systems and platforms
• Managerial Responsibilities: Manages team of 2 Executive Directors and 8 directors as direct reports plus the respective teams of approximately 90 employees.

Benefits

• The successful candidate will be eligible for annual bonus and long-term incentive, if applicable.
• We offer a comprehensive package of benefits. Available benefits include medical, dental, vision healthcare and other insurance benefits (for employee and family), retirement benefits, including 401(k), paid holidays, vacation, and compassionate and sick days.
• More information about benefits is available at https://jobs.merck.com/us/en/compensation-and-benefits.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Executive