Director of Data

In the 1970s, engineer Edgar Codd proposed a radical idea: instead of the hierarchical databases his employer IBM used and sold, he proposed the concept of “relational databases” to manage large datasets. His ideas, codified with a set of rules called Codd's 12 rules, fundamentally transformed how we store, retrieve, manipulate, and manage data, enabling advancements across various sectors of society and industry.

We’re looking for a Director of Data who can help us use the approaches that led to the creation of relational databases to drive Mercury’s success. 

In this role, you’ll lead a full-stack data organization of 30+ data scientists and data engineers embedded across Mercury’s business and product teams. You’ll define how data is built, governed, and leveraged — shaping a culture where anyone can access trusted data, ask hard questions, and self-serve at scale. You’ll architect the systems that help Mercury move faster, invest smarter, and make better decisions at every level.

Here are some things you’ll do on the job:

• Build, lead, and develop a high-performing team of 30+ data scientists and data engineers embedded across GTM, Core Product, and Risk, ensuring Mercury’s most important decisions are grounded in rigorous, trusted data.
• Define and execute a forward-looking data strategy that embeds rigorous, data-driven decision-making into how Mercury sets company priorities, builds products, and manages risk.
• Lead Mercury’s evolution toward self-serve data at scale by shipping high-leverage data platforms that empower teams to move quickly from question to insight to action.
• Elevate data reliability, governance, and security as core capabilities by shaping the standards and systems required to operate as a scaled financial institution.

 

You should:

• Have 10+ years of experience, including 4+ years managing a team of data science or data engineering managers.
• Track record of partnering with and influencing executives, equipping them with the tools, reporting, and advanced analytics needed to make decisions — proactively surfacing opportunities and risks they may not see.
• Bring strong opinions on how data should inform decision-making, with the ability to translate that perspective into scalable practices and standards.
• Have deep expertise  in data science, machine learning, statistics, financial calculations, and experimentation for commercial applications.
• Experience developing high-performing data teams, setting a high talent bar while fostering an inspiring environment of ownership, growth, and impact.
• Have developed self-service analytics capabilities at scale, expanding access to reliable data and powering AI-enabled insights for business and product teams.
• Partner effectively with People, Legal, Compliance, and Privacy teams to ensure that we are enforcing best practices and compliant standards for data privacy and security.

The total rewards package at Mercury includes base salary, equity (stock options/RSUs), and benefits.

Our salary and equity ranges are highly competitive within the SaaS and fintech industry and are updated regularly using the most reliable compensation survey data for our industry. New hire offers are made based on a candidate’s experience, expertise, geographic location, and internal pay equity relative to peers.

Our target new hire base salary ranges for this role are the following**:**

• US employees: $320,000-$420,000
• Canadian employees (any location): CAD $302,400-$396,900

Mercury values diversity & belonging and is proud to be an Equal Employment Opportunity employer. All individuals seeking employment at Mercury are considered without regard to race, color, religion, national origin, age, sex, marital status, ancestry, physical or mental disability, veteran status, gender identity, sexual orientation, or any other legally protected characteristic. We are committed to providing reasonable accommodations throughout the recruitment process for applicants with disabilities or special needs. If you need assistance, or an accommodation, please let your recruiter know once you are contacted about a role.

We use Covey as part of our hiring and / or promotional process for jobs in NYC and certain features may qualify it as an AEDT. As part of the evaluation process we provide Covey with job requirements and candidate submitted applications. We began using Covey Scout for Inbound on January 22, 2024. 

[Please see the independent bias audit report covering our use of Covey for more information.] 

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