Senior Director, Data & Analytics

Job description

OUR COMPANY BACKGROUND & CULTURE UPP is the first pension plan of its kind in Ontario’s university sector, proudly serving over 46,000 members across six universities and nineteen sector organizations. Our purpose is to bring greater retirement peace of mind to the university sector by investing with integrity and serving members with care. As a sector-wide plan designed for growth, our doors are open to all Ontario universities. UPP is recognized as one of Greater Toronto’s Top Employers for 2026. Together, we’re a team of progressive thinkers and agile doers operating within a fast-paced culture of collaboration and respect. We believe in bringing smart and capable people together to create, solve, and grow with a clear shared vision and values of integrity, inclusivity, ingenuity, and impact. Our culture is intentionally welcoming and purposefully rooted in equity, diversity, inclusion, and reconciliation (EDI&R). We believe diverse teams, perspectives, and lived experiences contribute to better decisions and a better workplace. As a pension plan, UPP approaches investing through a long-term lens to generate and safeguard value. Our commitment to investing responsibly accounts for material risks that impact our investment portfolio to generate sufficient risk-adjusted returns to meet the pension needs of our members. Join us in building a bright future for our members, our organization, and each other. THE ROLE We are seeking a forward-looking Senior Director, Data & Analytics to lead and evolve UPP’s enterprise data capabilities. Reporting to the Managing Director, Data and Technology, this role will work with business and technology leaders to improve how data is governed, integrated, managed and used across UPP. Its scope includes data in UPP’s enterprise data hub and across the broader cloud solutions ecosystem, including Google Cloud Platform (GCP). The Senior Director will help ensure data is trusted, accessible and fit for business reporting, analytics, automation and emerging AI workloads. This is an opportunity for an experienced data leader to shape an important enterprise capability and help UPP make better use of its data as the organization grows. This role is based in downtown Toronto under a hybrid work policy, allowing employees the flexibility to work remotely and in-office (two days per week in-office). This posting is for an existing vacancy. SPECIFIC ACCOUNTABILITIES The Senior Director, Data & Analytics will lead and evolve UPP’s data capabilities, including the following: • Develop and evolve UPP’s enterprise data strategy and practices so data is well governed, reliable, discoverable and useful across the organization. • Lead and develop a high-performing team responsible for data quality, data engineering, data integration, data operations and analytics enablement. • Establish data standards and practices in partnership with business data owners, Architecture, Cybersecurity and other technology teams. • Guide the use of cloud-based data capabilities, including GCP, to support reliable data integration, reporting and analytics. Improve data quality, access, lineage and governance so data is ready for responsible automation and AI workloads, in partnership with the teams accountable for AI platforms, architecture, privacy and cybersecurity. • Partner with business and technology leaders to prioritize data needs and enable trusted, data-informed decisions. Establish the access patterns, tools, standards, training and controls that allow business users, including citizen data users, to work with data safely and at scale. • Improve the reliability, quality, reuse and maintainability of data integration and transformation flows that support key processes, including pension data conversion, regular employer reporting, and Finance reporting and analysis. • Leverage leading frameworks (such as DCAM) to continually mature and evolve the data strategy and frequently self-asses the capabilities for progress • Define and communicate data priorities, target capabilities and roadmaps, aligning plans with enterprise needs and available capacity. • Research and establish peer connections to understand industry trends and their applicability to support data plans and strategies for the enterprise • Explain the value of trusted data and sound data management practices to technical and non-technical audiences. • Oversee UPP’s data catalog and related metadata practices, working with Architecture and data owners to improve data discoverability and stewardship. • Contribute to UPP’s reputation as a respectful employer, partner, and participant in the financial sector QUALIFICATIONS & EXPERIENCE • 10+ years of demonstrated experience developing and leading enterprise data capabilities, including data governance, data engineering, integration, data operations and analytics. • CDMP (Certified Data Management Professional) or an equivalent qualification is an asset. • Significant progressive experience in data management, including data governance, architecture, integration, data quality, metadata and analytics. • Experience leading data teams or capabilities in a cloud-based environment, with sufficient technical understanding of data platforms, databases, integration and transformation tools, analytics and visualization to set direction and make informed decisions. Experience with GCP or comparable cloud data platforms is an asset. • Understanding of relational and non-relational data and the considerations involved in integrating and governing different data types. • Experience working across complex business domains; experience in pensions, investments or financial services is an asset. • Experience designing and evolving cloud-based data capabilities in partnership with internal teams and external service providers. • Working knowledge of analytics methods and the interpretation of quantitative information. ATTRIBUTES • Excellent written and verbal communications • Ability to design and improve repeatable data practices • Ability to drive outcomes through collaboration across teams and contributors • Ability to engage and align business users, data owners and technology partners. • Ability to effectively identify emerging technologies, trends, standards, and products that have a strong potential to better enable UPP business units • Ability to enable consistent, governed data use at scale. LIFE AT UPP Do work that matters. We are duty-bound to serve our members’ interests, and it’s a responsibility we don’t take lightly. That’s why we’ve ingrained sustainability in our work from day one—to ensure our members have a resilient future to retire into, both today and for generations to come. Stronger together. Collaboration is how UPP was born, and it’s how we work with each other and our partners day in, day out. No one at UPP is just a number (even if they are excellent at math) and every win is a shared win. Grow every day. You’ll have the opportunity to work on unique, once-in-a-career projects that maximize your skill set and probably teach you some new ones—at any stage in your career. Prioritize wellness. At UPP, wellness takes many forms. Ultimately, it’s about ensuring our people are cared for in the ways that matter to them. Check out some highlights of our inclusive employee-focused benefits program including: • Defined benefit pension plan • Flexible hybrid work model • Paid time off – vacations, personal days and wellness days • Work remotely up to eight weeks/year • Comprehensive group benefits including medical, dental, vision, etc. • Extended paramedical and mental health service coverage • Health care and lifestyle spending accounts • Fertility treatments, paid parental leave, and gender affirmation coverage • Education Assistance program This posting will remain open for a minimum of seven (7) days and will remain open until a sufficient number of qualified applications are received or finalist candidates have been identified. Artificial intelligence (AI) tools may be used to support certain stages of the recruitment process, including sourcing, screening, and assessment. All hiring decisions involve human review and intervention by UPP employees. UPP enthusiastically welcomes applications from all qualified applicants and especially invites people with lived experience as an Indigenous person, a person with a disability or as a member of another Human Rights Code protected group that faces barriers to employment to apply. Our goal is to create a barrier-free experience for every candidate throughout the recruitment process. UPP respects your privacy. For information on how UPP handles the personal information you provide during the application process, please see our Job Applicant Privacy Statement.