Director, Marketing Technology & Data Operations

Cengage Group•Virtual US OH, OH

1d•$138,200 - $221,100

About The Position

Cengage is looking for a Director, Marketing Technology & Data Operations to be a strategic, collaborative, and forward-thinking leader to build and scale its global Marketing Technology and Data function and team. Reporting to the VP of Marketing Operations, this role will define the vision, governance, and operating model for the marketing technology and data ecosystem, enabling marketing teams worldwide to work more effectively, deliver exceptional customer experiences, and accelerate business growth. The role involves leading the strategy behind the MarTech portfolio, including roadmap planning, technology governance, vendor management, ROI evaluations, platform rationalization, AI innovation, and experimentation. It requires collaboration across Marketing, Digital, IT, Procurement, Finance, RevOps, Sales, Security, and Legal to ensure technology investments align with business priorities and create a scalable foundation for the future. Additionally, the role will define the vision, strategy, and operating model for marketing data, building trusted, scalable data capabilities to improve decision-making, enable personalization and AI, strengthen measurement, and deliver greater business value. As a strong people leader, the individual will lead, coach, and develop a global marketing technology and data team. This is an opportunity for a leader and builder who enjoys solving complex business problems, influencing across organizations, and bringing structure, governance, and innovation to a growing enterprise marketing organization.

Requirements

Bachelor's degree in Business, Marketing, Information Systems, Computer Science, or a related field.
10+ years of experience in Marketing Technology, Marketing Operations, Data Operations, Digital Marketing, Business Systems, or related areas.
Strong people leadership and coaching ability. Demonstrated success building and leading high-performing teams in complex enterprise environments.
Experience leading enterprise MarTech and data strategy, governance, technology transformation, or digital capability programs.
Strong understanding of modern marketing technology and data ecosystems, including CRM, marketing automation, web platforms, analytics, experimentation, digital asset management, customer data platforms, and AI-enabled marketing solutions.
Deep expertise in marketing data strategy, governance, and operations, with a proven ability to build trusted, scalable data foundations that enable measurement, AI, personalization, and business growth.
Experience developing technology roadmaps, governance frameworks, and portfolio management practices.
Experience evaluating technology investments, managing vendors, and leading software selection processes.
Strong business sense with the ability to translate business objectives into technology strategies and investment recommendations.
Demonstrated success leading cross-functional initiatives.
Excellent communication, stakeholder management, facilitation, and executive presentation skills.

Nice To Haves

Experience developing AI strategies, piloting AI capabilities, or scaling AI adoption within marketing organizations.
Experience implementing experimentation, optimization, or personalization programs.
Familiarity with Agile delivery methodologies and enterprise project governance.
Experience supporting global marketing teams in B2B SaaS or EdTech organizations.
Master's degree or equivalent combination of advanced education and relevant experience.

Responsibilities

Develop the marketing technology strategy, including roadmap planning, technology governance, vendor management, ROI evaluations, platform rationalization, AI innovation, and experimentation.
Define and own a marketing technology strategy and roadmap aligned to business priorities and customer experience goals.
Translate marketing and business needs into technology recommendations, investment priorities, and implementation plans.
Partner with Marketing and cross-functional teams to define the future-state MarTech ecosystem and supporting architecture.
Find opportunities to unlock new marketing capabilities, improve operational efficiency, and support business growth through technology.
Define marketing data strategy, governance & operations, including establishing the vision, governance, operating model, and roadmap for marketing data to improve quality, accessibility, compliance, and business value.
Partner with Marketing, RevOps, Digital, IT, Analytics, Sales, and Data Engineering teams to align data requirements and use cases; define data platforms, standards, architecture, and integration strategies.
Lead data quality, stewardship, taxonomy, and master data management initiatives.
Partner with cross-functional teams to evolve marketing measurement by enabling scalable attribution, performance dashboards, experimentation, and actionable insights.
Oversee marketing data operations, including data pipelines, integrations, privacy, governance, and operational processes.
Build a future-ready data foundation and team that accelerates maturity while reducing technical debt and operational complexity.
Build governance and operational excellence, including establishing governance processes for evaluating, selecting, implementing, and retiring marketing and data technologies.
Create and maintain a comprehensive inventory of marketing applications, integrations, licenses, and business owners.
Lead technology rationalization efforts to reduce redundancy, simplify the technology landscape, and increase platform adoption.
Develop standards, policies, and operating procedures that improve consistency, scalability, and decision-making.
Ensure alignment with enterprise governance processes including security, privacy, legal, procurement, architecture review, and software lifecycle management.
Balance global standardization with regional business needs to support worldwide marketing teams.
Lead technology investment and vendor management, including managing the intake, prioritization, evaluation, and recommendation process for new technology requests.
Partner with Procurement and Finance to manage contracts, licensing, renewals, and annual spend forecasting.
Build business cases and technical requirements that guide technology investment decisions.
Establish vendor performance management through scorecards, business reviews, roadmap alignment, and strategic partnerships.
Monitor platform utilization and recommend opportunities to optimize licenses, reduce costs, and improve adoption.
Drive innovation, AI, and experimentation, including developing and implementing the marketing AI roadmap.
Identify, pilot, and scale AI-powered capabilities that improve marketer productivity, campaign performance, customer engagement, and operational efficiency.
Champion experimentation by enabling testing frameworks, measurement approaches, and continuous optimization across digital marketing experiences.
Evaluate emerging technologies and recommend innovations that position Cengage for long-term success.
Establish responsible governance for AI adoption, ensuring alignment with enterprise standards and business objectives.
Partner across the business to build trusted partnerships with leaders across Marketing, Digital, IT, Procurement, Finance, Sales, Security, and Legal, and external vendors.
Align cross-functional roadmaps, delivery timelines, and investment priorities across partner groups.
Influence strategic technology decisions through data-driven recommendations and executive communication.
Drive organizational adoption through enablement, change management, documentation, and standards.
Build and lead high-performing teams, including leading, coaching, and developing a global marketing technology and data team.
Establish clear goals, development plans, and success metrics for team members.
Recruit and retain top talent while building organizational capabilities for the future.