Ijeoma Okereke
Houston,TX
Summary
Dedicated, self-driven, and positive-outcome professional with 10+ years of experience within data privacy and protection, cybersecurity, and legal sectors. Highly experienced in developing privacy program frameworks and in advising teams on ethical, legal, and regulatory compliance. Passionate about contributing to Artificial Intelligence projects that result in human-centered product design. Articulate communicator, who can convey complex legal and technical concepts to non-technical stakeholders. Strategic analyst, adept and passionate in researching ethical issues related to AI and machine learning systems. A knowledgeable and collaborative advisor with a process-oriented and practical mindset, with deep data privacy and protection expertise, well-informed on matters relating to information privacy including regulations, compliance, terminology, policies, and privacy program development.
Overview
13
13
years of professional experience
1
1
Certification
Work History
Associate, Cybersecurity & Data Privacy Unit
Data Privacy Africa
02.2020 - Current
- Drive privacy and data protection initiatives, such as encryption in the use of data, recommending availability of data to only authorized users in collaborative work environments, preserving data integrity by emphasizing non-degradation of data whilst in use for the client’s business teams
- Ensuring compliance with US, International and regional regulations relating to privacy, data protection, cybersecurity, and consumer protection
- Improved client satisfaction by identifying potential risks and providing recommendations to client’s business teams, resulting in the incorporating of privacy by design into various business products and services prior to deployment
- Minimized compliance risks and developed remediation and mitigation strategies by proactively monitoring, researching, and analyzing privacy and data protection law developments and regulatory requirements
- Planned, executed, directed privacy assessments and audits against relevant frameworks such as NIST for client’s business needs and so fulfilling compliance obligations
- Proactively interacting with various tiers of Client’s business teams to collect information, resolve identified issues, and make recommendations for improvements thus encouraging cross-organizational workforce collaboration
- Streamlined workflows by authoring, implementing, and maintaining a comprehensive repository of resources, including privacy notices, policies, and terms of service, saving significant time and money
- Developed and maintained compliance activities, such as the implementation of data protection technologies like data classification, data mapping, backup scheduling, role-based access control, endpoint protection, identity and access management, multi-factor authentication and others relating to incident response and management, leading to the development of joint solutions to potential future challenges
- Increased stakeholder engagement by responding promptly to a wide range of requests required by multiple business groups, ensuring all requests and queries were handled timely, confidentially, and effectively
- Thus, encouraging communication about corporate privacy practices at all levels
- Improved existing privacy and data protection practices by developing and implementing new strategies, including periodic employee education, training, and vulnerability assessment, ensuring multi-factor authentication, routine monitoring of third-party access, emphasizing on physical controls and all together, building consumer trust in client business.
- Evaluated team member performance regularly, providing constructive feedback for continuous improvement.
- Collaborated with business-unit leaders to identify and prioritize problems.
- Developed required policies and procedures that reflected actual goals, tasks and workflows, while meeting all regulatory compliance requirements.
- Trained client teams on best practices, improving overall team performance and productivity.
Paralegal/Administrative Legal Assistant
Umoh Law
10.2020 - 07.2021
- Conducted extensive legal research and produced high-quality written materials, contributing to the development and success of cases
- Built productive client relationships and promoted client satisfaction, displaying effective communication skills in attending various client interviews and maintaining supervised contact with clients
- Facilitated effective management of legal cases by organizing and tracking files related to case documents and other transactions, ensuring frictionless information and document availability
- Contributed to organizational efficiency by proactively identifying areas for improvement across legal research, writing, client communication, file organization, and client scheduling.
- Edited and proofread legal documents to verify accuracy.
Senior Associate, Commercial Business Unit & Litigation, ADR Unit
Jite Olatunbode & Company
04.2011 - 08.2018
- Analyzed, drafted, negotiated, and reviewed various commercial contracts, terms of service, and non-disclosure agreements in the various sectors of the African business marketplace
- Initiated remediation and mitigation efforts, analyzing, and resolving problems arising during contract performance by coordinating with external regulators, solicitors, and relevant stakeholders
- Enhance client compliance and improved client outcomes by proactively analyzing feedback obtained, reporting results, and communicating complex legal jargon to business teams
- Contributed to the development and success of high-profile transactions by collaborating with state governments and advising clients in structural commercial transactions
- Effectively mediated commercial business-related disputes, working with the Lagos Multi-Door Court House to declutter over 40 courtrooms in the Lagos Settlement Week
- Represented over 50 clients, drafting various court processes, reviewing, and analyzing issues, and advising on cases suitable for informal resolution, such as mediation
- Improved efficiency by preparing background materials and summarizing issues, developing up-to-date reports on case progression, and maintaining a register of cases in court
- Monitored legislative and regulatory changes, vetted, and proffered legal opinions and client advisory services on varying legal and regulatory issues, and provided detailed analysis of each case.
- Negotiated settlements of disputes and litigation.
Education
J.D. -
University of Calabar
Calabar, NGArtificial Intelligence -
Houston Community College
Houston, TX12.2024
LLM Cybersecurity & Data Privacy -
Loyola Law School
Los Angeles, CA05.2020
Bar Admittance - Law
The Nigerian Law School
Lagos, NG11.2007
Skills
- Incidence response and management
- Regulatory & Legal Compliance
- AI Ethics advisory
- Effective Communication
- AI Ethical Framework Development
- Data Protection
- Critical Thinking & Problem-Solving Skills
- Building Machine Learning Models
- Data Visualization
- Data Governance
Websites
Certification
- Certified Information Privacy Professional, CIPP/US, IAPP, International
- Certified Information Privacy Manager, CIPM, IAPP, International
- Certified Mediator, Panel of Neutrals, Lagos Multi-Door Court House, Lagos, NG
Volunteersummary
- Director, CHISOVN Inc, Fairfax, VA
- Legal Advisory, Awakening Youthful Seeds for Christ, Lagos, NG
Earlycareersummary
- Associate Counsel, National Youth Service Corps, Lagos, NG
- Pupil Counsel, National Youth Service Corps, Abia, NG
Personal Information
Title: Privacy Manager and AI Ethicist
Timeline
Paralegal/Administrative Legal Assistant
Umoh Law
10.2020 - 07.2021
Associate, Cybersecurity & Data Privacy Unit
Data Privacy Africa
02.2020 - Current
Senior Associate, Commercial Business Unit & Litigation, ADR Unit
Jite Olatunbode & Company
04.2011 - 08.2018
J.D. -
University of Calabar
Artificial Intelligence -
Houston Community College
LLM Cybersecurity & Data Privacy -
Loyola Law School
Bar Admittance - Law
The Nigerian Law School
- Certified Information Privacy Professional, CIPP/US, IAPP, International
- Certified Information Privacy Manager, CIPM, IAPP, International
- Certified Mediator, Panel of Neutrals, Lagos Multi-Door Court House, Lagos, NG
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