Global IT Data & Analytics Director

WD-40 COMPANY • San Diego, CA

2d • Hybrid

About The Position

WD-40 Company is hiring a new leader to bring its regional data environments together into a trusted, company-wide foundation. The Director will lead the global data team and analytics strategy, helping the organization treat data as an asset that employees and the AI agents they build can trust.

The role will establish business-wide agreement on data definitions and ownership, lead and coach the team’s Architect and Manager, and help shift the team’s work from primarily tickets to primarily projects. The Director will shape a governed Microsoft Fabric platform with appropriate definitions, security, and guardrails, and develop a three-to-five-year data and analytics roadmap aligned with business priorities.

The position also owns the business side of the function, including budget management, vendor negotiations, cloud cost oversight, and stakeholder relationships. It leads data governance and compliance across GDPR, CCPA, and evolving data-sovereignty requirements. The role is based in San Diego, California, in a hybrid work arrangement, and reports to the Vice President of Global Information & Technology. The team is small and capable, with members in the US and UK.

Requirements

• Experience leading data and analytics, BI, or data engineering teams, including architects and engineers.
• Ideally, at least 7 years leading such teams within at least 12 years of progressive IT and business leadership.
• Hands-on background in data and analytics before moving into leadership.
• Track record of gaining business leaders’ agreement on data governance, including definitions, owners, and stewards.
• Experience with modern cloud data platforms.
• Ideally, at least 5 years of global experience across countries and regulations, including GDPR and data sovereignty.
• AI fluency to guide a team building for AI agents and explain AI to business leaders.
• Experience owning a budget and negotiating with vendors.
• Bachelor’s degree in business, computer science, information systems, data science, or a related field.
• Must be able to work in the US without current or future sponsorship.

Nice To Haves

• Microsoft Fabric experience is strongly preferred.
• Public company experience is a strong plus.
• D365 experience is a plus.
• A master’s degree or MBA is a plus.

Responsibilities

• Bring finance, sales, marketing, and operations leaders together to agree on data definitions and ownership.
• Lead and coach the team’s Architect and Manager, who leads the engineers, and help the team transition from mostly ticket-based work to mostly projects.
• Shape a governed Microsoft Fabric platform with built-in definitions, security, and guardrails so people outside IT can safely build reports and AI agents.
• Develop a three-to-five-year data and analytics strategy tied to business priorities.
• Manage the function’s budget, negotiate with platform vendors, and monitor cloud costs.
• Build relationships with key business stakeholders and collaborate to deliver value through solutions.
• Lead data governance and compliance across GDPR, CCPA, and changing data-sovereignty rules.
• Learn the company’s people, processes, and technology; establish functioning data governance and quick wins; align stakeholders on a roadmap; and enable colleagues to build on the platform.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Director