Surveillance and Data Quality Manager

Career Guide

A Surveillance and Data Quality Manager leads teams and processes that monitor activity for unusual patterns and ensure critical data is accurate, complete, and usable. The role sits at the intersection of compliance, risk, operations, and analytics, helping the organization detect issues early and make reliable decisions.

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Key Responsibilities

Set the strategy for surveillance coverage and data quality priorities
Define and maintain monitoring rules and alert thresholds
Oversee daily alert review workflows and escalation paths
Investigate unusual activity and document findings clearly
Design and track data quality checks for key data sets
Create data quality dashboards and recurring reporting
Coordinate remediation with technology and business teams
Maintain policies, procedures, and audit ready evidence
Manage vendor tools for monitoring and data controls
Train analysts on investigations and data standards
Partner with compliance, risk, legal, and internal audit
Measure effectiveness using clear metrics and continuous improvement

Top Skills for Success

Stakeholder Management

Written Communication

Process Improvement

Risk Thinking

People Management

Data Quality Management

Data Governance

Issue Management

Investigation Management

Alert Triage

Monitoring Rule Design

Metric Design

SQL

Data Profiling

Regulatory Knowledge

Model Risk Awareness

Career Progression

Can Lead To

Senior Surveillance Manager

Head of Surveillance

Data Quality Lead

Data Governance Manager

Operational Risk Manager

Compliance Manager

Transition Opportunities

Financial Crime Risk Manager

Market Conduct Risk Manager

Risk Analytics Manager

Compliance Testing Manager

Internal Audit Manager

Product Controls Manager

Common Skill Gaps

Often Missing Skills

Clear metric definitionsRoot cause analysisData lineage documentationControl designAutomation planningCase management disciplineVendor tool evaluationExecutive storytelling

Development SuggestionsBuild a simple control library, standardize key metrics, and practice communicating findings in one page summaries. Strengthen technical depth with SQL and data profiling, and partner with technology teams to automate repetitive checks.

Market Intelligence Report

Surveillance and Data Quality Manager is part of the Data Governance category.Explore our market intelligence report to see how AI and hiring demand are shifting for these roles.

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Salary & Demand

Median Salary Range

Entry LevelUSD 95,000 to 125,000

Mid LevelUSD 125,000 to 165,000

Senior LevelUSD 165,000 to 220,000

Growth Trend

Steady to strong demand, driven by increased regulatory expectations, higher data volume, and greater focus on operational risk and data governance.

Companies Hiring

Major Employers

JPMorgan ChaseBank of AmericaCitigroupWells FargoGoldman SachsMorgan StanleyCharles SchwabFidelityBlackRockVanguardPayPalStripe

Industry Sectors

Retail BankingInvestment BankingBrokerageAsset ManagementPaymentsInsuranceFintechCrypto and Digital AssetsRegulatory Technology

Recommended Next Steps

Create a portfolio example of an alert investigation summary and a data quality dashboard

Refresh SQL skills and practice writing checks for completeness, accuracy, and timeliness

Map the end to end data flow for one critical data set and document data owners

Define a small set of quality metrics and build a monthly reporting cadence

Review common regulatory expectations for monitoring, recordkeeping, and audit evidence

Strengthen escalation and documentation standards to improve audit readiness

Network with surveillance, compliance, and data governance leaders to understand tool stacks and priorities