Associate Director, CDP & Data Activation

Location: Denver, CO, San Diego, CA, or Remote (case-by-case basis)
Work Model: Hybrid (2 days in office per week for local candidates)
Compensation: Base Salary $130,000 - $160,000

Work Authorization: Candidates must be authorized to work in the United States. Sponsorship is not available for this role.

We are seeking an experienced Associate Director of CDP & Data Activation to join a growing practice focused on customer data strategy, composable architecture, and cross-channel personalization.

This role blends consulting, solution design, and hands-on execution. You will lead client engagements, architect activation strategies, and build audiences directly within platforms. You're equally comfortable presenting a first-party data roadmap to executive stakeholders and configuring reverse ETL pipelines. That balance is what makes this role unique.

You will work across both packaged CDPs (e.g., Adobe Real-Time CDP, Segment) and composable approaches, bringing the judgment to determine which architecture best fits a client's maturity, tech stack, and goals. Adaptability across tools, platforms, and industries is essential, as this role supports a diverse portfolio. No two engagements are the same.

Collaboration is central to success in this position. You will partner closely with teams across data collection, data engineering, user experience, CRM/lifecycle marketing, and paid media to ensure audience strategy and activation are integrated across the entire customer experience.

As this practice expands, you will also help shape its future-contributing to team development, frameworks, standards, and overall delivery excellence in customer data and activation.

• Serve as a senior strategic and technical advisor, leading client initiatives in customer experience, data strategy, personalization, and MarTech transformation
• Lead executive workshops, discovery sessions, roadmap development, and architecture discussions with senior stakeholders (VP to C-level)
• Design and oversee implementations of customer data and personalization platforms, unifying CRM, web, app, offline, and media data for real-time activation
• Develop scalable first-party data strategies and audience frameworks driving measurable performance improvements
• Own the data activation layer, including:
  • Packaged CDPs (e.g., Adobe RTCDP, Segment)
  • Composable/reverse ETL tools (e.g., Hightouch, Census, RudderStack)
  • Warehouse-to-activation pipelines
• Build and maintain audience segments, manage data flows, and configure integrations with marketing platforms
• Advise on MarTech architecture, governance, vendor selection, and operating models
• Align stakeholders, manage dependencies, and ensure successful delivery across complex engagements
• Coordinate cross-functional teams across strategy, engineering, analytics, and platform specialists
• Mentor team members in audience operations, activation QA, and omnichannel execution
• Drive innovation through reusable frameworks, scalable solutions, and process improvements
• Contribute to emerging capabilities, including AI-driven or automated activation approaches
  
  

• 5 years in CRM, customer data strategy, or MarTech consulting, including 3 years in a senior, client-facing role
• Proven experience leading large-scale digital transformation initiatives
• Strong executive presence with experience engaging VP- and C-level stakeholders
• Hands-on experience with CDPs (e.g., Adobe RTCDP, Segment, mParticle)
• Familiarity with composable/reverse ETL tools (e.g., Hightouch, Census, RudderStack)
• Experience designing solutions that unify customer data across multiple channels for personalization
• Expertise in lifecycle marketing strategy, segmentation, and omnichannel journey design
• Experience managing data integrations across ESPs (e.g., Braze, Iterable, Klaviyo), media platforms, and CRM systems
• Working knowledge of warehouse-native architectures, SQL-based models, and data pipelines (SQL proficiency required)
• Experience in MarTech vendor evaluation and building business cases for technology investments
• Knowledge of privacy regulations (e.g., GDPR, CCPA), identity resolution, and data collaboration frameworks
• Strong track record of coordinating cross-functional teams and delivering complex programs on time
• Experience mentoring and developing junior team members
• Interest or exposure to AI-driven marketing, automation, or agentic systems
• Bachelor's degree in a relevant field or equivalent experience; advanced degrees or platform certifications are a plus