Data Governance Lead

We are convinced that outside is exciting, relaxing, and inspiring. It's versatile, for some it is a place to relax, for others it is the ultimate challenge. A place to enjoy and where big and small moments come together. It's a place to be discovered or recognized. But the outdoors can also be treacherous and unpredictable. Weather and terrain can surprise you. Our mission is to enable all people to spend inspiring and epic moments outside.

Yonderland is a European group of premium brands and retail concepts focused on outdoors. Including A.S. Adventure, Juttu, Bever, Cotswold, Snow+Rock, Runnersneed and Ayacucho. Yonderland runs over 190 shops in Belgium, Luxembourg, France, Great-Britain and The Netherlands and resides in Belgium.

We are looking for a Data Governance Lead to join our team

Yonderland holds customer, product and operational data across seven brands and a mix of legacy and modern platforms. As our Data Governance Lead, you will own the policy set that decides how this data is obtained, used and shared, plus the documentation and controls teams need to apply it in practice. You will be the reference point the Data Protection Officers in our business units, and our data teams come to on how governance works, building the stewardship network and governance forum that keep decisions moving. You report to the Head of Data & AI and work closely with security, our architects, the business units and the data teams.

You will

• Write and maintain policies for data classification, retention, access, quality, and privacy.
• Define data ownership, accountability, and data contracts between domains.
• Establish and enforce standards for metadata and documentation.
  Build and coordinate the network of data owners and stewards across the organization.
• Lead governance forums and ensure clear decision-making and escalation processes.
• Act as the key point of contact for DPOs and data teams on governance matters.
• Develop playbooks, templates, and guidelines to support governance implementation.
• Align data protection controls and practices with the security function.
• Define PII and special-category data standards and handling requirements.
• Support GDPR compliance, audits, and other regulatory obligations.
  Own the data observability framework, including lineage, freshness, quality, schemas, and distribution.
• Set data quality standards and support their adoption across domains.
• Govern the full data lifecycle, from acquisition and usage to sharing and compliance.

• Senior experience owning data governance in a multi-entity, multi-brand or multi-country organization.
• A track record of building a governance function from the ground up, with policy that teams went on to apply in practice.
• Experience working on GDPR compliance alongside DPOs, security and legal, including under audit conditions.
• Strong knowledge of governance frameworks, and the judgement to adapt one to fit the organization.
• Deep understanding of classification, access management, retention and privacy by design.
• Knowledge of data observability - lineage, freshness, quality, schema and distribution - with data quality as a core focus.
• Enough technical depth to work with engineers on how governance is implemented in a modern data platform.
• Excellent written communication skills, comfortable turning complex governance questions into clear standards and documentation.
• Bachelor’s or master’s degree in a related field, or equivalent professional experience.

• A versatile position with pronounced responsibility and variety in a strongly growing and innovative market leader, operating internationally with headquarters in Hoboken (Antwerp) and offices in the Netherlands and the UK.
• The IT organisation is a driving force to support the strong growth and you will help shape it.
• An open corporate culture where you can be yourself.
• A competitive gross monthly salary in proportion to your experience, including the possibility of a company car, supplemented by fringe benefits such as meal vouchers, group and hospitalisation insurance, additional holidays, and staff discount.
• Adventurous colleagues in an international and diverse team.
• The opportunity to participate in our bootcamps (showers available) and various team events twice a week during the lunch break.
• We welcome applications from everyone, regardless of age, background, gender, sexual orientation, disability, or belief. Your talent is what matters most.