VP Data

About the Role:

You will lead and execute the enterprise-wide data and AI strategy, transforming data into a suite of products that drive decision-making, automation and enhanced customer experiences. Value will be delivered through three core engines: Analytics & Advanced Analytics (including insights, forecasting, and experimentation), AI/ML (leveraging traditional ML and GenAI with scalable MLOps and Responsible AI), and BI & Self-Serve (focused on governed metrics, semantic layers, and high adoption reporting). This role partners cross-functionally with Product, Engineering, Finance, Enterprise IT, and Business Units to prioritise high-ROI use cases and measurable outcomes, while overseeing a global organisation across Data Platform, Analytics/BI, Data Science & ML, Data Governance, and Data Product Management. You will also manage a multimillion-pound budget across cloud infrastructure, vendors, and talent, fostering a FinOps culture to optimise the unit cost of insight and model deployment.

Key Responsibilities:

Data Strategy & Operating Model:

• Define a 2-3 year
  Data & AI strategy
  with clear OKRs tied to revenue growth, margin expansion, and cost efficiency.
• Establish a federated model (e.g.,
  Data Mesh
  ) with
  data products
  owned by domains, underpinned by a central
  platform, governance, and enablement
  function.

Data Platform & Architecture

• Build a compliant, cost-efficient platform (ingestion, transformation, catalogue/lineage, quality, access/policy-as-code, observability) that accelerates data product delivery
• Implement standards-as-code and policies-as-code for privacy, security, access, quality and lifecycle, combining global guardrails with domain autonomy

Data Products

• Partner with domains to design, deliver and steward high-quality, discoverable data products with clear SLAs/SLOs and consumer-grade documentation

Data Quality

• Measure and improve the quality of Data at RWS

Analytics & AI Enablement

• Provide high-quality features and signals to accelerate ML use cases and business analytics, partner closely with VP AI and Product

Analytics & Advanced Analytics

• Establish an advanced analytics function, working with the Business Units and wider Tech Org to deliver Product Analytics, Customer Profitability, Experimentation and Forecasting & Planning

BI, Reporting & Self-Service

• Own the
  BI platform
  (dashboards, governed datasets, semantic layer) and
  metrics governance
  (definitions, lineage, change control).
• Drive
  self-serve adoption
  via enablement, training, and "
  analyst experience
  " tooling; publish adoption and satisfaction metrics.
• Ensure accessibility and consistency of KPI scorecards for Exec/Board and domain leadership.

AI/ML & GenAI

• Develop a ML/ AI platform to enable model development and deployment
• Deliver a portfolio of Analytics, ML & AI Use cases
• Govern Safe & Responsible AI in line with local regulations and best practise

Data Governance, Privacy & Risk

• Implement pragmatic data governance
• Measure and improve Data Governance (Maturity) across RWS
• Ensure compliance with relevant legislation

Organization, Talent & Ways of Working

• Hire and grow a world‑class team; establish competency frameworks and clear career paths across Analytics, DS/ML, Platform, Governance, and PM.
• Promote a culture of outcomes, craftsmanship, and psychological safety; coach domain teams to own their data products.

Skills & Experience

Essential:

• 12+ years in data leadership; track record delivering Data Mesh or decentralised data operating models at enterprise scale.
• Strong product mindset applied to data as a product, with domain SLAs and documentation.
• Depth in modern data platforms (Lakehouse/streaming, catalogue/lineage, privacy, governance).
• Proven experience in senior leadership within a group/regional or global business
• Ability to demonstrate a rich blend of analytical, creative, and strategic problem-solving talents
• Take advantage of possible opportunities that can occur to advance the company
• Possess a high degree of professional and personal integrity
• Ability to lead effectively in a group setting and to move a group in a unified direction
• Experience inspiring, leading and developing teams including cross-functional teams
• Experience managing complex, multi-stakeholder enterprise relationships across regions and business units.
• Expertise in strategic and tactical planning, financial management, and leading a department
• Outstanding customer and partner facing communication skills
• Excellent negotiation, communication, and presentation skills

Desired:

• Experience in localisation/language technology data (terminology, translation memory, content pipelines).
• Familiarity with data privacy regulations and security best practices (e.g., GDPR).
• Experience of or able to rapidly acquire ability to navigate complex global and matrix managed environments
• Excellence in complex change management

Life at RWS:
If you like the idea of working with smart people who are passionate about growing the value of ideas, data and content by making sure organizations are understood, then you'll love life at RWS.

Our purpose is to unlock global understanding. This means our work fundamentally recognizes the value of every language and culture. So, we celebrate difference, we are inclusive and believe that diversity makes us strong. We want every employee to grow as an individual and excel in their career.

In return, we expect all our people to live by the values that unite us:
to partner
, putting clients fist and winning together
, to pioneer
, innovating fearlessly and leading with vision and courage,
to progress
, aiming high and growing through actions and
to deliver
, owning the outcome and building trust with our colleagues and clients.

RWS embraces DEI
and promotes equal opportunity, we are an Equal Opportunity Employer and prohibit discrimination and harassment of any kind. RWS is committed to the principle of equal employment opportunity for all employees and to providing employees with a work environment free of discrimination and harassment. All employment decisions at RWS are based on business needs, job requirements and individual qualifications, without regard to race, religion, nationality, ethnicity, sex, age, disability, or sexual orientation. RWS will not tolerate discrimination based on any of these characteristics.

RWS Values

Get the 3Ps right – Partner, Pioneer, Progress – and we´ll Deliver together as RWS.

Recruitment Agencies:
RWS Holdings PLC does not accept agency resumes. Please do not forward any unsolicited resumes to any RWS employees. Any unsolicited resume received will be treated as the property of RWS and Terms & Conditions associated with the use of such resume will be considered null and void.