Principal, Data Analyst - Engineering - US - Freelancer | Digital Products Team

WHY DEPT®?

We are pioneers  always lean forward, thinking of what we can create tomorrow that does not exist today. Born digital, we are a new model of agency with deep skillsets in tech and marketing. That is why we hire curious, self‑driven, talented people who never stop innovating. Our culture is big enough to cope and small enough to care. With people across 20+ countries, we provide the best tools, global opportunities, and benefits to help you thrive while investing in your growth, your team, and giving you the autonomy to solve our clients’ problems, no matter where you are in the world.

** Please note this is a Full time contract opportunity** – 3 month initial term, expected to extend in 3‑month increments into 2027. Candidates must be willing to work 4 hours daily with the EMEA team for meetings, as most of the team is in Europe.

The Data Strategist will be a key contributor responsible for defining and executing the vision for how our client’s analytics transforms, governs, and delivers core data assets. This role involves driving the strategy, innovation, and operational excellence of the client data product portfolio, collaborating with cross‑functional teams, and ensuring the highest standards of data quality, scalability, and value delivery.

• Data Strategy & Planning
  :
  Define and execute long‑term strategic initiatives and a multi‑year roadmap for the data product portfolio, ensuring alignment with business goals and technology architecture.
• Innovation & AI
  :
  Identify and evaluate emerging technologies, including AI/ML capabilities, to enhance data assets, streamline delivery, and unlock new value for stakeholders.
• Data Discovery
  :
  Partner with stakeholders to discover, evaluate, and onboard new data sources, expanding the portfolio’s value and relevance for business needs.

• Data Product Requirements
  :
  Lead the creation and ownership of detailed data briefs and technical requirements to guide data querying, transformation, enrichment, and delivery processes.
• Data‑Driven Decision‑Making
  :
  Collaborate with business units to identify KPIs and develop data‑driven frameworks for decision‑making.
• Delivery Assurance
  :
  Work with product, engineering, architecture, and application teams to ensure successful execution of data initiatives, meeting performance, scalability, and quality standards.
• Risk Management
  :
  Proactively identify and mitigate risks and dependencies across data product initiatives, ensuring transparency and clear escalation paths to senior leadership.

• Data Governance
  :
  Advocate for and enforce rigorous standards of data quality, metadata management, data lineage, and compliance across the portfolio.
• Scalability & Architecture
  :
  Partner with Data Engineering and Data Architecture teams to ensure the data infrastructure is secure, scalable, and aligned with future business needs.
• Automation & Monitoring
  :
  Drive the adoption of automation and monitoring tools to enhance operational efficiency, reduce failure points, and optimize the end‑to‑end data lifecycle.

• Executive Communication
  :
  Provide clear, concise updates on data product strategy, progress, and risks to senior and executive stakeholders.
• Cross‑Functional Partnership
  :
  Collaborate closely with Product Strategy, Product, Engineering, QA, and Business teams to ensure seamless integration of data assets into delivery platforms.

• 8+ years of experience in Data Strategy or related roles, with demonstrated expertise in defining and executing a multi‑year product strategy for complex, large‑scale data assets, preferably in a B2B or Enterprise environment.
• Strong understanding of modern product management and Agile methodologies (Scrum/Kanban) at a portfolio level.
• Deep expertise in data content, data models, and data structures, with the ability to guide the design and optimization of data structures across the entire product portfolio to ensure scalability, usability, and alignment with business needs.
• Solid technical acumen, with experience overseeing data processing pipelines, data warehousing…