Job DescriptionIn this position...
The Senior Manager, MDM Governance, Data Quality & AI Enablement will play a central role in standing up Ford Energy's master data foundation as the business builds its systems, processes, and data environment from scratch. Reporting to the Director, Business Operations, Ford Energy, this person will own the end-to-end master data governance strategy across Ford Energy's CRM and ERP environments, embedded directly with Ford Energy's Business Integrator and Systems Integrator consultants and business Data Responsible Individuals (DRIs) through three system releases and production start. This role resides on the business side, acting as the bridge between corporate strategy, data governance, and technical implementation - not as an IT function. In addition to traditional governance, this person will position Ford Energy's data foundation for AI readiness, ensuring master data is high-fidelity, well-governed, and structured to support predictive analytics, automation, and future AI/ML use cases. This is a foundational leadership role with significant opportunity to grow in scope as Ford Energy scales, with a clear path toward an expanded enterprise data organization as the business matures.
ResponsibilitiesWhat you'll do...
Reporting Line & Scope
Reports to: Director, Business Operations, Ford Energy (temporary reporting line, until enterprise data maturity is reached post-SOP, at which point the role may transition under a Chief Data Officer or VP of Data).
Key partners: Ford Energy's BI and SI consultants, business Data Responsible Individuals (DRIs), and the Systems Integration team.
Scope: Enterprise master data governance spanning Customer, Supplier, Finance, Material, and Manufacturing domains across CRMs and ERPs - serving as the sole dedicated internal MDM resource through multiple releases and production start.
Key Responsibilities:
- Governance Program Setup - Standing Up the Function: Establishes, authorizes, and enforces business unit-wide data governance policies, operating procedures, and compliance standards across Ford Energy; holds final approval for cross-functional data exception workflows and data architecture standards.
- Golden-Record Standards & Quality Gates: Define golden-record rules ahead of each release, establish approval workflows for new customer, supplier, and material records, and validate quality gates at every milestone - not only at go-live.
- AI Enablement & Data Readiness: Define and enforce data quality dimensions required for AI deployments, and build the metadata and governance foundation needed for Ford Energy's data to support future predictive analytics, automation, and AI/ML use cases.
- Multi-System Architecture Alignment (CRM & ERP): Own the alignment of master customer, supplier, finance, and material definitions across Salesforce (opportunity and relationship data) and SAP (billing, credit, material, supplier, and financial data), ensuring one system of record per domain.
- Manufacturing & Material Governance: Govern the material master across Engineering, Manufacturing, and Supply Chain, and support BOM, routing, and equipment master alignment synced across PLM, SAP, and MES.
- Domain Ownership - Customer, Supplier, Finance: Drive unified customer views (hierarchy, credit terms) across CRM and ERP systems, supplier governance (certifications, origin data, de-duplication, supply chain risk), and finance master data (chart of accounts, cost/profit centers, entity structure).
- Data Quality Management - Operational Health: Establish quality KPIs tied to release milestones, perform root-cause analysis on systemic data defects, and partner with BI/SI consultants to deploy monitoring dashboards and scorecards.
- Compliance & Traceability: Ensure audit-trail and access controls are aligned to compliance requirements, and address battery traceability and serialization needs for regulatory and warranty purposes.
- Change Management: Support change management alongside each release so teams adopt new data standards, including documentation, stakeholder communication, and training.
- Scalability Planning: Design a data model that scales and absorbs future growth activity with minimal rework, and help plan the path toward a fully staffed enterprise data organization (stewards, data quality engineers, governance board) as Ford Energy matures.
QualificationsYou'll have...
What You'll Bring:
- Cross-domain business fluency across two or more of: Sales/CRM Operations, Finance, Supply Chain, or Manufacturing.
- Industrial context - experience in battery, energy, automotive, or aerospace environments is strongly preferred over pure SaaS backgrounds.
- A natural connector who builds trust and aligns stakeholders and functions without formal authority.
- Structured, first-principles thinking, with comfort designing governance and standards in ambiguous, 'zero-to-one' situations.
- Owns final operational and financial accountability for master data integrity, data compliance (including battery traceability regulations), and readiness gates across all commercial and manufacturing go-lives.
- Clear, confident communication skills, able to translate complex data and AI dependencies into business and financial terms for senior leadership.
- Comfort with a fast pace and evolving priorities that come with standing up a new business and multiple concurrent system releases.
- A growth mindset and drive to expand your scope and impact as Ford Energy's data organization scales.
Required:
- 10+ years of progressive experience in Master Data Management/Data Governance (or 8+ years with Master's degree), including direct people management, team leadership experience, or experience leading large, complex cross-functional initiatives.
- Proven track record of building or maturing an MDM governance program from scratch at a similar-stage company ahead of a go-live.
- Cross-domain business fluency across two or more of: Sales/CRM Operations, Finance, Supply Chain, or Manufacturing.
- Working depth in Salesforce and SAP (or another ERP) - understanding of data flow and system-of-record logic; certification not required.
- Experience working effectively with external BI and SI consultants and integrators, not only internal teams.
- Ability to influence and align VPs and cross-functional leaders without direct reporting authority.
- Track record of delivering incremental, release-aligned wins tied to real deadlines, rather than open-ended transformation work.
- Strong executive communication skills - able to translate data risk into business and financial terms.
Even better, you may have...
Preferred:
- Industrial context - experience in battery, energy, automotive, or aerospace industries over pure SaaS.
- Direct experience preparing and structuring enterprise data for AI/ML models, data lakes, or advanced analytics platforms.
- Experience with battery traceability, serialization, or other regulated-component data requirements.
- Familiarity with modern AI data tools, vector databases, or AI-driven MDM platforms.
- Experience supporting new business stand-ups, carve-outs, spin-offs, or joint ventures.
- Competency in SQL, Excel, or data profiling software to perform independent operational audits when needed.
Location & Travel:
- Location: Dearborn, MI.
- Travel: Limited - occasional domestic travel expected to support release milestones and cross-functional workshops, as needed.
You may not check every box, or your experience may look a little different from what we've outlined, but if you think you can bring value to Ford Motor Company, we encourage you to apply!
This position is hybrid with a requirement to be onsite four or more days per week. #LI-Hybrid
Company: As Ford establishes a wholly owned subsidiary focused on Battery Energy Storage Systems, this role will initially be employed by Ford and is expected to transition to the subsidiary within one year.
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#FordEnergy
