ODSI Data Governance Director III

WHY WORK FOR DFPS?

The Texas Department of Family and Protective Services (DFPS) is responsible for protecting the unprotected — children, elderly, and people with disabilities — from abuse, neglect, and exploitation. DFPS accomplishes this responsibility by employing over 12,000 workers who live up to the agency's Mission, Vision, & Values in service to the citizens of Texas. DFPS is not only a qualifying organization for the Public Service Loan Forgiveness Program but also offers excellent health benefits, special discounts on many products and services through the Discount Purchase Program, longevity pay, generous paid leave, access to the Wellness program, lifetime retirement annuity, Texa$aver 401(k) and 457 Programs under the Employees Retirement System of Texas.

Brief Job Description:

Performs advanced (senior-level) managerial work providing direction and guidance in strategic operations and planning. Work involves establishing the strategic plan and goals and objectives; developing policies, procedures, and guidelines; establishing priorities, standards, and measurement tools for determining progress in meeting goals; coordinating and evaluating program activities and/or business functions; and reviewing and approving budgets within departments or divisions. Supervises the work of others. Works under minimal supervision, with extensive latitude for the use of initiative and independent judgment.

Essential Job Functions (EJFs):

Directs program activities and/or business functions within a department or division.

• Directs planning, implementation, coordination, and evaluation of division’s operations by establishing leadership guidance.
• Responsible for being subject matter expert and develops strategies for effective management and improvement of the division.

Oversees and/or prepares a division or department budget and reviews and approves major expenditures; and ensures that requirements of funding sources are met.

• Develops, reviews, and approves budget for the division including how to most effectively allocate the resources and budget of the division while ensuring requirements of funding sources are met.
• Monitors the division’s budget alongside the ODSI leadership.
• Escalates items that may have a major impact division’s budget.

Oversees the collection, organization, analysis, and preparation of reports.

• Develop reports for various levels of stakeholders in support of the program.
• Oversees collaboration with agency programs for data governance initiatives and reporting and data needs to develop data reporting strategies and support agency program analyses.
• Utilizes all available reporting and data to monitor, continually assess, and improve division’s performance.

Develops and implements techniques for evaluating program activities and/or business functions within a department or division; and identifies need for changes.

• Establishes or refines data processes within the division and implements to ensure effective allocation and management of division resources.
• Ensures success of data-related projects within DFPS by implementing long-range and short-range plans for the agency to track, analyze, and understand to support agency leadership in improving outcomes.
• Ensures continuity of the division with well-defined and documented processes.

Develops and establishes goals and objectives consistent with the agency’s strategic plan.

• Aligns work and goals to the ODSI strategic goals, which support the agency’s strategic mission.

• Leads the development of division-specific goals and objectives regarding data governance initiatives by analyzing current operations, identifying opportunities for improvement, and incorporating stakeholder input.
• Integrates data-informed decision-making and performance metrics into the goal-setting process to track progress and determine continuous improvement activities.
• Provides leadership, strategic direction, and planning for the division and coordinates with agency leadership to implement program policies and achieve goals.

Develops policies, procedures, and guidelines; and monitors compliance.

• Ensures and modifies as needed procedures for data governance initiatives; works in compliance with the Data Change Control Board.
• Develops business processes supporting the metadata management tool maintenance and system development, including interaction with business partners at various levels of the agency.
• Provides recommendations to the agency data policy as applicable for best practices related to data quality, data standardization, or other related data practices.

Plans, develops, and approves schedules, priorities, and standards for achieving goals; and directs evaluation activities.

• Leverages available tools and data to plan, develop, and approve schedules, priorities, and standards for the division to achieve ODSI and agency goals.
•  Directs evaluation activities of the division to ensure ODSI and agency goals meet or exceed expectations.

Represents the agency at business meetings, hearings, trials, legislative sessions, conferences, and seminars or on boards, panels, and committees.

• Represent the Chief Data and Analytics Officer (CDAO) and the Deputy CDAO as necessary in meetings, legislative sessions, conferences, boards, or other equivalent committees.
• Serves as a liaison and subject matter expert to internal and external entities and stakeholders.
• Develops, establishes, and facilitates intra-agency and external workgroups, meetings, teams, and committees to support division operations and programs.

Reviews and approves management, productivity, and financial reports and studies.

• Reviews and approves documents and reports developed by the division staff to ensure professional quality and appearance, appropriate content, consistency, and responsiveness, including to meet legislatively mandated reporting requirements, as applicable.

Reviews results of special investigations, internal audits, research studies, forecasts, and modeling exercises to provide direction and guidance.

• Oversee the program analyses and research studies related to the work of the division to include management responses and implementation of continuous quality improvement.
• Analyzes the results of internal audits, research studies, forecasts, and modeling exercises to determine program effectiveness, operational efficiency, and compliance with policy and regulations.
• Uses the analysis results to inform strategic planning, refine goals and objectives, and guide policy or procedural adjustments within ODSI.
• Ensures the results from these reviews are integrated into performance management processes and used to enhance transparency, accountability, and data-informed decision making across the division. 

May develop and oversee the implementation of long-range and short-term plans.

• Develop and oversee the implementation of long- and short-range strategic plans and operations for the complex business function of tracking, evaluating and improving the performance and outcomes of contracted services, including overseeing program analyses and research studies.
• Represents ODSI in cross-division workgroups to develop the agency strategic plan, as needed.

Supervises the work of others.

• Hires, manages, and provides guidance and professional development for division staff.
• Provides technical expertise and guidance regarding questions related to the work of the division.
• Manages employee time and leave responsibilities and carries out other related human resources activities with program staff. 
• Establishes and implements plans for staff development and team building within the division and between the division and department stakeholders.

Performs related work as assigned.

Knowledge, Skills and Abilities (KSAs):

Knowledge of:

• Data quality, metadata management, master data management, reference data, and data lifecycle principles.
• Strategies for fostering data culture and steward engagement across departments.
• Principles and practices of public administration and management.
• State and federal laws, regulations, policies, rules, and requirements affecting DFPS operations.
• Knowledge to define roles and coordinate activities of data stewards across business units.

Skill in:

• Leadership and demonstrating management skills of programs and issues involving diverse staff and stakeholders.
• Handling budget, personnel, and administrative issues.
• Developing data policies, standards, and procedures.
• Strategic planning and developing and implementing goals and objectives.
• Analyzing and evaluating complex program and policy issues.
• Both verbal and written communications, working with people under pressure, negotiating among multiple parties, resolving conflicts, and establishing and maintaining effective working relationships with internal, external, and governmental entities.
• Developing and tracking key performance indicators to measure the effectiveness of governance initiatives.

Ability to:

• Initiate, structure, and scale governance programs across large and complex organizations.
• Mediate data ownership disputes and navigate organizational challenges.
• Evaluate current maturity levels and design roadmaps for data governance evolution.
• Develop and implement organizational vision.
• Plan, assign, and supervise the work of others.
• Set and manage priorities.
• Work under stress of pressing deadlines and competing priorities.

Registrations, Licensure Requirements or Certifications:

Not applicable.

Initial Screening Criteria:

Graduation from an accredited four-year college or university and 3 years or more experience in a leadership or director level role overseeing cross-functional data initiatives is required. Experience developing and implementing enterprise data governance strategies, initiatives, and policies is preferred.

Additional Information:

As part of the selection process, candidates may be asked to complete a written exercise designed to assess key competencies relevant to the role. 

Review our Tips for Success when applying for jobs at DFPS, DSHS and HHSC.

Military occupation(s) that relate to the initial selection criteria and registration or licensure requirements for this position may include, but not limited to those listed in this posting. All active-duty military, reservists, guardsmen, and veterans are encouraged to apply if qualified to fill this position. For more information please see the Texas State Auditor’s Job Descriptions, Military Crosswalk and Military Crosswalk Guide at Texas State Auditor's Office - Job Descriptions. You may also contact the DFPS Military Liaison at dfpsmilvets@dfps.texas.gov with additional questions.

Applicants selected for hire must pass a background check and if applicable a driver’s record check.

As a state agency, DFPS is required by Texas Administrative Code (TAC 206 and 213) to ensure all Electronic Information Resources (EIR) follow accessibility standards. The staff must be familiar with the WCAG 2.1 AA and Section 508 to create accessible content including but not limited to; Microsoft Office documents, Adobe PDFs, webpages, software, training guides, video, and audio files. 

DFPS uses E-Verify. You must bring your I-9 documentation with you on your first day of work. Employees must provide documentation to DFPS to show their identity and authorization to work in the US. Please review the following link for authorized documents: https://www.uscis.gov/i-9-central/form-i-9-acceptable-documents .

In compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), HHS/DFPS agencies will provide reasonable accommodation during the hiring and selection process for qualified individuals with a disability. If you need assistance completing the on-line application, contact the HHS/DFPS Employee Service Center at 1-888-894-4747. If you are contacted for an interview and need accommodation to participate in the interview process, please notify the person scheduling the interview.