Howden is a global insurance group with employee ownership at its heart. Together, we have pushed the boundaries of insurance. We are united by a shared passion and no-limits mindset, and our strength lies in our ability to collaborate as a powerful international team comprised of 23,000 employees spanning over 56 countries.
People join Howden for many different reasons, but they stay for the same one: our culture. It’s what sets us apart, and the reason our employees have been turning down headhunters for years. Whatever your priorities – work / life balance, career progression, sustainability, volunteering – you’ll find like-minded people driving change at Howden.
Head of Data Governance
London - Hybrid
Who are we?
Howden is a collective – a group of talented and passionate people all around the world. Together, we have pushed the boundaries of insurance. We are united by a shared passion and no-limits mind-set, and our strength lies in our ability to collaborate as a powerful international team comprised of 23,000+ employees spanning over 100 countries.
Our people are our biggest asset as well as our largest shareholder group and are everything that makes us unique; our inclusive culture, the quality service we offer our clients, and our continued growth, all come from our people-first approach. There’s no such thing as individual success. We all need to play our part, contributing our skills and experience to make a true difference. That’s Howden.
Why work at Howden?
We have always been employee-owned and driven by entrepreneurial spirit. Right from the beginning, we've focused on employing talented individuals and empowering them to make a real difference to the company, whilst building successful and fulfilling careers at the same time. Simply put, we hire talented specialists and give them what they need to make a difference for clients. Always have, always will.
People join Howden for many different reasons, but they stay for the same one: our culture. It’s what sets us apart, and the reason our employees have been turning down disappointed head-hunters for years. Whatever your priorities – work/life balance, career progression, sustainability, volunteering – you’ll find like-minded people driving change at Howden.
What is the role?
The Head of Data Governance is the senior lead responsible for the design, implementation and continuous improvement of the Group’s data governance. You will own the end-to-end governance operating model (policies, roles, processes, tooling and metrics), lead the Data Owners and Data Champions community across divisions and functions, and ensure governance extends to data used for AI/ML and advanced analytics. You will report to the Chief Data Officer and will work closely with the Data Platform, Data Protection Office, Information Security, Architecture, Technology and business leaders to make data trusted, discoverable, governed and safe to use across the Group.
What will you be doing?
You will be accountable for a mix of strategy, delivery, people and operating responsibilities, including:
Strategy & operating model
Own and evolve the Group Data Governance strategy, framework and roadmap aligned to the Group Data & Analytics strategy and regulatory obligations.
Define and run the governance operating model (Data Boards, Data Owners and Data Champions escalation paths, KPIs and funding model)
Policies, standards & assurance
Own group data policies (data classification, access, retention, usage, ethics, PII handling), and ensure consistent adoption across Howden businesses.
Establish audit and assurance processes to show compliance with internal policy, GDPR and other relevant regulations and standards (ISO 27001, UKGC, PCI where applicable).
AI, model & vendor governance
Work with Head of AI Governance to implement Responsible AI and Model Governance frameworks that cover model registries, training data governance, synthetic data policies, explainability, model monitoring (drift, bias), and escalation for material models.
Define controls for use of LLMs and third-party AI services (data leakage, prompt governance, vendor assessment, red-team testing).
Access, security & privacy
Work with InfoSec and Data Protection to design and monitor access controls (RBAC/ABAC), DLP, anonymisation/de-identification practices, and secure data environments for analytics and AI training.
Change, adoption & capability
Build and run the Data Owners and Data Champions community: training, playbooks, runbooks and a community of practice to drive cultural change and adoption.
Lead stakeholder engagement across C-suite, business lines and technology teams to embed governance into delivery and product lifecycles.
Delivery & leadership
Lead a small team of governance professionals and programme managers; manage budgets and external supplier relationships for governance.
Report governance KPIs and risk to the CDO, Audit, Risk and relevant executive forums.
What are we looking for?
The ideal candidate will have:
Proven leadership in enterprise data governance - 10+ years’ experience with at least several years in a senior, cross-functional data governance role (or equivalent) building and running governance programmes at scale.
Insurance / financial services experience - demonstrable experience of data governance in the insurance or heavily regulated financial sector (understanding of regulatory requirements and sector data flows).
AI & model governance experience - practical experience establishing Responsible AI, model risk management or ML governance frameworks; familiarity with model registries, explainability, drift detection and synthetic data controls.
Strong technical understanding - hands-on knowledge of metadata/catalog tooling and MDM plus exposure to modern data platforms (Snowflake/Databricks/S3, lakehouse, data mesh concepts).
Privacy & security competence - thorough understanding of GDPR, data protection principles, DLP, and IT security standards such as ISO 27001; comfortable working with DPOs and CISOs.
Stakeholder & people leadership - excellent communication and influencing skills with C-level stakeholders; experience building and developing Data Owners/Stewards communities and leading small specialist teams.
Regulatory & audit readiness - experience preparing for and responding to audits / regulatory enquiries and evidence-based assurance reporting.
Education - degree in Computer Science, Information Management, Data Science, Business Information Systems or equivalent experience. Advanced degree desirable.
Desirable qualifications
CISM / CISSP (or equivalent information security certification)
Certified Information Privacy Professional (CIPP) or equivalent privacy qualification
Certifications or formal training in Responsible AI / ML governance, model risk management or AI ethics
Advanced user / certification in Data Governance platforms (e.g., Collibra DQ, Informatica)
Experience with cloud security and platform governance (AWS/Azure/GCP)
Optional: BCS Diploma in Business Analysis, CII Certification or similar insurance/data professional qualifications
What do we offer in return?
A career that you define. Our business succeeds by allowing our people to make a mark in the areas they care about most: personal development, volunteering, and fundraising for charity, or creating new insurance products that address society’s greatest challenges.
And we know that separate home and work lives don't really exist. If you're happy and healthy at home, you're more likely to be happy and fulfilled at work – and vice versa. That's why we do our best to support our people in every aspect of their lives.
Diversity and Inclusion
At Howden we value diversity - there is no one Howden ‘personality type’. Instead, we’re looking for individuals who share the same values as us:
Our successes have all come from someone brave enough to try something new
We support each other, in the small everyday moments and the bigger challenges
We are determined to make a positive difference, at work and beyond
We consider our people our chief competitive advantage and as such we treat colleagues, candidates, clients, and business partners with equality, fairness, and respect – regardless of age, disability, race, religion or belief, gender, sexual orientation, marital status, or family circumstances.
Our sustainability promise
We’re on a life-long journey to become an ever-more sustainable group. It's a commitment to taking care of our people and the world we live in, to doing good business, and to making a positive impact wherever we can. Our governance processes, company policies, and review systems are all geared towards our goal of making a positive impact in.
What do we offer in return?A career that you define. At Howden, we value diversity – there is no one Howden type. Instead, we’re looking for individuals who share the same values as us:
Our successes have all come from someone brave enough to try something new
We support each other in the small everyday moments and the bigger challenges
We are determined to make a positive difference at work and beyond
We're committed to providing reasonable accommodations at Howden to ensure that our positions align well with your needs. Besides the usual adjustments such as software, IT, and office setups, we can also accommodate other changes such as flexible hours* or hybrid working*.
If you're excited by this role but have some doubts about whether it’s the right fit for you, send us your application – if your profile fits the role’s criteria, we will be in touch to assist in helping to get you set up with any reasonable adjustments you may require.
*Not all positions can accommodate changes to working hours or locations. Reach out to your Recruitment Partner if you want to know more.
Permanent
