A public-sector water programme in Wallonia, Belgium is building a shared data architecture across drinking-water and wastewater operators. As Chief Data Architect for the Walloon water sector, you will define the data governance framework for public water operators, including a data dictionary, Master Data Management (MDM) reference model and interoperability principles, and coordinate its adoption across participating organisations.
The mission
The Walloon water sector is moving from independently managed information toward common definitions, ownership and controlled data exchange. The programme covers master data, metadata, data quality, target data models, sector KPI definitions, data-flow mapping and regulatory requirements including GDPR and NIS2. Its outputs will support shared dashboards and more consistent operational decisions across public water services. The first deliverables are expected within six months, as part of a planned 120-day assignment.
You will lead the end-to-end definition and implementation of the data architecture and governance roadmap. Your scope includes the master data management reference model, data ownership and classification principles, quality indicators, interoperability mapping, decision registers and target architecture. You will work with enterprise architects, data leads, business data owners and stewards, and operational teams from several organisations. You remain accountable for the coherence, quality, validation and presentation of each deliverable to the sector's digital governance platform.
Your responsibilities
- Define the data architecture and governance roadmap, aligning participating operators on standards, ownership, priorities and measurable outcomes.
- Establish policies, roles, classification principles, stewardship practices and decision registers that support compliant data sharing.
- Deliver the data dictionary, MDM reference model, business rules, data catalogue and data quality indicators.
- Shape and validate target data models, data flows, APIs and interoperability standards across organisational boundaries.
- Facilitate workshops, data-owner and steward communities, training sessions and data-literacy activities to support adoption.
- Present progress, exceptions, quality measures and prioritised decisions to the sector's governance bodies.
Your profile
Essential skills
- Bring at least 10 years of experience in data governance, data architecture or data management, including accountability for cross-organisational deliverables.
- Design and implement data governance frameworks covering data dictionaries, metadata, Master Data Management, data catalogues and data quality.
- Combine strategic architecture expertise with practical knowledge of data management systems, data modelling, APIs and interoperability.
- Apply TOGAF principles to information and data architecture, and translate them into standards and deliverables that business stakeholders can use.
- Demonstrate strong stakeholder management across multi-business or multi-entity organisations, including experience advising senior leadership or governance committees.
- Bring effective workshop facilitation and training skills, with the ability to explain data concepts, build consensus and guide owners and stewards.
- Connect data decisions to public-service objectives while balancing regulatory, operational and organisational requirements.