What are the responsibilities and job description for the Associate Director, CDP and Data Activation position at Harnham?
Role Title: Associate Director, CDP & Data Activation
Compensation: $140,000 – $160,000 Base (flexible)
Location: Denver (preferred) / San Diego / Remote (U.S.)
The Opportunity
We’re partnered with a fast-growing digital consultancy that helps consumer brands unlock the full value of their customer data. They sit at the intersection of marketing, data architecture, and technology—building modern, composable ecosystems that power personalization, lifecycle engagement, and measurable growth.
They’re looking for an Associate Director, CDP & Data Activation to take a leading role in both client delivery and technical execution. This is a highly visible position where you’ll guide organizations through complex MarTech decisions, architect scalable data solutions, and directly influence how brands activate their data across channels.
If you enjoy being both hands-on and strategic—and want to work on cutting-edge data activation challenges—this is a standout opportunity.
Why You Should Work Here
- Technical depth strategic influence: Stay hands-on while shaping high-level client decisions
- High-growth environment: Strong demand for data and CDP expertise creating rapid career progression (clear path to Director)
- Modern data ecosystem exposure: Work across composable CDPs, reverse ETL, and cloud data platforms
- Client impact: Partner directly with senior leaders and drive meaningful outcomes
- Diverse problem space: Projects span ecommerce, retail, travel, and consumer industries
- Flexible working model: Hybrid or remote with limited, purposeful travel
- Collaborative culture: Tight-knit team that values autonomy, humility, and strong relationships
The Role
As Associate Director, CDP & Data Activation, you’ll operate across technical delivery, client advisory, and team development. This is a heavily hands-on role (~50–60% execution) with meaningful client exposure and strategic input.
You’ll report into senior leadership and work closely with cross-functional teams spanning data, marketing, and engineering. You’ll also have the opportunity to mentor and grow a small but expanding team.
What You’ll Own
Customer Data & Activation Strategy
- Design and deliver CDP strategies across composable and packaged environments
- Guide platform selection and ecosystem design based on client needs
- Build scalable activation frameworks for segmentation, personalization, and lifecycle marketing
Technical Execution
- Hands-on implementation across CDP platforms and activation tools
- Write and optimize SQL to support data modeling, segmentation, and activation
- Partner with engineering teams on data architecture and pipeline design
- Contribute to cloud data environments (Snowflake, BigQuery) and composable ecosystems
Client Leadership
- Act as a trusted advisor to Director-, VP-, and C-level stakeholders
- Translate technical concepts into clear, actionable business insights
- Lead presentations, roadmaps, and workshops
- Build and maintain long-term client relationships
Team & Practice Growth
- Mentor junior team members and support hiring/scaling efforts
- Help define best practices across CDP and data activation
- Contribute to new business conversations and pitch efforts
What We’re Looking For
Must-Haves
- 5–8 years of experience in a consultancy, agency, or similar environment
- Strong hands-on expertise with CDP platforms (e.g., Adobe Real-Time CDP, Segment, mParticle)
- Experience with composable data tools (e.g., Hightouch, Census, RudderStack, or similar)
- Advanced SQL skills and comfort working with cloud data warehouses (Snowflake preferred)
- Strong understanding of modern data architecture and MarTech ecosystems
- Proven experience working directly with clients and presenting to senior stakeholders
- Background in B2C environments (ecommerce, retail, travel, or consumer-focused sectors)
- Ability to balance technical execution with strategic thinking
Nice-to-Haves
- Exposure to both composable and traditional CDP ecosystems
- Familiarity with emerging trends like AI-driven workflows and data automation
- Experience mentoring or leading small teams
The Stack
CDPs (Adobe RT-CDP, Segment, mParticle) · Reverse ETL (Hightouch, Census, RudderStack) · Snowflake · BigQuery · SQL · Composable Architecture · Marketing Technology Ecosystems · Data Activation & Personalization
Salary : $140,000 - $160,000