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Data Classification Jobs in Washington (NOW HIRING)

Data Engineer Intermediate

Arlington, VA · On-site

$131K - $158K/yr

... classification levels. • Collaborate with intelligence analysts, data scientists, and mission stakeholders to understand their data requirements and deliver effective solutions. • Create and ...

Cyber Data Protection Manager

Rosslyn, VA · Remote

$126K - $170K/yr

DLP, sensitivity labels, data classification, DSPM, DSPM for AI, on-demand classification, or related Microsoft 365 data security capabilities * Knowledge of AI security and governance concepts ...

Cyber Data Protection Manager

Arlington, VA · On-site

$127K - $172K/yr

DLP, sensitivity labels, data classification, DSPM, DSPM for AI, on-demand classification, or related Microsoft 365 data security capabilities * Knowledge of AI security and governance concepts ...

Cyber Data Protection Manager

Mclean, VA · Remote

$112K - $151K/yr

DLP, sensitivity labels, data classification, DSPM, DSPM for AI, on-demand classification, or related Microsoft 365 data security capabilities * Knowledge of AI security and governance concepts ...

Execute projects including those intended to identify patterns and/or anomalies in large datasets; perform automated text/data classification and categorization as well as entity recognition ...

Data Governance Specialist

Herndon, VA · On-site

$66K - $106K/yr

Maintain and update data catalogs, business glossaries, metadata repositories, and classification tags to ensure authoritative metadata across enterprise datasets. * Execute routine data validation ...

Data Governance Specialist

Herndon, VA · On-site

$66K - $106K/yr

Maintain and update data catalogs, business glossaries, metadata repositories, and classification tags to ensure authoritative metadata across enterprise datasets. * Execute routine data validation ...

Data Architect

Quantico, VA · On-site

$67.50 - $86.75/hr

Strong expertise in data modeling, data classification, and enterprise data architecture frameworks * Experience with system integration, interface design, and web-based architecture approaches

Design, implement, and test data governance and compliance policies, including data classification, labeling, and DLP policies. * Monitor and optimize policies to ensure alignment with regulatory and ...

Data Engineer Intermediate

Arlington, VA · On-site

$131K - $158K/yr

Deep experience handling, processing, and securing data across various classification levels (CUI, Secret, TS/SCI). * IAT/IAM Level II or III Certification. * Active Top Secret with the ability to ...

Data Engineer Intermediate

Arlington, VA

$131K - $158K/yr

Deep experience handling, processing, and securing data across various classification levels (CUI, Secret, TS/SCI). * IAT/IAM Level II or III Certification. * Active Top Secret with the ability to ...

Experience with data classification frameworks, control design, and regulatory alignment (e.g., GDPR, HIPAA, PCI-DSS). PowerShell scripting for automation and reporting. Familiarity with Copilot/AI ...

Data Engineer Intermediate

Arlington, VA

$131K - $158K/yr

Deep experience handling, processing, and securing data across various classification levels (CUI, Secret, TS/SCI). * IAT/IAM Level II or III Certification. * Active Top Secret with the ability to ...

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Showing results 1-20

Data Classification information

See Washington salary details

$52.1K

$186.9K

$275.8K

How much do data classification jobs pay per year?

As of Jul 5, 2026, the average yearly pay for data classification in Washington is $186,899.00, according to ZipRecruiter salary data. Most workers in this role earn between $151,200.00 and $192,500.00 per year, depending on experience, location, and employer.

What jobs make $1,000,000 a year?

In the field of data classification, high-paying roles such as Chief Data Officer or senior data science executives can earn around or above $1 million annually, especially in large corporations or tech firms. These positions typically require extensive experience, advanced skills in data management, and leadership responsibilities. Compensation often includes base salary, bonuses, and stock options.

What is the role of data classification?

Data classification is a key responsibility in data management roles, involving categorizing data based on sensitivity, importance, or usage to ensure proper handling and security. It helps organizations implement appropriate access controls, comply with regulations, and protect sensitive information effectively.

What are the key skills and qualifications needed to thrive in the Data Classification position, and why are they important?

To thrive in Data Classification, you need strong analytical skills, attention to detail, and a background in data management or information science, often supported by a relevant degree. Familiarity with data classification tools, data loss prevention (DLP) systems, and certifications such as Certified Information Systems Security Professional (CISSP) are commonly beneficial. Good communication, teamwork, and problem-solving skills help you excel in collaborating with IT, compliance, and business teams. These competencies are critical for accurately categorizing data, maintaining security standards, and ensuring regulatory compliance across an organization.

What is a Data Classification job?

A Data Classification job involves organizing and labeling data based on its sensitivity, importance, or type to ensure proper handling, security, and compliance. Professionals in this role categorize data according to predefined policies and frameworks, helping organizations safeguard sensitive information and optimize data management. They work closely with security, compliance, and IT teams to implement classification strategies and improve data governance.

What are the 4 types of data classification?

Data classification involves categorizing data based on its sensitivity and importance. The four common types are public, internal, confidential, and restricted data. Data classification helps organizations implement appropriate security measures and compliance protocols.

What are the typical challenges faced in a Data Classification role?

A common challenge in Data Classification is accurately identifying and categorizing large volumes of diverse and sometimes ambiguous data, which requires both technical proficiency and critical thinking. Balancing the need for data accessibility with strict security and compliance requirements can also pose difficulties. Collaboration with various departments, such as IT and legal, is often necessary to implement organization-wide classification policies and ensure consistent practices. By staying up-to-date with data protection regulations and evolving technology, professionals in this role can effectively address these challenges and contribute significantly to their organization’s information security strategy.

What is the highest paying data job?

Data scientists and data engineers are among the highest paying roles in data-related fields, often earning six-figure salaries depending on experience, location, and industry. Advanced skills in machine learning, big data tools, and programming languages like Python or SQL can further increase earning potential.
What are popular job titles related to Data Classification jobs in Washington? For Data Classification jobs in Washington, the most frequently searched job titles are:
What job categories do people searching Data Classification jobs in Washington look for? The top searched job categories for Data Classification jobs in Washington are:
What cities in Washington are hiring for Data Classification jobs? Cities in Washington with the most Data Classification job openings:

Principal Data Governance Specialist

OpenDataJobs

Washington, DC • On-site

Full-time

Medical, Dental, Vision, Life, Retirement, PTO

Posted 19 days ago


Job description

Peregrine Advisors Benefit Inc. is looking for a Principal Data Governance Specialist to lead data governance engagements for clients in regulated, data-intensive environments. This is a senior practitioner role. You will own governance programs end to end, from framework design through technical implementation, and serve as the primary governance authority in client relationships. The right person has enough technical depth to do the implementation work and enough presence to lead executive conversations about it.
Why Peregrine
Peregrine is a Benefit corporation, legally committed to creating measurable social value alongside business performance. The work here is technically demanding and mission-oriented. Our clients include regulated enterprises, oversight bodies, and public sector organizations, and the data infrastructure you help build has real downstream consequences. Engagements change scope, clients shift priorities, and no two projects look exactly alike. The people who do well here are genuinely curious, comfortable with ambiguity, and willing to apply their expertise in whatever direction the work actually needs.
Who You Are
Your starting point on governance is the question of whether it actually works in practice. A well-designed classification framework that never makes it into the tooling is just a document. A data catalog that no one trusts or uses is just overhead. You've worked in environments where the regulatory stakes are serious, and you know the difference between governance that holds up under scrutiny and governance that looks good on paper. You're comfortable configuring Purview or working through a catalog schema, and equally comfortable presenting a governance roadmap to a CDO or walking a CISO through an access control model. You don't need the engagement to be fully defined before you can add value. When scope shifts or a client's priorities change, you reorient and keep moving.
Responsibilities
The work will vary by engagement and change over time. The following describes the range of responsibilities you can expect to own across the practice.
Governance Framework Design and Implementation
  • Design data governance frameworks suited to each client's regulatory environment, risk profile, and organizational maturity, including data classification models, access policy structures, and stewardship operating models
  • Own the technical implementation of those frameworks through relevant platform tooling, making sure that policy is actually enforced rather than just documented
  • Define user access profiles that tie organizational roles to data access rights in a way that is consistent and auditable, and that scales as organizations grow
  • Build data quality and governance monitoring into client environments so that leadership has ongoing visibility into the health of their data assets

Data Catalog and Discoverability
  • Lead the design, implementation, and adoption of enterprise data catalog programs, with the goal of making the catalog the place people actually go when they need to find and understand data
  • Develop data asset documentation, curation frameworks, and quality scoring approaches that are useful to both technical teams and business stakeholders
  • Build training and onboarding programs that get users into the catalog and keep them there, not just launch materials that go unread
  • Work with data engineering and analytics teams to make sure governed, cataloged data flows appropriately into analytical and AI-enabled workflows

Client Engagement and Program Leadership
  • Serve as the senior governance lead on client engagements, working directly with CDOs, CISOs, data leaders, and executive stakeholders
  • Lead discovery and requirements sessions, and translate what you learn into governance roadmaps that are grounded in what the client can actually deliver
  • Own the delivery side of governance workstreams: scoping, planning, execution, stakeholder communication, and getting work to production readiness
  • Handle shifting priorities without losing momentum, and help clients do the same when their needs or constraints change mid-engagement

Practice Development
  • Build reusable frameworks, implementation playbooks, and other materials that make future governance engagements faster and more consistent
  • Mentor junior and mid-level practitioners in governance methods, platform configuration, and working with clients
  • Stay current on governance tooling, evolving standards, and regulatory developments, and bring relevant findings back to the practice

Requirements
Data Governance and Classification
  • Meaningful experience designing and implementing enterprise data governance programs in regulated or compliance-sensitive environments, including data classification frameworks, access governance models, and data quality programs
  • Hands-on experience implementing governance through technical tooling; Microsoft Purview strongly preferred, including sensitivity label configuration, policy enforcement, and integration with enterprise identity management
  • Experience designing role-based access control frameworks integrated with enterprise identity platforms such as Microsoft Active Directory and Entra ID
  • Experience with enterprise data catalog platforms; Informatica Cloud Data Governance and Catalog strongly preferred; Collibra, Alation, or comparable platforms acceptable

Technical Platform Proficiency
  • Working proficiency across Microsoft Azure data and governance services, with meaningful depth in Purview and Entra ID; familiarity with Azure SQL, Azure DevOps, and related services
  • Familiarity with Databricks as an analytics platform; enough working knowledge to collaborate productively with engineering teams building in Databricks
  • Ability to pick up new tooling and platform configurations as client environments vary; adaptability matters here as much as any specific platform credential
  • Experience working in Agile delivery environments using Jira or comparable work management tools

Client and Professional Skills
  • Track record of engaging senior client stakeholders as a credible governance authority, including facilitating decisions and communicating clearly about complex trade-offs
  • Experience leading engagements in federal, regulated, or oversight-oriented environments; familiarity with financial services, public sector, or compliance-driven regulatory contexts preferred
  • Strong written and verbal communication skills across a range of formats and audiences, from technical documentation to executive briefings
  • Comfortable operating in engagements that are not fully defined, and in organizations where the governance function is still maturing

Qualifications
  • Bachelor's required; Information Management, Data Science, Computer Science, or a related field strongly preferred
  • 8+ years of experience in data governance, information management, or a closely related discipline; candidates who came up through technical implementation and moved into governance leadership are strongly encouraged to apply
  • Microsoft certifications preferred: SC-400 (Information Protection Administrator), DP-900 (Azure Data Fundamentals), or Microsoft Purview-aligned credentials
  • Informatica certifications or demonstrated hands-on Informatica CDGC experience strongly preferred
  • Prior consulting or professional services experience strongly preferred; client-facing delivery experience required

Benefits
Our client offers a comprehensive and competitive benefits package, including:
  • Full health coverage (medical, dental, and vision) with 100% of employee premiums covered
  • Life and disability insurance, fully covered by the company
  • 401(k) retirement plan with 100% match on contributions up to 4% of salary with immediate vesting
  • Unlimited Paid Time Off (PTO) to encourage work-life balance
  • Sponsored Azure certification training

Peregrine Advisors is an equal opportunity employer.