Director IT Data Management

Ministry of Education Dubai

Department Definition:

The Director of the Data Management Department is responsible for establishing a data-driven culture across the Ministry of Education by developing and overseeing data governance, data services, and advanced analytics. This role ensures that data is strategically collected, securely managed, effectively analyzed, and optimally leveraged to enhance evidence-based policymaking, improve operational efficiency, and enable strategic planning. The role also ensures compliance with data protection and privacy standards in line with national and international best practices.

Main Job Duties & Responsibilities:

Strategic Data Leadership

• Lead the development and implementation of an enterprise-wide data management strategy aligned with the Ministry s digital transformation vision.
• Direct the consolidation, standardization, governance, and dissemination of data across Ministry departments, institutions, and affiliated entities.
• Establish and champion a culture of data-driven decision-making and continuous improvement.

Governance & Policy Development

• Define, implement, and monitor data policies, standards, controls, and quality frameworks aligned with the DAMA -DMBOK framework and UAE s data protection laws.
• Oversee access control, data classification, privacy, and ethical use of data.
• Establish processes to ensure data security, integrity, confidentiality, and compliance

Service Quality Development Division

• Lead efforts to monitor and evaluate service performance across contact centers, IT support, and front-line staff.
• Drive continuous improvement programs based on feedback, complaint analytics, and performance audits.
• Design and implement staff development programs to enhance professional communication, customer empathy, and service effectiveness.

Oversight of Divisional Functions - Data Governance

• Develop and maintain enterprise data governance frameworks and enforce data ownership and stewardship responsibilities.
• Oversee the implementation of institutional standards for data collection, storage, quality, and metadata management.
• Ensure consistency and reliability of data across platforms through integration and compliance monitoring

Oversight of Divisional Functions - Data Services

• Direct the development of dashboards, reports, and visualizations to support the needs of policymakers, educators, and administrators.
• Ensure the Ministry has real-time access to critical indicators such as student performance, resource utilization, and institutional KPIs.
• Maintain and enhance business intelligence platforms and drive the creation of self-service analytics capabilities.

Oversight of Divisional Functions - Data Analytics and Artificial Intelligence

• Guide the use of advanced analytics, machine learning, and predictive modeling to inform strategy and optimize Ministry operations.
• Promote the automation of data pipelines and analytical processes to increase agility and reduce operational overhead.
• Enable digital transformation initiatives by embedding AI-driven insights across core functions.

National & International Data Collaboration

• Act as the Ministry s primary liaison with national statistical bureaus, international education data organizations, and academic research centers.
• Coordinate participation in global benchmarking studies and international assessments (e.g., TIMSS, PISA).

Skills

• 15+ years of experience in progressive experience in data management, analytics, or information governance.
• 8+ years of experience in multi-team management and leadership roles.
• A bachelor s or master s degree Computer Science, Information Management, Statistics, Data Governance, Digital Transformation, Public Policy Analytics or within a relevant field.
• Minimum 12 15 years of progressive experience in data management, analytics, or information governance, with at least 5 years in a leadership role.
• Proven experience in leading cross-functional data and analytics teams in a government, education, or public sector setting.
• Demonstrated experience with data governance frameworks (e.g., DAMA), business intelligence tools, and AI-driven analytics

Technical & Analytical Skills:

• Advanced understanding of data governance frameworks, data lifecycle management, and metadata architecture.
• Proficiency in data integration, data warehousing, visualization platforms (e.g., Power BI, Tableau), and analytics tools (e.g., Python, R, SQL).
• Strong knowledge of data protection regulations (e.g., UAE Data Protection Law, GDPR).
• Familiarity with cloud-based dta platforms and enterprise data lakes

Strategic & Analytical Skills:

• Strategic planning and execution of large-scale data programs.
• Strong business acumen in applying data to drive educational, operational, and strategic outcomes.
• Ability to translate technical information into actionable insights for non-technical stakeholders BRD

Strategic & Operational Skills:

• Strategic planning and execution of large-scale data programs.
• Strong business acumen in applying data to drive educational, operational, and strategic outcomes.
• Ability to translate technical information into actionable insights for non-technical stakeholders

Leadership & Interpersonal Skills:

• Exceptional leadership, people management, and team-building capabilities.
• Effective communication and stakeholder engagement skills across senior government and institutional levels.
• Strong decision-making and crisis management skills related to data breaches or failures.

Key Performance Indicators:

• Improvement in data quality, completeness, and accessibility (as a %)
• Development of data dashboards and reports for end users (as a %)
• Use of data dashboards and reports y end users for decision making (as a %)
• Automation of reporting and data processing pipelines (as a %)
• Number of strategic decisions informed by analytics or AI insights (As a #)
• Compliance rate with data protection and governance policies (as a %)
• Stakeholder satisfaction score with data services (as a score)