Director, Data Science - Growth Products & Partnerships

Visa•Foster City, CA

1d•Hybrid

About The Position

Global Data and AI team is seeking a Director to lead analytics for the Growth Products and Partnerships (GPP) organization. This role supports both emerging product innovation (e.g., crypto, agentic systems) and strategic partnerships (e.g., Google, Meta). The Director will manage a small, agile team and partner closely with GPP leadership to deliver data-driven insights, facilitate implementation of scalable infrastructure, and AI-powered solutions that accelerate product development and partner success – all aligned with Visa’s 2030 growth initiatives. The ideal candidate is a strategic and hands-on data science leader with a passion for innovation and growth. They bring a strong technical foundation in AI/ML, a product-oriented mindset, and a proven ability to translate complex data into actionable business insights. They thrive in ambiguity, excel at cross-functional collaboration, and are energized by building new capabilities from the ground up. Experience working with Big Tech clients or in emerging domains like crypto and agentic systems is highly valued. This leader is equally comfortable mentoring a team and engaging with senior stakeholders to shape strategy and drive measurable impact.

Requirements

5 or more years of relevant work experience with a Bachelors Degree or at least 2 years of work experience with an Advanced degree (e.g. Masters, MBA, JD, MD) or 0 years of work experience with a PhD
Strong programming skills in Python and SQL, experience with ML libraries and cloud data platforms
Proven ability to translate data into business impact and influence product or partnership strategy
Excellent communication skills, able to present complex insights to technical and non-technical audiences
Demonstrated leadership in managing teams and delivering high-impact analytics in fast-paced environments
Hands-on experience with generative AI, LLMs, or agentic systems
Strong business acumen and a track record of driving measurable outcomes through data

Nice To Haves

6 or more years of work experience with a Bachelors Degree or 4 or more years of relevant experience with an Advanced Degree (e.g. Masters, MBA, JD, MD) or up to 3 years of relevant experience with a PhD
10+ years in data science or analytics in payments, fintech, or innovation-focused domains
Experience with big data tools (e.g., Spark, Hadoop, Kafka) and cloud platforms (e.g., Azure, GCP, AWS)
Familiarity with MLOps, model deployment, and data governance best practices
Prior experience with growth or innovation-focused products (e.g. cryptocurrencies, digital wallets, emerging payment technologies) or Big Tech client engagements is a strong plus.
Proven experience with AI transformation initiatives

Responsibilities

Define and execute the analytics strategy for GPP, aligned with Visa’s 2030 North Star priorities
Facilitate building data pipelines, dashboards, and reporting to track new product performance
Conduct deep-dive analyses to inform product iteration and partner engagement
Support zero-to-one product development with scalable data infrastructure and experimentation frameworks
Deliver client-ready insights and design assets to support Big Tech partnerships and commercial deal success
Apply AI/ML techniques to solve growth challenges and enhance product performance, drive AI transformation and optimization
Guide model development, validation, and deployment in collaboration with engineering and AI COE teams
Manage and mentor a high-performing team of data scientists, fostering innovation and technical excellence
Collaborate cross-functionally with Product, Engineering, Strategy, Finance, Business Development and other functions to embed analytics into decision-making