McDonalds

Sr Director, Data Engineering - Consumer Data & Analytics

McDonalds • $237K — $296K *
Consumer Technology
11 - 15 years of experience
Job Overview by Ladders

Qualifications

  • Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Engineering, or related field; advanced degree preferred.
  • 15+ years in data engineering or related technology disciplines.
  • 8+ years leading large-scale engineering organizations, including senior technical leaders.
  • Proven success in enterprise data strategies supporting customer analytics and AI initiatives.
  • Deep expertise in modern data platforms, customer data integration, and large-scale data processing technologies.
  • Strong understanding of data governance and regulatory compliance (GDPR, CCPA).
  • Exceptional communication and stakeholder management skills.

Responsibilities

  • Define and execute data engineering strategy for Consumer data domain.
  • Establish long-term vision for consumer data products and architecture.
  • Lead and develop geographically distributed data engineering teams.
  • Drive modernization initiatives for customer data accessibility and real-time streaming.
  • Oversee development of enterprise consumer data products, ensuring reliability and performance.
  • Champion customer data privacy and compliance across consumer touchpoints.
  • Partner with business leaders to leverage customer data and drive value.

Benefits

  • Comprehensive health insurance (medical, prescription, mental health, dental, vision).
  • Life insurance coverage.
  • Bonus and long-term incentive eligibility.
Full Job Description
Department Overview

The Data & Analytics team enables data-driven decision making across the enterprise by delivering scalable data platforms, advanced analytics capabilities, AI/ML foundations, and trusted data products. We empower business and technology teams with modern data infrastructure, governance, and engineering practices to transform data into actionable insights and business value.

Position Summary

We are seeking a Senior Director, Consumer Data Engineering,to lead the vision, strategy, and execution of data engineering capabilities across the Consumer domain. This leader will be responsible for building and scaling a high-performing engineering organization that develops reliable, secure, and scalable data platforms and products powering customer analytics, artificial intelligence, personalized consumer experiences, and data-driven decision-making across global markets.

The Senior Director will oversee teams responsible for Customer Data (including Customer 360, customer profiles, identity resolution, consent, and governance), Marketing Activation (including customer data platforms CDP, campaign activation pipelines, and audience syndication), and Clickstream Analytics across digital touchpoints. This leader will establish the strategic direction for consumer data engineering, drive modernization and strategic insourcing initiatives, industrialize robust data pipelines, and establish certified semantic data layers that empower business self-service while enforcing stringent customer data privacy and regulatory compliance standards.

This role partners closely with Marketing, Digital Customer Experience, Data Science, Platform Engineering, Cybersecurity, and global market business leaders to ensure the organization can effectively leverage customer data as a strategic asset. This role combines deep technical expertise, organizational leadership, operational excellence, and executive-level stakeholder management to enable consumer data transformation at enterprise scale.

Duties

Strategic Leadership & Vision
  • Define and execute the data engineering strategy, roadmap, standards, and operating model for the Consumer data domain in alignment with enterprise objectives.
  • Establish long-term vision for consumer data platforms, customer data products (e.g., Customer 360, CDP, clickstream analytics), data architecture, and engineering capabilities to support evolving marketing, digital, and personalization needs.
  • Serve as an executive advisor and thought leader on consumer data engineering strategy, customer identity architecture, data privacy, governance, and platform investments.


Organizational Leadership & Talent Development
  • Lead and develop a large, geographically distributed team of data engineering leaders, managers, architects, and engineers while fostering a culture of innovation, accountability, inclusion, and continuous improvement.
  • Drive strategic talent and insourcing initiatives, building sustainable internal engineering capability and transitioning vendor/contractor capacity into high-performing internal engineering squads.
  • Ensure effective communication and collaboration across globally distributed teams and stakeholders.


Data Platform & Architecture Strategy
  • Drive the design, implementation, and optimization of scalable data ecosystems that support customer analytics, machine learning, marketing activation, and self-service business intelligence.
  • Partner with Enterprise Architecture and Data Platform Engineering to define target-state consumer data architecture and ensure scalable solutions align with enterprise technology and cloud standards.
  • Drive modernization initiatives and technology transformations that improve customer data accessibility, identity resolution, real-time event streaming, interoperability, automation, and operational excellence.


Data Product Engineering & Operations
  • Oversee the development, industrialization, and lifecycle management of enterprise consumer data products (including Customer 360, marketing activation feeds, and clickstream analytics), ensuring reliability, scalability, observability, security, and performance.
  • Deliver robust data pipelines and certified semantic gold data layers that empower business units and markets to self-service reporting and analytics, avoiding centralized reporting bottlenecks.
  • Develop key performance indicators and operational metrics to measure platform health, pipeline freshness, service performance, quality, adoption, and business impact.


Data Governance, Security & Compliance
  • Champion customer data privacy, consent management (e.g., GDPR/CCPA compliance), data quality, metadata management, and master data management across all consumer touchpoints.
  • Ensure consumer data platforms and engineering processes are designed with resiliency, zero-trust security, privacy-by-design, and regulatory compliance requirements at the forefront.
  • Establish clear architectural boundaries and interface contracts between core engineering pipelines and data science / algorithmic modeling teams.


Business Partnership & Value Creation
  • Partner with senior business and technology leaders across MarTech, Digital Customer Experience, Loyalty, and global markets to identify opportunities to leverage customer data and accelerate business value.
  • Build strong collaboration across data science, analytics, product management, cybersecurity, infrastructure, and software engineering teams.


Qualifications

  • Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Engineering, Information Systems, or a related technical field. Advanced degree preferred.
  • 15+ years of progressive experience in data engineering, software engineering, data platform development, or related technology disciplines.
  • 8+ years of experience leading large-scale engineering organizations, including direct leadership of managers and senior technical leaders.
  • Demonstrated success developing and executing enterprise data strategies that support customer analytics, marketing activation, personalization, artificial intelligence, and business transformation initiatives.
  • Deep expertise in modern data platforms, data architecture, customer data integration (e.g., CDP, Customer 360), data warehousing, data lakes, and large-scale distributed data processing technologies.
  • Strong understanding of data product lifecycle management, engineering best practices, and platform operating models.
  • Proven experience building and scaling highly available, secure, and resilient data platforms supporting enterprise consumer workloads.
  • Extensive experience with data modeling, ETL/ELT design, data integration, and information management practices.
  • Strong knowledge of data governance, customer identity resolution, master data management, metadata management, data quality frameworks, and regulatory compliance requirements (e.g., GDPR, CCPA, consumer privacy).
  • Experience establishing engineering standards, architectural principles, operational excellence practices, and performance metrics across large organizations.
  • Strong understanding of cloud-based data ecosystems (e.g., Google Cloud Platform, AWS) and modern platform architectures.
  • Experience managing significant technology budgets, vendor relationships, and strategic technology investments.
  • Track record of successfully leading large-scale transformation programs, organizational change initiatives, or talent insourcing transitions.
  • Exceptional executive communication, stakeholder management, and influencing skills.
  • Demonstrated ability to build partnerships across business and technology organizations.
  • Strong analytical, strategic thinking, and problem-solving capabilities.


Preferred Qualifications
  • Experience supporting consumer-facing analytics, customer journey analytics, MarTech integrations (e.g., Braze, mParticle), and customer segmentation/personalization engines.
  • Experience leading global teams across multiple regions and time zones.
  • Familiarity with Agile delivery methodologies, PI planning, and modern product operating models.
  • Experience establishing data observability, monitoring, reliability, and operational excellence programs.
  • Experience with strategic talent insourcing and transitioning contractor-heavy teams to sustainable internal engineering models.
  • Experience working within large, complex, matrixed global organizations or high-volume digital consumer enterprises.
  • Relevant industry certifications in data, cloud, architecture, or technology leadership disciplines.


Compensation

Bonus Eligible: Yes

Long - Term Incentive: Yes

Benefits Eligible: Yes

Salary Range

The expected salary range for this role is $237,102 - $296,377 per year

The above represents the expected salary range for this job requisition. Ultimately, in determining your pay, we may also consider your experience, and other job-related factors.

Additional Information:

Benefits eligible: This position offers health and welfare benefits, including but not limited to comprehensive health insurance, which includes medical, prescription drug, mental health, dental and vision coverage, as well as, life insurance.

About McDonalds

McDonald's Careers

Join the vibrant team at McDonald's, a global leader in the fast-food industry, and be part of a company known for its exceptional culture and commitment to innovation and leadership. At McDonald's, we offer a range of job opportunities that cater to a variety of skills and professional aspirations, making it an ideal place to jumpstart or advance your career. Work You'll Do At McDonald's, every position is an opportunity to grow. Whether you're looking for an entry-level role or a managerial position, you'll find that McDonald's supports your career ambitions with robust training programs and growth opportunities. Our team is dedicated to helping you develop the leadership and professional skills necessary for success in any endeavor. Join our diverse team and contribute to a culture that values innovation, leadership, and diversity. McDonald's is not just a workplace but a community where you can thrive professionally and personally. McDonald's Employment Benefits Choose a career at McDonald's and enjoy a comprehensive benefits package that supports both your professional and personal life. From competitive salaries and health benefits to employee discounts and flexible schedules, McDonald's is committed to the well-being of our team members. We also offer exclusive leadership and diversity training programs that empower our employees to take on new challenges and lead with confidence. Internship Opportunities Kickstart your career with a McDonald's internship. Our internships provide invaluable workplace experience and a chance to develop essential skills in a supportive environment. Interns at McDonald's work on real projects, learn from industry leaders, and gain exposure to the operational excellence that drives our global success. Innovation at McDonald's At the heart of McDonald's culture is a drive for innovation. We continuously seek innovative solutions to enhance the dining experience of our customers and improve our operational efficiencies. By joining our team, you'll collaborate on exciting projects that push the boundaries of what's possible in the fast-food industry. Networking and Professional Development McDonald's encourages professional development and networking through various initiatives and platforms. Connect with colleagues, mentors, and industry leaders who can help you navigate your career path and achieve your professional goals. Our commitment to career development is reflected in our ongoing training programs and our proactive approach to internal promotions and hiring. Join Our Team Explore the job opportunities at McDonald's and find the position that matches your skills and interests. We are hiring creative, curious, and motivated individuals who are ready to contribute to our dynamic team. Check out our open positions and apply today to take the first step towards a rewarding career at McDonald's. Stay Connected Keep up to date with the latest career tips, company news, and industry insights—all from the people who work here at McDonald's. Subscribe to our careers blog and personalize your experience to receive updates that align with your career interests. McDonald's is more than just a company—it's a place where you can make a difference. Join us and help shape the future of the fast-food industry while building a career that you can be proud of.
Learn more about McDonalds
Size
200,000 employees
Market Cap
$194.1 billion
Industry
Net Income
$4.7 billion
Founded
1955
5 Year Trend
-1.2%
Revenue
$19.2 billion
NASDAQ

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