Data Governance Framework: Roles and Responsibilities

Implementing an effective data governance framework requires more than just policies and procedures—it demands clear definition of roles and responsibilities across your organization. Without well-defined accountability, even the most sophisticated governance strategies fail to deliver value. This guide explores the essential roles within a data governance framework and how they work together to ensure data quality, compliance, and strategic value.

Why Roles Matter in Data Governance

Data governance is inherently cross-functional. Data flows through multiple departments, systems, and stakeholders, each with different perspectives and priorities. A clear role structure ensures that everyone understands their responsibilities, decision-making authority, and accountability for data-related outcomes.

When roles are ambiguous, organizations face several challenges:

• Data quality issues persist without clear ownership

• Compliance gaps emerge from unclear accountability

• Strategic initiatives stall due to decision-making bottlenecks

• Teams duplicate efforts or work at cross-purposes

A well-structured framework assigns responsibility while fostering collaboration, creating a culture where data is treated as a strategic asset.

Core Governance Roles

Data Governance Council

The Data Governance Council sits at the top of the governance hierarchy, providing strategic direction and executive sponsorship. Typically composed of senior leaders including the CTO, Chief Data Officer, and heads of key business units, this council sets policies, approves standards, and allocates resources for governance initiatives.

Key Responsibilities:

• Define governance strategy aligned with business objectives

• Approve data policies, standards, and procedures

• Resolve escalated issues and conflicts

• Monitor governance program effectiveness

• Ensure adequate funding and resources

The council meets quarterly or bi-annually, focusing on strategic decisions rather than day-to-day operations. Their visible commitment signals to the organization that data governance is a business priority, not just an IT initiative.

Data Governance Officer

The Data Governance Officer (DGO) serves as the operational leader of the governance program, translating executive vision into actionable initiatives. Reporting to the Chief Data Officer or CTO, the DGO coordinates between technical teams, business stakeholders, and compliance functions.

Key Responsibilities:

• Design and implement governance frameworks

• Facilitate governance council meetings and decisions

• Monitor compliance with data policies

• Coordinate training and awareness programs

• Track governance metrics and KPIs

• Manage relationships with data stewards and owners

For organizations managing streaming data platforms, the DGO must understand real-time data challenges, including event schema management, data lineage in stream processing, and access control for streaming topics. Governance platforms help DGOs visualize and manage Apache Kafka environments, providing centralized governance capabilities for streaming data.

Data Owners

Data Owners are senior business leaders accountable for specific data domains. A Chief Marketing Officer might own customer data, while a Chief Financial Officer owns financial data. This business-led ownership ensures that data governance serves business objectives rather than existing solely as a technical exercise.

Key Responsibilities:

• Define business rules and quality standards for their domain

• Approve access requests to sensitive data

• Set data retention and archival policies

• Accountable for compliance within their domain

• Allocate resources for data quality initiatives

Data Owners have decision-making authority but delegate day-to-day management to Data Stewards. Their involvement ensures governance decisions reflect business priorities and risk tolerance.

Data Stewards

Data Stewards are the operational champions of data governance, working closely with technical teams and business users. While Data Owners set policy, Data Stewards implement and enforce it. They serve as subject matter experts for their assigned data domains.

Key Responsibilities:

• Document data definitions, lineage, and business context

• Monitor data quality and investigate anomalies

• Coordinate data quality remediation efforts

• Maintain data catalogs and metadata

• Review and process access requests

• Provide training to data consumers

In streaming environments, Data Stewards manage schema registries, define topic naming conventions, and ensure proper data classification tags flow through Kafka topics. They work with platform teams to implement governance controls without impeding real-time data flows.

Data Custodians

Data Custodians are technical professionals responsible for the physical management and security of data. Database administrators, platform engineers, and security specialists fill this role, implementing the technical controls that enforce governance policies.

Key Responsibilities:

• Implement access controls and encryption

• Manage backup and recovery procedures

• Monitor system performance and availability

• Apply security patches and updates

• Execute data retention and deletion procedures

For streaming platforms, Data Custodians configure authentication and authorization for Kafka clusters, implement encryption in transit and at rest, and manage disaster recovery procedures. Governance platforms enable Data Custodians to implement fine-grained access controls and audit logging without extensive custom development.

Compliance Officers

Compliance Officers ensure that data practices align with regulatory requirements such as GDPR, CCPA, HIPAA, and industry-specific regulations. They bridge governance and legal/regulatory functions, translating complex requirements into practical controls.

Key Responsibilities:

• Monitor regulatory landscape and assess impact

• Define compliance requirements for data handling

• Conduct privacy impact assessments

• Manage data breach response procedures

• Coordinate regulatory audits and reporting

• Review and approve data sharing agreements

In real-time data environments, Compliance Officers must address unique challenges such as ensuring the right to deletion in event streams, maintaining audit trails for streaming data access, and managing consent across distributed systems.

Role Interactions in Practice

These roles don't operate in isolation. Consider a scenario where a marketing team wants to integrate real-time customer behavior data from a Kafka stream into their analytics platform:

1. Data Steward receives the request and validates it aligns with customer data policies

2. Compliance Officer reviews for privacy implications and consent requirements

3. Data Owner approves based on business value and risk assessment

4. Data Custodian implements technical access controls and monitoring

5. Data Governance Officer tracks the request for metrics and identifies process improvements

This collaborative approach balances innovation with control, enabling teams to move quickly while maintaining governance standards.

Implementing Your Framework

Start by identifying executives who can serve on your Data Governance Council and champion the initiative. Select a Data Governance Officer with both technical understanding and business acumen. Identify natural Data Owners based on your organizational structure, and recruit Data Stewards from teams with strong domain knowledge.

Document roles clearly, but start with a lightweight framework that grows with your program maturity. Perfect is the enemy of good in governance—it's better to establish clear ownership for critical data domains and expand coverage over time.

For organizations with streaming data platforms, invest in tools that make governance visible and actionable. Governance platforms help teams implement role-based access control, track data lineage, and enforce policies without becoming bottlenecks to data access.

Conclusion

A successful data governance framework depends on clearly defined roles working in concert. From strategic leadership in the Governance Council to operational execution by Data Stewards and Custodians, each role contributes to transforming data from a liability into a strategic asset. As data environments grow in complexity—particularly with real-time streaming architectures—having the right people in the right roles becomes even more critical for maintaining control while enabling innovation.

Sources and References

• DAMA-DMBOK Data Governance Framework - Industry-standard framework for data management and governance roles

• Data Governance Institute Best Practices - Comprehensive guide to data governance implementation

• Microsoft Azure Purview Roles - Role-based access control for data governance platforms

• Collibra Data Governance Operating Model - Framework for defining governance roles and responsibilities

• GDPR Data Protection Roles - Regulatory requirements for data governance and compliance roles