Sample Job Description: Chief Information Governance Officer
(Company Name)
Chief Information Governance Officer
The Chief Information Governance Officer (CIGO) will be responsible for leading (company name)’s information governance (IG) program and projects. Specifically, the CIGO is responsible for developing, implementing, and managing an enterprise-wide, integrated IG program designed to optimize the company’s use of its information assets. To ensure optimal use of information assets, the CIGO will coordinate all facets of IG across the organization.
Essential to success in this role is the ability to work cross functionally and collaboratively across all groups within the enterprise and with all management levels.
The CIGO will work with all (company name)’s business units, executives, and our board to develop an IG program that not only meets the company’s legal, regulatory and ethical obligations and the company’s high standards, but that is also tied to the company’s overall business strategy. To that end the CIGO will develop and implement an IG program that addresses both the risk and value sides of the company’s information assets. The CIGO will continue to build out and improve upon the framework and structure of the company’s existing IG program with a clear, strategic vision for advancing the program over the next several years.
- Review and provide a comprehensive assessment of the company’s existing IG program.
- In collaboration with other key leaders of various IG facets, including the CTO and CISO, as well as management in major IG functions and business units, the CIGO will be responsible for developing a strategic vision for the organization’s IG program and framework for implementing that vision. Through effective collaboration and relationship building, the CIGO will ensure that the vision is consonant with the company’s culture and can be effectively implemented and integrated across the organization at all levels.
- The CIGO will socialize the adoption of both the strategic vision and framework.
- Upon that framework, the CIGO will progressively build the structure of the company’s IG program, moving the company forward in a timely fashion, toward that strategic vision.
- Reports to the CEO.
- Collaborates as a peer with the CIO and CISO with each having primary but overlapping areas of influence corresponding to IT infrastructure, information itself, and information security for the CTO, CIGO, and CISO, respectively.
- Collaborates directly with the COO and CFO.
- In addition to collaborating with the COO, consults regularly with management of all business units to ensure effective change management and that the company’s business objectives are considered during all IG efforts.
- Consults regularly with all levels of legal management to ensure that handling of information assets meets the company’s legal, regulatory, and ethical obligations.
- Business intelligence, privacy, records and information management (HIM), and knowledge management teams are direct reports to the CIGO.
Qualifications
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A minimum of 10 years combined professional experience in a core area(s) essential to performing this cross-functional role, including but not limited to IT, information security, legal (privacy or security compliance), records and information management (HIM), business operations, and IG.
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3-5 years of management experience.
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An ideal candidate will have direct work experience across at least two of the core areas identified above. However, certifications and other demonstrated knowledge to these areas may be sufficient to supplement actual work experience.
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Because of the cross-functional nature of the role, the candidate must have a demonstrated working knowledge and/or ability and willingness to learn the basic operations of each of the core areas identified above.
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Proven ability to negotiate, sell, and work collaboratively in a highly competitive, federated, and regulated environment. This is essential to success in this role.
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Basic technology “know how” is essential.
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Bachelor’s degree is required.
Compensation is commensurate with experience. (Company name) provides a generous executive benefits and stock plan.
Assumptions Underlying this Sample CIGO job description: It is assumed that this is a large enough organization to have other key information functions (like the CTO/CISO) in place, as well as a well developed C-suite, generally. It is also assumed that there is support from introducing the CIGO position at this level. However, it is acknowledged that in many organizations, it may take time to build support for a new position at this level.
A mid-level IG maturity is also assumed. Some IG functions are in place and there is a foundation for IG into which the new hire would enter. At this level the CIGO would build the framework and structure of the IG program.
Because this is a mid-career role and extensive experience is required, it is assumed that compensation must reflect that. However, compensation, like many of the details, will vary significantly based on the size and nature of the company, location, and so on. However, we would anticipate the floor compensation for this role would be in the mid $100,000s and could easily run into the range of $250,000 to $300,000 or more.1
Note:
Information Governance Initiative. “Chief Information Governance Officer Summit: Creating the CIGO Playbook.” May 2015. http://iginitiative.com/.