Chi Uzor

I am a Data Management and Governance Specialist with hands on experience governing sensitive data across complex multi organisation environments. In my current role I support data governance and compliance across a network of more than 9 Local Authorities, over 200 schools, LA advisers and national stakeholders including the Department for Education. My work ensures secure, accurate and compliant data exchange between partners operating within large public sector data ecosystems.

My work focuses on implementing operational data governance processes across the full data lifecycle including structured data inventories, validation controls, access management, regulatory reporting and audit ready documentation. I help translate regulatory and governance requirements into practical operational controls that enable compliant and efficient use of data across multiple partner organisations.

I have designed and implemented governance artefacts such as data validation frameworks, standard operating procedures, reporting templates, access controls and risk logs, strengthening organisational data stewardship and reducing operational risk. My work supports data integrity and compliance with the UK General Data Protection Regulation and the Data Protection Act 2018 while aligning with recognised governance and security standards including ISO/IEC 27001 and the NIST Cybersecurity Framework.

I regularly collaborate with operational teams, programme leadership, Local Authorities, advisers and partner organisations, translating complex data governance requirements into clear guidance for both technical and non technical stakeholders. Alongside my governance work I am expanding my expertise in AI governance and responsible data use, with a focus on ensuring emerging data systems remain secure, compliant and ethically managed.

Certifications include the ISC2 Certified in Cybersecurity (CC), the NHS Data Security and Protection Toolkit and the Google Cybersecurity Professional Certificate which demonstrate practical expertise in information governance, cybersecurity and regulatory compliance.

I am always open to connecting with professionals working in data governance, information governance, data protection and AI governance to exchange insights, discuss best practices and explore collaboration opportunities.

Data Governance Manager Shaw Trust (Local Authority) Jul 2025 – Present

Developing and maturing an enterprise-wide Data Governance framework, defining policies, standards and decision rules aligned to industry best practice (DAMA/DCAM), adopted across 9 Local Authorities and 200+ schools.

Strengthened data governance and quality controls underpinning statutory participation reporting, supporting outstanding national performance in the DfE NEET scorecard, with 94% of commissioned Local Authorities ranking in the top two national quintiles.

Designing and embedding a Data Governance Operating Model with clearly defined roles, responsibilities and accountabilities for Data Owners, Data Stewards and operational teams, ensuring business-wide adoption and oversight.

Established Data Ownership and Data Stewardship structures across key business domains, assigning clear accountability for data assets and enabling consistent stewardship practices across all organisational units.

Identified and defined Critical Data Elements (CDEs) across priority datasets, documenting business definitions, acceptable value ranges and validation rules to underpin trusted reporting and operational decision-making.

Leveraging Microsoft Purview to build and manage the enterprise data catalogue, governing metadata standards, business glossary definitions, data classifications and lineage documentation across all key data domains, improving discoverability and traceability for business and analytical consumers.

Partnering with Data Engineering teams to embed governance into Microsoft Fabric and Azure-based data platform pipelines, ensuring ingestion, transformation and reporting layers adhered to agreed governance controls, lineage requirements and data quality standards.

Designed a structured Data Quality framework encompassing six quality dimensions (completeness, accuracy, consistency, timeliness, validity and uniqueness), establishing measurable thresholds and acceptance criteria for critical datasets.

Implemented data quality monitoring dashboards to provide real-time visibility of quality scores against defined thresholds, enabling proactive identification and escalation of quality degradation across key data domains.

Introduced a formal Data Quality Issue Log and end-to-end issue management process, covering identification, triage, assignment, remediation and closure, reducing repeat data defects and improving accountability for resolution.

Implementing a field-level data validation rule to enforce conformance to data standards, preventing non-permitted characters in the various data fields and improving data quality at source, demonstrating the practical impact of embedding governance controls at the point of data entry.

Governing data lineage and lifecycle management across intake, validation, transformation, update and archival stages, ensuring auditability, traceability and compliance with retention obligations across multiple datasets.

Maintaining data risk and issue registers, managed GDPR, DPIA and organisational policy compliance, and supported incident investigations, embedding robust information governance controls across sensitive data assets.

Conducting data maturity assessments across business domains to baseline governance capability, identify gaps and prioritise improvement initiatives, driving a measurable uplift in governance maturity year-on-year.

Data Governance Manager Retom (Property Management) May 2023 – Jul 2025

Developed and embedded a data governance framework aligned to organisational objectives, defining policies, standards and procedures to ensure data accuracy, quality and compliance across property management and operational systems.

Collaborated with Data Owners and Data Stewards to define roles, responsibilities and escalation paths, strengthening accountability and clarity for data quality, retention and lifecycle management across all business functions.

Implemented operational data quality controls underpinned by defined quality dimensions and measurable thresholds, establishing validation and reconciliation routines that improved the accuracy and reliability of critical datasets.

Established a structured data quality issue management process, including issue logging, root-cause analysis, assignment and resolution tracking, contributing to improved reporting outcomes and a reduction in recurring data errors.

Developed data quality reporting mechanisms to monitor key quality indicators, providing stakeholders with transparent visibility of data health and enabling timely corrective action across operational systems.

Implemented audit trails and data lineage tracking, including disclosure logging and record-matching workflows, ensuring end-to-end traceability and supporting compliance with data lifecycle and retention obligations.

Drove master data management improvements by identifying, matching and merging duplicate records across property and client datasets, improving data consistency, reference data integrity and the reliability of downstream reporting.

Translated complex regulatory requirements (UK GDPR, Data Protection Act 2018) into actionable policies, practical guidance and training materials, enabling teams to manage sensitive property and client data securely and compliantly.

Defined data standards and metadata requirements for critical data elements across property and operational domains, improving data discoverability, context and usability for business and analytical stakeholders.

Managed data-related risks and assurance activities, maintaining risk logs, overseeing data protection controls and ensuring governance practices mitigated exposure to regulatory, reputational and operational risk.

Led data-driven process improvements and governance adoption initiatives, embedding a culture of data stewardship across the organisation and supporting teams in confidently applying governance principles in day-to-day operations.

Facilitated Data Governance forums and stakeholder engagement sessions, aligning business functions on governance priorities, communicating policy changes and driving consistent adoption of governance standards across the organisation.

Utilised Informatica as the primary data governance platform to configure and manage data quality rules, metadata workflows and data cataloguing, enabling scalable governance controls and improving visibility of data assets across the organisation.

Led change management and data literacy programmes, collaborating with business, digital, policy and analytics teams to embed governance practices, promote responsible data use and build a culture of data accountability.

Strengthened data security and master-data controls by implementing coding standards, business rules, reconciliation routines and validation checks that improved data integrity, trust and downstream reporting quality.

Data Process Governance Specialist Amazon UK Services Jan 2021 – April 2023

Monitored the accuracy, integrity and completeness of operational data against defined quality standards, ensuring data met quality thresholds required for compliant and reliable operational processes.

Identified discrepancies and errors in operational datasets, logging and triaging data quality issues and collaborating with colleagues to drive timely correction and prevent recurrence.

Ensured operational data processes adhered to GDPR principles and internal data protection policies, supporting compliant handling of customer and employee information across all data-related workflows.

Maintained the secure handling of sensitive operational data, applying access controls and process checks to safeguard data integrity and protect against unauthorised use or disclosure.

Contributed to the definition and application of data governance standards and process controls, supporting alignment with internal policies and promoting consistent, compliant data-handling practices across operational teams.

Supported process improvement initiatives that enhanced data integrity by 30%, contributing to a culture of governance awareness and encouraging colleagues to adopt best-practice data management behaviours.

Assisted in managing data through its operational lifecycle, ensuring appropriate controls were applied at each stage from collection and processing through to storage, use and disposal.

Contributed to internal assurance activities by monitoring process compliance, identifying governance gaps and supporting corrective actions that reduced data-related risk across operational functions.

Acted as a point of expertise for data governance principles within the operational team, supporting colleagues in understanding their data responsibilities and embedding stewardship behaviours in daily practice.

Supported the accurate integration and reconciliation of data across operational systems, contributing to metadata consistency and ensuring data used in reporting and decision-making was fit for purpose.

PMO Analyst Alboss Consulting Limited April 2019 – Jan 2021

Assisted in implementing standard operating procedures (SOPs) and workflow documentation across projects, strengthening repeatable processes and data quality controls.

Conducted risk assessments and highlighted project-level control gaps to senior stakeholders, supporting mitigation strategies and improving data and process governance.

Reviewed and ensured all third-party contracts included GDPR-compliant Data Processing Agreements (DPAs), maintaining full regulatory compliance and supporting audit readiness.

Bath College - Data Protection & Data Security

Generation UK & Ireland - Data Analysis Bootcamp

Nottingham Trent University - MSc International Business

University of Port Harcourt - BSc Chemical Engineering