Job Title: Data Steward / Data Governance Lead

Remote | 6-Month Contract | $50-$58/hr

Overview

We are seeking an experienced Data Steward / Data Governance Lead to drive enterprise-wide data governance initiatives. This role will focus on ensuring high-quality, trusted, and well-managed data across business functions while partnering closely with cross-functional teams to establish scalable data practices.

If you are passionate about data quality, governance frameworks, and enabling data-driven decisions, this is an excellent opportunity to make a measurable impact.

Key Responsibilities

• Lead cross-functional design workshops with Data Stewards, Engineers, Product Managers, Data Scientists, and business stakeholders
• Translate business requirements into scalable, data-driven solutions in partnership with Product and IT teams
• Identify gaps and risks in data requirements using domain expertise
• Oversee data collection, curation, and quality control processes to ensure reliable datasets
• Develop and execute data profiling and analysis solutions using SQL, Python, R, and related tools
• Document business logic, data sources, and integrations across regions and business units
• Champion Open Data initiatives aligned with FAIR principles (Findable, Accessible, Interoperable, Reusable)
• Lead adoption of data governance frameworks, including data quality, wrangling, and best practices
• Mentor and guide a distributed network of data stewards
• Define and implement data quality rules, monitoring systems, and remediation processes
• Conduct root cause analysis to identify and resolve data issues
• Manage data support ticket intake and resolution
• Support data migration efforts and legacy system transitions
• Collaborate with governance teams to ensure secure, compliant data access
• Develop standardized documentation, mapping templates, and workflows
• Perform exploratory data analysis and data profiling to understand source systems
• Partner with technical teams to resolve end-user data inquiries
• Build and refine SQL-based prototypes
• Design and maintain data catalogs and metadata frameworks

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Engineering, Science, Agriculture, or related field
• 4+ years of experience in data stewardship, governance, or analytics
• Strong proficiency in SQL and at least one scripting language (Python or R)
• Experience developing and supporting APIs (resource-based design)
• Hands-on experience with modern data ecosystems (Cloud, Big Data, NoSQL)
• Familiarity with Agile, DevOps, and CI/CD environments
• Strong experience in data warehousing and data modeling
• Excellent documentation, communication, and stakeholder management skills
• Ability to manage multiple priorities in a fast-paced environment

Preferred Qualifications

• 6+ years of relevant experience or advanced degree
• Domain expertise (Agriculture industry experience is a plus)
• Experience with SQL/NoSQL databases and API integrations
• Familiarity with ETL tools and data processing frameworks
• Strong background in data profiling and data quality reporting
• Experience with BigQuery or similar platforms

Why Join?

• Opportunity to lead high-impact data governance initiatives
• Work in a collaborative, cross-functional environment
• Drive meaningful improvements in data quality and accessibility
• Competitive hourly rate and fully remote flexibility